NHS England wishes to commission providers of Healthcare Services to provide all-age Liaison and Diversion Services within Custody Settings across the North East of England. The Services will be divided geographically by police area into 3 lots:

Lot 1 — Northumbria,

Lot 2 — Durham,

Lot 3 — Cleveland.

Liaison and Diversion (‘L&D’) Services exist to identify offenders who have mental health, learning disability or substance misuse vulnerabilities when they first come into contact with the criminal justice system.

These services identify mental health issues and vulnerabilities that offenders may have so that they can either be supported through the criminal justice system pathway or diverted into a treatment, social care service or other relevant intervention or support service.

L&D Services aim to improve health outcomes, reduce re-offending and identify vulnerabilities earlier, thus reducing the likelihood that offenders will reach crisis point.

The service should be accessible at the earliest stage once an individual is suspected of having committed a criminal offence, be available at the point of need and be available at, but not be limited to, the following locations:

— Police engagement with children and young people in community settings, including restorative justice;

— Police custody suites;

— Voluntary attendees at police stations (or other prosecuting authorities);

— Magistrates' courts;

— Youth courts;

— The Crown court;

— Probation services;

— Youth offending teams.