Decision details

Section 23ZB of the Children’s Act 1989 as amended by Children and Young Persons Act 2008 states “(1) A local authority looking after a child must appoint an independent person to be the child’s visitor if – (a) the child falls within a description prescribed in regulations made by the appropriate national authority; or (b) in any other case, it appears to them that it would be in the child’s interests to do so. (2) A person appointed under this section must visit, befriend and advise the child.” The award of the new contract will enable Bristol City Council to meet this statutory duty.
The role of an Independent Visitor is to befriend and advise these children and contribute towards their social, emotional and educational development. Independent visitors take an active interest in the lives, hopes and concerns of young people and are there to listen, empower and help. Volunteers can make a real difference to a young person by sharing a hobby, sport or interest. They can help with school or college work or assist in other areas of activity important in the child’s life.
Through providing Independent Visitors, the specific outcomes required for children and young people are that:
1.Children and young people in care feel listened to;
2.Children and young people in care feel supported;
3.The collective voices of Bristol’s children and young people in care should also be used to inform the design, delivery and evaluation of services to children and young people by the Authority and partner agencies.
The service will be required to work with at least 75 children in care who are most at need. We will commit to a minimum £100,000 spend per year but will have scope to expand the service through accessing additional funding of up to £20,000 per annum.
This is additional flexible funding is being introduced so that the service can also work with a number of Care Leavers. This additional funding will be of an ad-hoc nature, agreed with the provider annually based on the number of care leavers referred into the service and solely at the discretion of the Council.

The council has run a compliant open tender process to commission a provider for the provision of an Independent Visitor service for children in care and care leavers. The decision is to award the contract to the successful tenderer for an initial term of two years, with the option to extend for a further two years in yearly increments, up to a total maximum cost of £480,000.

No other options considered - the current contract is due to expire 31st July 2021 and Bristol City Council has a statutory duty to provide the service.