Care tender writing for UK care providers
We write the bids that win care providers public contracts and framework places, across every CQC and Ofsted sub-segment. Each response is built around how your service actually runs and written to the buyer's scoring grid. We check you qualify for free before you pay a penny.
Specialist bids, not a generalist template
Care tenders are scored on the things a commissioner worries about: safe staffing, real continuity, and evidence that your service does what it claims. Generic answers leak marks.
We only write for UK care providers, so we know what each buyer expects, whether it is a council home care framework, an NHS continuing healthcare contract, or an Ofsted-regulated children's home. We write to the specific buyer, not a reused bid.
And we are honest before you spend anything. If we do not think you can win, we tell you, and we do not take your money. That is why our win rate is 96%.
Every care specialism, under one brand
Pick your service to see how we win that kind of bid, and the questions commissioners ask.
Domiciliary care tender writing
Supported living tender writing
Residential care tender writing
Nursing home tender writing
Continuing healthcare tender writing
Mental health tender writing
Learning disability tender writing
Autism specialist tender writing
Children's services tender writing
Substance Misuse Tender Writing tender writing
Domestic Abuse Service Tender Writing tender writing
Supported Housing Tender Writing tender writing
Fostering Agency Tender Writing tender writing
Advocacy Service Tender Writing tender writing
Homelessness Support Tender Writing tender writing
How it works
- 1
Send us a tender, or ask for live ones
Text us a tender you have spotted, or ask for current UK care tenders that fit your service.
- 2
We check eligibility, free
We pull out every criterion, minimum turnover, CQC rating, contract examples, and tell you straight whether you qualify.
- 3
You decide, then we write
If you qualify and want to go ahead, we agree a fixed fee and write the whole bid around your service.
- 4
You sign off, we submit
You review every section. Nothing is submitted without your approval, on the deadline, on the portal.
How care tendering works in the UK
A care tender is the formal process a council, NHS body or other public buyer runs to choose the providers it will fund. You answer their questions, they score your answers, and the highest scorers win the work or a place on the list. Here is how that runs, start to finish.
Where care tenders are published
Higher value opportunities go up on the Find a Tender Service, the central UK portal. Lower value contracts in England appear on Contracts Finder. Most day to day care work, though, is run through council procurement portals such as ProContract and Due North, with NHS opportunities often on Atamis, and others on In-Tend or Jaggaer.
Each portal needs its own supplier account and its own watching. That is part of why providers miss tenders: the right one is sitting on a portal they never log into. When you ask us for live tenders, we look across these sources for work that fits your service.
Framework, DPS or single contract
Care work is bought in three main shapes. A framework is a closed list of approved providers, set up after one competition, that buyers call off work from for a fixed term. A dynamic purchasing system, or DPS, stays open the whole time, so you can join whenever you are ready. A single contract is one named piece of work, awarded once.
The shape changes your strategy. A DPS rewards getting on early and staying ready. A framework is a single window you cannot afford to miss. A single contract is winner takes the lot. The comparison table below sets out how each one works.
The typical timeline, publication to award
Most UK care tenders stay open four to eight weeks from publication to the submission deadline. After that the buyer scores every bid, which commonly takes a few more weeks, then notifies the winners and runs a short standstill period before contracts are signed.
That open window sounds generous, but the documents are long and the questions are detailed, so the time goes quickly. We usually write a full bid in about a week once we have what we need, which leaves room for your sign-off before the deadline.
The CQC and Ofsted rating gate
Most care tenders set a rating threshold before they look at anything else. CQC rates services Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement or Inadequate, and frameworks usually gate on Good or above as a straight pass or fail. Children's homes and 16+ supported accommodation are regulated by Ofsted under the Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023, not CQC, and have their own thresholds.
If you do not meet the gate, the quality of your writing cannot save the bid. That is the first thing our free eligibility check confirms, so you never write a bid you cannot pass on eligibility.
How bids are scored
Under the Procurement Act 2023, contracts are awarded on the most advantageous tender, or MAT, which blends quality, social value and price. Quality and price are commonly split around 60/40 or 70/30, and quality-led care contracts can run as high as 90/10. Each quality question has its own weighting and a scoring scale, often zero to four or zero to five.
Writing to the grid means putting the most effort into the questions that carry the most marks, answering exactly what is asked, and backing every claim with evidence the scorer can verify. Generic answers leak marks against this kind of structured scoring.
Social value
Social value is the wider benefit your service brings beyond the care itself: local jobs, training, supporting the local economy, and reducing inequality. It is usually weighted somewhere between 10 and 30 percent of the total score, often measured against the National TOMs framework, so it can decide a close result.
The strongest social value answers are specific and deliverable, tied to the actual area the contract serves, not a list of good intentions. We write commitments you can stand behind and that the buyer can measure.
Framework, DPS and single contract compared
The same care service can be bought in three different ways, and each one changes how you get the work.
| Framework | DPS | Single contract | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How you enter | One competition, by a fixed deadline. Closed once awarded. | Open the whole term. Apply and join at any time. | One bid for one named contract, awarded once. |
| How work comes to you | Buyers call off work from the approved list, often by mini-competition. | Buyers run further competitions among members as need arises. | The full contract goes to the winning provider. |
| Best for | Providers ready now who can commit to a multi-year window. | Newer or growing providers who want to get on early and build up. | Providers targeting one specific service or area. |
| Typical care examples | Council home care framework, supported living framework. | Supported living DPS, complex care DPS. | A single residential placement, one reablement contract. |
Guides to help you bid
Plain-English guides to the parts of care tendering providers ask about most.
Care tender writing by region
We write for care providers across England. See the councils and commissioners active in your area.
Care tender writing: common questions
What is care tender writing?
Care tender writing is preparing the written bid a care provider submits to win a public contract or a place on a framework. It covers the method statements, quality and social value responses, and the supporting evidence, all written to the buyer's exact scoring grid. We do this only for UK care providers, across CQC and Ofsted-regulated services.
How much does it cost to write a care tender?
Your first tender with us is £795, then £3,000 per tender after that. First-time clients committing upfront can take three tenders for £2,385. There are no monthly retainers, no success fees, and no hidden costs. We run a free eligibility check before you pay anything.
Which care services do you write tenders for?
Domiciliary and home care, supported living, residential and nursing homes, continuing healthcare, mental health, learning disability, autism specialist, and Ofsted-regulated children's services. Every sub-segment under one specialist brand, not a generalist agency.
Do you only work with high-rated providers?
No, but many frameworks require a CQC rating of Good or above as a pass or fail line. The free eligibility check tells you up front whether your rating and track record qualify for a given tender, so you never write a bid you cannot pass on eligibility.
How long does a care tender take to write?
Usually about a week once payment lands and you have sent us what we need. Most UK care tenders close three to six weeks after publication, so there is normally enough room. Tell us early if your deadline is tight.
What is the difference between a framework and a DPS?
A framework is a closed list of approved providers, set up after a single competition, that buyers then call off work from for a fixed term, often four years. A dynamic purchasing system, or DPS, stays open the whole time, so you can apply and join at any point. A single contract is one named piece of work, awarded once. Frameworks and DPS both put you in the pool that commissioners pick from. We check which type each tender is in the free eligibility check.
How much do social value and price count towards the score?
Care tenders are awarded on the most advantageous tender, which blends quality, social value and price. Quality and price are commonly split around 60/40 or 70/30, and quality-led care contracts can go as high as 90/10. Social value is usually weighted somewhere between 10 and 30 percent of the total, often measured against the National TOMs framework. We write every scored section to the exact weighting in your tender, so effort goes where the marks are.
How does the Procurement Act 2023 change care tenders?
The Procurement Act 2023 came into force on 24 February 2025 and replaced the old Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The award basis is now the most advantageous tender, which gives buyers more room to weight quality and social value rather than chasing the lowest price. The central notices still go up on the Find a Tender Service, with lower value England contracts on Contracts Finder. We write to the rules as they stand now, not the old framework.
Got a care tender on your desk?
Send it over and we'll tell you free whether you'd qualify, before you spend a penny. £795 for your first tender.