Temporary Accommodation Providers - Market Engagement Exercise

Three Essex local authorities (Tendring District Council, Castle Point Borough Council, and Braintree District Council) are seeking expressions of interest from accommodation providers ahead of a planned procurement. The authorities are exploring a flexible framework approach to source various types of temporary accommodation, including supported and unsupported accommodation, block bookings, private sector leasing, and hotels/bed and breakfast. The framework is expected to have three lots (one per authority) and may be expanded with additional geographical lots or categories during future refresh periods. The framework will be periodically reopened to allow new providers to join, ensuring the authorities can meet their statutory obligations to maintain sufficient placement capacity and geographic coverage. This current market engagement exercise aims to gather supplier feedback on the proposed approach, understand provider capabilities and innovative delivery models, and inform the development of specifications and procurement strategy based on market conditions and best practice. This exercise does not commit the authorities to any specific contract model, value, duration, or procurement route.