Health and social work services

Tender description

NHS England and NHS Improvement South East (NHSE/I) seeks Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from providers who have the capability and capacity to deliver an 8 bed adult eating disorder service for the population of, and within, South East England. NHS E/I anticipate that a 1 year contract will be entered into, with the option to extend for up to a further year, at the commissioner’s discretion. These services are not currently provided in the region, and this EOI process will help to identify capacity, and NHSE/I’s aspiration is that services will mobilise on or before 1 April 2021. As such, only organisations with appropriate experience, capability and capacity should respond to this notice. Having 8 dedicated adult eating disorder beds in the South East will provide better access to care for highly vulnerable patients, address the latent surge in demand, and address the higher levels of acuity on presentation to services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. NHS England and NHS Improvement South East (NHSE/I) seeks Expressions of Interest (EOI) from providers who have the capability and capacity to deliver adult eating disorder in-patient services in the South East region*. These services are not currently available within the South East region, meaning that people from the South East who require an adult eating disorder admission are frequently required to travel long distances from home. This is particularly challenging during the COVID pandemic due to the restrictions on travel within and across regions. The contract term is likely to be 1 year, with the option to extend for a further 1 year at the commissioner’s discretion. The expectation is that 8 beds will be required. The anticipated contract value is in the region of GBP 2 000 000 for 8 beds, per year; further information in relation to finance will be confirmed later. Currently the South East has to access adult eating disorder beds commissioned from services outside of the South East. NHSE/I’s aspiration is to establish safe, effective and timely access to services within the South East on or before 1 April 2021. As such, only organisations with appropriate experience, capability and capacity to mobilise quickly should respond to this notice. For the avoidance of doubt, capacity relates to staffing, premises, beds, appropriate systems and any other resources required to enable delivery of these services. New services will need to demonstrate willingness to work with emerging South East AED provider collaboratives or systems. A copy of the current national service specification is provided (on In-Tend). Please note that changes to the national programme are anticipated during, or immediately following the term of this contract, and therefore providers will be expected to work with commissioners to support implementation of required changes and adjust service delivery in a safe and timely manner, if required. Additionally the future provision of adult eating disorder services will be informed via the outcomes of the Adult Eating Disorders National Demand and Capacity Review which has recently commenced and will help determine next steps. The provider will also be required to meet the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Standards for Adult Inpatient Eating Disorder Services (provided on In-Tend). To register an expression of interest, please complete the Market Engagement Questionnaire, available within In-Tend as a downloadable Word document and upload to the placeholder provided. Expressions of interest must be received by 12.00 pm on Monday 11 January 2021. EOIs received will be used to help NHSE/I finalise their commissioning and contracting approach for these services. This exercise is being carried out by NHS South, Central & West Commissioning Support Unit on behalf of NHSE/I. This PIN as a call for competition is initially published as a notice for expressions of interest. The Commissioner may then choose to proceed directly to a procurement process with parties who have responded to the notice and there shall be no further notice published. *The South East NHSE/I region covers several counties, as defined on the following website: https://www.england.nhs.uk/south-east/