Provider contracts toolkit

Our ways of working

See the council's plans and priorities for inclusive growth, health, care and wellbeing and efficient and effective public services.

We also show how we approach adult social care with our model of working called Supporting Lives, Connecting Communities (SLCC) and what you can expect from adult care.

Equality, diversity & inclusion

In accordance with the Council’s Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) under the Equality Act 2010, Adult Social Care (ASC) will work together with providers of care to support the principles of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. The PSED requires public authorities to have due regard to:

• Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Act.
• Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not, and
• Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

Incident reporting

We are requesting that you use the online provider incident reporting form below to report incidents that occur within your establishment that do not require a Safeguarding Concern to be raised. This process is purely to report information regarding incidents that you have considered are not a safeguarding concern and do not require a time critical response. 

Before completing the form, please check the Suffolk Safeguarding Adults Framework and Raising an Adult Safeguarding Concern Guidance to ensure this is an incident and not a Safeguarding concern. All safeguarding concerns should be reported in the usual way.

Once you have submitted the details of the incident it will be reviewed by ASC, if for any reason we feel this should be reported as a safeguarding you will be informed and ask to submit a referral in the normal way. We are aware in some cases incidents may not be regarding individuals, in these cases please input ‘N/A’ into the mandatory service user boxes. 

Contract documents

Service delivery supporting documentation

Training and opportunities for providers not accredited with Suffolk County Council can be found here:

Digital Social Care Records (DSCR)

Digital Social Care Records (DSCR) Programme Closure & Ongoing Support

The Digital Social Care Records (DSCR) programme officially ended on 31st March 2025. As a result, no further funding is available to providers at this time.

If you are a provider who has already been awarded funding and are awaiting your final payment, please get in touch using the contact details below.

While the funding element of the programme has concluded, we remain committed to supporting providers through the remainder of the process. This includes the provision of continued support for DSCR-related queries and challenges.

In the meantime, we kindly ask all providers to complete and update their responses to the DSCR question in both the Provider Information Return (PIR) and Capacity Tracker.

Support and Guidance with PIR, Capacity Tracker & DSCR

We are here to support you not only with your PIR and Capacity Tracker submissions but also with any questions or ongoing needs related to your DSCR journey. If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to get in touch:

Gina Trimble – Provider Liaison Manager

Tel: 07874 795569 

Email: Georgina.trimble@snee.nhs.uk

Alternative email: dscr@suffolk.gov.uk

Local Business Development

There are a number of organisations in Suffolk that are able to work with you to develop your business.

• Care Development East provides information, advice guidance and training, supporting health and social care. 
• Menta provide business advice, masterclasses, seminars and networking opportunities for new, emerging and established businesses and those considering self-employment. 
• Suffolk Care Association (SCA) offers help, information, advice and guidance to providers of all types of care services in Suffolk. 

ICARE campaign

Community Social Care branding to add alongside your existing logos.

Business failure procedure

This is what will happen if a care provider suddenly finds itself unable to care for its customers. 

Locality Homecare and Support Framework

Since September 2019, Adult and Community Services have been commissioning home care and support through its locality framework. Providers working within this framework can refer to the information below. 

Use the table and parish-level map to identify applicable prices.

This strategy sets out our vision for the Care and Support Market in Suffolk. It has been established as a 3-year strategy for the period 2021/22 to 2023/24 and aligns with Suffolk County Council’s Corporate priorities.

Suffolk Marketplace

The information and data included within these appendices is intended to underpin and substantiate the aspirations developed within the Care and Support Market Sustainability Strategy. The data is correct to the best of our knowledge at February 2021.