16-029 Talking Therapy

The Talking Therapies Provider/s will deliver an effective; evidence based, talking/psychological therapy service to employees of the Council, including schools, and other employers who buy into the RMBC Human Resources service. This service is offered to employees as part of the Council's overall approach to employee wellbeing and resilience along with improved general health and employee engagement. As a minimum, the therapies required are Counselling and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. It is acceptable for a Provider to specialise and provide only one of these therapies, in which case more than one contract will be awarded. In addition, the Council is interested in knowing about any other interventions the Provider has experience of e.g. mediation, coaching or group work. It is expected that the majority of this service will be provided in a face-to-face format, although the Council will consider other options such as E-CBT which has a strong evidence base e.g. has been approved by NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) which may be suitable for some employees. This service will complement an existing telephone / website based 24 hour helpline which is available to all employees. Whilst this service includes the option of six (1 hour) counselling sessions, take up of this form of counselling has traditionally been low but is being encouraged