Empowering Families

Southend-on-Sea City Council are looking to award to a single supplier to deliver a volunteer mentor service for vulnerable families in the Southend-on-Sea City area. The contract duration is as follows: 1st June 2026 - 31st March 2028 (with option to extend to up to 31st March 2029). The provider will deliver Empowering Families Service using community volunteers to mentor vulnerable families, as part of a whole-family approach to facilitate change, improve wellbeing, build resilience and empower families. The service will work with families identified by children's services, most of the families will have children who are known to children's social care either as a Child in Need or with a Child Protection Plan. The community volunteer mentors will offer focused interventions to vulnerable children, young people and their families to contribute to improved health and wellbeing, education, employment, training, housing and finance outcomes. Developing their emotional, educational, and social skill to build resilience and be empowered. Mentors will offer guidance and support to identified families they are matched with to develop skills and confidence to improve their circumstances. The Service Provider will recruit, train and develop sufficient volunteers to provide Volunteer Mentors for a minimum of 50 vulnerable families across a 12-month period. The number of matched mentors and families may increase dependent on demand and changing needs. The expectation is that volunteer mentors will commit to at least one year of weekly engagement with the Service Provider. They will have at least one contact with a family in any given week of an average engagement, dependent on identified needs and the family's progress.