Clinical-waste collection services

Tender description

NHS England wishes to establish a National Framework Agreement for the provision of Clinical Waste Services for General Practitioners (GPs) and Pharmacies across England. The framework will consolidate the existing fragmented services under an improved and standardised delivery model. NHS England is responsible for arranging the collection and disposal of both the clinical waste from GP Practices and the patient returned medicines from pharmacies. GP Practices who do not have their clinical waste collections arranged by NHS England can claim reimbursement of those costs under Paragraph 46 of the NHS (General Medical Services — Premises Costs) Directions 2013. The disposal of unwanted medicines is 1 of the Essential Services offered by all pharmacy contractors as part of the NHS Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework, it is therefore the responsibility for NHS England to ensure pharmacies are able to provide this service by arranging suitable waste collection and disposal provision. The framework will be procured and administered at a national level with a strong focus on local delivery. For this reason, the framework is split into 4 Regional Lots in line with the NHS England regional boundaries: https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/regional-area-teams/ Suppliers are able to bid for 1 or multiple Lots. This procurement aims to reduce the replication of effort, whereby NHS England and other Contracting Authorities (such as Local Authorities) are looking to procure Clinical Waste Services. Given that the majority of the clinical waste that is collected on behalf of NHS England and or Local Authorities is fairly common and consistent, this framework is designed in a way that other Contracting Authorities can award and manage their own call-off contracts based on their own needs. Through the sharing of resources, knowledge and experience across the NHS and Local Authorities, the aim is to provide a comprehensive framework that drives uptake through collaboration of the contracting authorities. The following Contracting Authorities (including any future successor organisation(s) to the functions exercised by any such organisations) are entitled to place Orders: — The National Health Service Commissioning Board (known as NHS England) and all bodies hosted by The National Health Service Commissioning Board; and — Any other Health Service Body as defined at section 9 National Health Service Act 2006, including but not limited to any: (i) Clinical Commissioning Group; (ii) NHS Trust; (iii) Special Health Authority; (iv) The Care Quality Commission; (v) National Institute for Health Care Excellence, known as NICE; (vi) The Health and Social Care Information Centre; (vii) The Secretary of State; (viii) relevant Welsh health service bodies; — NHS Foundation Trusts; — Academic Health Science Networks; — The NHS Trust Development Authority; — Monitor; — Health Education England including Local Education and Training Boards (LETB) constituted as committees of Health Education England; — NHS Health Research Authority; — The Department of Health; — Executive agencies of the Department of Health including but not limited to Public Health England, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency and the National Institute of Health Research; — Arms-Length Bodies of the Department of Health not otherwise listed above including but not limited to NHS Blood and Transplant, NHS Business Services Authority, NHS Litigation Authority, Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, and the Human Tissue Authority; — Any provider of primary medical services under a GMS, PMS or APMS contract; — All Local Authorities, as defined under section 1 the Local Government Act 2000 including Health and Well Being Boards established by any Local Authority; and — All Statutory Waste Disposal Authorities.