DHSC: NIHR Research Commissioning and Management services

Tender description

The Department of Health and Social Care (DSHC) funds the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).<br/><br/>NIHR research drives better health outcomes and grows the economy through: <br/><br/>Impact - delivering R&D focused on needs and priorities of the health and care system, improving the health and wealth of patients and the public. <br/><br/>Investment - using R&D to drive the country’s life sciences sector and technical advantage, making the UK an international competitive world leader. <br/><br/>Innovation - utilising R&D to invest in foundational underpinning science, facilities, talent and capacity building across the health and care workforce. <br/><br/>Inclusion - embedding R&D across the health and care system, improving access to new treatments, and developing interventions for adoption across our population. <br/><br/>Currently the day-to-day operations of the NIHR are carried out by two coordinating centres: <br/><br/>- the NIHR Coordinating Centre (NIHRCC) <br/>- the Research Delivery Network Coordinating Centre (RDNCC)<br/><br/>This opportunity is for the re-procurement of four of the five contracts/Service level agreements that currently make up the NIHRCC:<br/><br/>- NIHR Evaluations, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre (NETSCC) <br/>- Central Commissioning Facility (CCF) <br/>- NIHR Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure (NOCRI) <br/>- NIHR Academy <br/><br/>Details of the specific services delivered under each contract can be found in the accompanying attachment but in brief, the purpose of these contracts is to:<br/>- Manage the end-to-end commissioning of NIHR’s research funding programmes.<br/>- Manage NIHR’s research infrastructure.<br/>- Manage the end-to-end commissioning of NIHR’s research academic training, career development and capacity building programmes.<br/>- Manage several cross-NIHR activities including:<br/>o Communication, business intelligence and impact functions<br/>o Research inclusion and sustainability functions<br/>o Supporting the life science sector, charities and other organisations to utilise NIHR’s infrastructure.<br/><br/>It is anticipated that these services will be split into 6 different lots under the re-procurement:<br/><br/>Lot 1 – Strategic Business Services <br/>Lot 2 – Research Commissioning: Individual level and Global Health Programmes <br/>Lot 3 – Research Commissioning: Individual level and Global Health Programmes<br/>Lot 4 – Research Infrastructure Commissioning: Translational and delivery<br/>Lot 5 – Research Infrastructure Commissioning: Applied, public health and social care<br/>Lot 6 – Research commissioning: Training and capacity building<br/><br/>Further information regarding the services under each lot can be found in the RFI attachment.<br/><br/>Please note that the proposed lotting structure is not final and is subject to change. Lot 1: The Department of Health and Social Care (DSHC) funds the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).<br/><br/>Currently the day-to-day operations of the NIHR are carried out by two coordinating centres:<br/><br/>- the NIHR Coordinating Centre (NIHRCC)<br/>- the Research Delivery Network Coordinating Centre (RDNCC)<br/><br/>This opportunity is for the re-procurement of four of the five contracts/Service level agreements that currently make up the NIHRCC:<br/><br/>- NIHR Evaluations, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre (NETSCC)<br/>- Central Commissioning Facility (CCF)<br/>- NIHR Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure (NOCRI)<br/>- NIHR Academy<br/><br/>It is anticipated that the services currently delivered under these contracts will be split into 6 different lots under the re-procurement:<br/><br/>Lot 1 – Strategic Business Services<br/>Lot 2 – Research Commissioning: Individual level and Global Health Programmes<br/>Lot 3 – Research Commissioning: Individual level and Global Health Programmes<br/>Lot 4 – Research Infrastructure Commissioning: Translational and delivery<br/>Lot 5 – Research Infrastructure Commissioning: Applied, public health and social care<br/>Lot 6 – Research commissioning: Training and capacity building<br/><br/>The contract term is anticipated to be for an initial term of 5 years with options for DHSC to extend for a further 4 years. The total value for the procurement for the 5-year term is anticipated to be approximately £400 million with a total value of approximately £747 million if extensions were exercised.<br/><br/>It is important to note that any future procurement will be run in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023, not the Public Contract Regulations 2015. <br/><br/>It is likely that for this procurement DHSC will:<br/>- use the new Competitive Flexible Procedure (a multi-stage process), launching the procurement in December 2024 (a provisional timetable can be found within the RFI attachment) <br/>- commence with new contracts on 1 April 2027 with a transition period prior to this of up to 12 months.<br/>- use an adapted version of the Model Services Contract (MSC). It should be noted that the MSC will be updated to align with the Procurement Act 2023 at the end of August and any actual contract will be based on the most recent version at the time of procurement. <br/>- welcome single bidders or consortia.<br/><br/>Please be advised that TUPE may apply.<br/><br/>Please note that participation from public sector organisations is expected and as part of the procurement process DHSC reserves the right to revert to a section 9 contract under the National Health Service Act 2006 or amend the contract terms as applicable should a public sector authority be successful.