Invitation to tender: Connect to Work – Individual placement and support pathway, Oxfordshire

Enterprise Oxfordshire, alongside Oxfordshire Employment, is supporting the Oxfordshire Connect to Work programme, together with Oxfordshire County Council, with funding provided from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

The Connect to Work programme will take a collaborative, locally-led approach to tackling ‘hidden unemployment’. It will help connect local work, health and skills support.

The funding provides a coherent, systematic and joined up approach to maximise the benefits available for individuals and local communities.

Connect to Work is the first major element in the new Get Britain Working Strategy which aims to support people into good, sustainable work. It is a voluntary programme to help tackle economic inactivity by providing a specific form of support targeted at the right people at the right time, based on their individual circumstances.

Tender details:

Enterprise Oxfordshire will be responsible for the delivery of the Individual Placement Support (IPS) pathway in conjunction with local-centric delivery partner(s) who will be procured and managed by Enterprise Oxfordshire through this procurement.

Enterprise Oxfordshire will manage fidelity on behalf of its own delivery and that of its delivery partner(s), retaining team leader and programme manager resource to ensure quality and project and participant management as well as being responsible for finance, administration, compliance, etc. for the IPS pathway.

We anticipate that 1,400 to 1,500 participants will be supported through the IPS pathway over the duration of the project.

Enterprise Oxfordshire has £3,657,233 to procure the IPS pathway Employment Advisor delivery.
Contracts will run from November 2025 to 31 March 2030, with an optional 12 to 24 month extension period.

Prospective supplier event – 7 August, 3pm:

Prospective suppliers were invited to attend an informative session on this opportunity, hosted by Enterprise Oxfordshire on 7 August.

Below are supporting slides from the event that interested parties are welcome to download.

DOWNLOAD: Prospective supplier event, 7 August: Supporting slides

Submissions timetable:

Please note a revised version of the ITT and submission timeline has been uploaded.

The changes are:

Deadline for submission and subsequent timescales updated due to material changes of ITT following receipt of additional recommendations to ensure IPS fidelity. Changes include:
– Additional requirement for supplier to manage facilitation of additional participant costs.
– Increased direct staff cost budget to allow to enable provision of such facilitation
– Clarity around staffing requirements in line with fidelity clarifications
Commencement for IPS Pathway activity now expected to be January 2026 to allow more time for mobilisation following contracting in November 2025.

Updated timetable:

3 October – the deadline for any queries in relation to this tender has been extended to this date
17 October, 11am – proposals to be submitted to: connecttowork@enterpriseoxfordshire.com
10 November – suppliers will be notified
20 November – standstill period ends
24 November – contract and commencement

As listed above, it’s anticipated that the supplier will be contracted in November 2025 with delivery completed by 31 March 2030.

There is scope for a 12 to 24-month extension taking final close to a latest date of 31 March 2032.

A full timetable can be found in the invitation to tender document below.

Invitation to Tender document:

DOWNLOAD: Invitation to Tender: Connect to Work
DOWNLOAD: Connect to Work, clarification Q&As (Uploaded 09.10.2025)

Associated documents: