Specialist Mental Health Outreach Service for Rough Sleepers

Concepts

• health and social work
• catford
• rough sleepers
• service sustainability
• health inequalities
• a dedicated mental health multidisciplinary outreach service
• a specialist mental health outreach service
• specialist mental health outreach service
• borough-wide service mapping
• the dual diagnosis homeless outreach practitioner

Location

Catford

Description

This notice is for the direct award of a 12-month contract to South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) to deliver the Lewisham START Team, a specialist mental health outreach service for rough sleepers. The service will be funded through the in-year Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant (RSPARG) increased allocation, alongside contributions from South East London (SEL) RSPARG and existing funding for the Dual Diagnosis Homeless Outreach Practitioner. The service will provide trauma-informed, multidisciplinary care aligned with NICE guidance and national homelessness priorities. The START Team will address a critical gap in provision identified through borough-wide service mapping. Under the Provider Selection Regime, officers utilised the Direct Award Process A to identify the provider. The annual contract value will be £269,932 for the duration of the 12 month contract. This notice is placed to set out Lewisham Council's award of contract under the Direct Award Process A of the Provider Selection Regime.

Total Quantity or Scope

Lewisham is one of the few South East London boroughs without a dedicated mental health multidisciplinary outreach service for rough sleepers. Neighbouring boroughs such as Lambeth and Greenwich benefit from established START and RAMP teams respectively, offering integrated care across health and housing systems. The START Team for Lewisham, to be delivered by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM), directly responds to this gap. It will expand the DD HOP model into a full multidisciplinary team, incorporating consultant psychiatry, care coordinators, and support workers. The service will be embedded within the existing START framework operating in Lambeth, Southwark, and Croydon, and will deliver trauma-informed, NICE-compliant care to rough sleepers across Lewisham. The key criteria that was used for selection was: 1. Quality and innovation; 2. Value; 3. Integration, collaboration, and service sustainability; 4. Improving access, reducing health inequalities, and facilitating choice; 5. Social Value This is an award notice under the Direct Award Process A of the Provider Selection Regime.

Award Detail

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 85000000 - Health and social work services

Indicators

• Award on basis of price.

Legal Justification

This contract will be awarded under the PSR Direct Award Process A, which permits a direct award where: •There is an existing provider of healthcare services to which the proposed contracting arrangements relate •The authority is satisfied that the provider is the only provider that can provide the services •The type of service means that there is no realistic alternative to existing provider. Lewisham Council has determined that SLaM is the only possible provider as the following PSR Direct Award Process A conditions have been met: •Is there an existing provider or group of providers? SLaM currently run the DD HOP post, the START team will be the expanded full service from the DD HOP. •Does the nature of the service mean that there is no realistic alternative to the current provider or group of providers? The service must be run by a statutory NHS mental health service to be able to carry out the core functions of the work. SLaM is the local mental health NHS trust and so is there only suitable provider

Other Information

The START Team will address a critical gap in provision identified through borough-wide service mapping and will be awarded under Direct Award Process A of the Provider Selection Regime (PSR). The service will provide trauma-informed, multidisciplinary care aligned with NICE guidance and national homelessness priorities. Award decisions have been recommended by the Commissioning Manager of Supported Housing with the key decision maker being Executive Director of Adult Social Care and Health. There have been no declared conflicts or potential conflicts of interest recorded regarding this contract.