Tender: Lewisham Council Borough-wide Integrated Advice Service for Welfare, Debt, Housing and Immigration

About

Lewisham Council is seeking a supplier for a single, integrated borough-wide Advice Service to provide information, advice and guidance on welfare benefits, debt, housing, immigration and wider cost-of-living pressures. The service must support financial resilience and wellbeing through timely, high-quality advice that helps residents maximise income, manage debt, secure housing and avoid escalation into crisis; provide accessible, multi-channel access maintaining high-volume routes such as telephone and digital alongside face-to-face and outreach provision; reach those most in need through targeted outreach and early intervention, particularly for residents facing barriers to access; and build community capacity by acting as a strategic lead for borough-wide, community-led advice, working in partnership with smaller and specialist VCS organisations and offering capacity-building support such as 'advice first aid'. The estimated contract value is up to £950,000 per annum for an initial two-year term from April 2027, with an option to extend up to a maximum of three years subject to funding availability and performance.