CPV 853 – Social Work and Related Services

What does CPV 853 cover?

CPV group 853 covers social work and social services in their full breadth. These include youth welfare and child protection measures, advisory services for families, individuals, and older people, debt and insolvency counselling, care and support for people with disabilities, homelessness services and emergency accommodation, addiction counselling and therapy, and supported living for people with mental health conditions. Refugee social work, migration advisory services, and street outreach services also fall under CPV 853.

Municipalities and rural districts are the central contracting authorities. As providers of social assistance, child and youth welfare (SGB VIII), and participation support (SGB IX), they procure extensive social services from non-statutory providers. The award of social services has a particular tradition in Germany: the subsidiarity principle gives recognised welfare organisations a preferential position, though this is increasingly questioned under EU procurement law.

Current procurement themes include the housing and support of refugees, services for social participation under the Federal Participation Act (BTHG), youth welfare measures for unaccompanied minors, and digital advisory services and crisis lines as supplements to residential services. Further information on the CPV system is available from the European Commission (SIMAP) and Regulation (EC) No 213/2008.

Typical Services in CPV 853

Examples of Tenders with CPV 853

• Youth welfare for unaccompanied minors: A youth welfare office tenders residential care services in supported accommodation for up to 40 unaccompanied minor asylum seekers — with round-the-clock educational supervision, school and training support, and specialist trauma counselling.
• Outpatient participation support under SGB IX: A rural district procures outpatient specialist support hours for people with intellectual disabilities for up to 50,000 hours per year — with needs assessment, participation planning, and regular reporting.
• Homeless shelter with social advisory: A municipality tenders the operation of emergency accommodation for 80 homeless individuals — with 24/7 support, social advisory, house rules management, and transition management into permanent housing.

Current tenders with CPV 853 are published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and on national procurement platforms.

Who is CPV 853 relevant for?

Public Contracting Authorities

Municipalities, rural districts, youth welfare offices, social services offices, and participation support authorities are the most important contracting authorities. As providers of social assistance and youth welfare, they award extensive service contracts to non-statutory providers. Federal authorities such as BAMF also procure social care services for refugees.

Companies and Bidders

Welfare organisations (Diakonie, Caritas, AWO, DRK, Paritätischer), non-profit social enterprises, and specialist social service providers are the typical bidders. Recognised provider status under SGB VIII or SGB XII, professional social work qualifications of personnel, child safeguarding concepts, and quality management systems are regular requirements. Further information on eligibility requirements and procurement procedures is available from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

How does Bond help with CPV 853?

Tender Match – Automatically Find Tenders (CPV 853)

With tender.match, social enterprises and welfare organisations automatically receive all relevant tenders with CPV 853 directly in their dashboard. BOND indexes tenders from over 1,000 procurement portals in the EU – from TED to national platforms and regional contracting authorities. Instead of manually searching dozens of portals every day, matching social service contracts are filtered and delivered by sector, competency, region, and organisation profile. An automated gap analysis immediately shows where the organisation meets the requirements and where gaps exist. This ensures organisations never miss a deadline and can focus on preparing their bids.

Company Match – Find the Right Partners (CPV 853)

For organisations looking for subcontractors or consortium partners for social projects, company.match provides direct access to qualified firms from an EU-wide database of over 28 million companies. Especially for larger social service contracts that a single organisation cannot handle alone, company.match automatically identifies suitable partners for bidding consortia and partial services – increasing the chances of winning the contract.

Frequently Asked Questions about CPV 853

Are social services subject to competitive tendering?

Yes, where the contracting authority is a public body within the meaning of the Act Against Restraints of Competition (GWB) and the contract value exceeds the relevant threshold. Social services listed in Annex XIV of EU Directive 2014/24/EU are subject to Section 130 GWB — with an elevated threshold of €750,000 and a simplified, flexible procedure. Details are governed by the VgV.

Can recognised welfare organisations be given preferential treatment?

The subsidiarity principle of German social law is increasingly in tension with EU procurement law. Municipalities can no longer automatically prefer recognised welfare providers — once the threshold is exceeded, a competitive procedure must be conducted. Below the threshold there is more flexibility under the UVgO.

How do I find tenders with CPV 853?

Tenders are published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) for EU-wide procedures for national procedures. Bond automatically aggregates all relevant tenders from over 1,000 portals and delivers them filtered by organisation profile.