Section one: Contracting authority/entity
one.1) Name and addresses
NHS Cheshire & Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB)
Regatta Place, Brunswick Business Park,Summers Lane
Liverpool
L3 4BL
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UKD72 - Liverpool
NHS Cheshire & Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB)
NHS Cheshire & Merseyside Integrated Care Board (ICB)
Internet address(es)
Main address
https://www.cheshireandmerseyside.nhs.uk/
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Body governed by public law
one.5) Main activity
Health
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services
Reference number
WHISP 171
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 85100000 - Health services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
NHS Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit (MLCSU)is working on behalf of NHS Cheshire & Merseyside Integrated Care Board(ICB) to publish this Voluntary Ex-Ante Transparency (VEAT) notice, for the award of a contract for the Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services.
The ICB wish to directly award a contract to the incumbent provider for the following period:
Contract Start Date: 1st April 2023
Contract End Date: 31 March 2026
The maximum contract value for the 3 years is £4,182,000.
The service is for the provision of community-based Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services across Cheshire and Merseyside to include medical and surgical options up to the maximum legal gestation period. The service will also include the provision of Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Service. The provider will offer local face to face clinics, to be delivered in Liverpool, Chester, Warrington, St Helens.
Patients may choose to access advice and treatment from other provider locations across England via the Provider's central booking tele-hub service.
Following the publication of this notice, a Contract Award Notice will also be published.
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)
Value excluding VAT: £4,182,000
two.2) Description
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 85100000 - Health services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKD - North West (England)
Main site or place of performance
Cheshire & Merseyside
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB wishes to inform the market of its action to directly award for local Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services. The current contracted services expired on 31st March 2023. The ICB are awarding a contract for a period of 36 months until31st March 2026.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: No
two.2.14) Additional information
NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB wishes to inform the market of its action to directly award for local Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services. The current contracted services expired on 31stMarch 2023. The ICB are awarding a contract for a period of 36 months until31st March 2026.
In line with the requirement to offer patient choice of provider, any approaches from potential new providers of consultant led, medical and surgical termination of pregnancy and central booking services in our region, who could meet the required specification and standards, would be considered on a case-by-case basis.
The expected aims/outcomes of the service are:
- To offer and provide a high-quality termination of pregnancy service, at all stages of the patient journey, in terms of: acceptability, accessibility, effectiveness, efficiency and appropriateness to need as part of an integrated high quality sexual health service.
- To provide abortions to women at the earliest gestation practicable (within the terms of the 1967 Abortion Act) through increasing provision of both early medical and local surgical abortions.
- To offer choice of early medical and surgical abortions (depending on client's gestation) to provide a local service as an option for Early Medical Abortions. The DOH rationale is that 'The earlier in pregnancy an abortion is performed the lower the risk of complications. If women can access services before they are ten weeks pregnant, they can potentially have a choice of an early medical or surgical abortion, medical abortion avoids the need for anaesthesia and surgery.
- To ensure equity of access, patient choice, improved patient experience and optimal clinical outcomes to assist in reducing the number of women requiring repeat abortions by increasing timely access to all long-term methods of contraception.
- To provide a consistent approach to service provision throughout Cheshire and Merseyside that complements other sexual health services i.e. family planning, contraception, teenage pregnancy, genitourinary medicine and health promotion services.
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.1) Type of procedure
Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the cases listed below
- The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the regulations
Explanation:
This is a Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency (VEAT) Notice and is published under the Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015. It is for clinical services which are Light Touch Regime services for the purpose of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 ('Regulations') as specified in Schedule 3 of the Regulations. Accordingly, the contracting authority is only bound by those parts of the Regulations detailed in Chapter 3 Particular Procurement Regimes Section 7. The contracting authority is not voluntarily following any other part of the Regulations.
The contract is being awarded under PCR 2015 Section 32. Use of the negotiated procedure without prior publication.
General grounds
(2) The negotiated procedure without prior publication may be used for public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts in any of the following cases:
b) where the works, supplies or services can be supplied only by a particular economic
operator for any of the following reasons:
(ii) competition is absent for technical reasons.
There are no alternative providers that can deliver the range of virtual and face to face consultations and medical and surgical treatment up to the maximum legal gestation at clinic sites within the Cheshire & Merseyside area.
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No
Section five. Award of contract/concession
Title
Termination of Pregnancy and Central Booking Services
A contract/lot is awarded: Yes
five.2) Award of contract/concession
five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
1 April 2023
five.2.2) Information about tenders
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No
five.2.3) Name and address of the contractor/concessionaire
BRITISH PREGNANCY ADVISORY SERVICE
Orion House 2 Athena Drive, Tachbrook Park
Leamington Spa
CV34 6RQ
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
- UKG - West Midlands (England)
Companies House
UK SIC 2007
The contractor/concessionaire is an SME
Yes
five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)
Total value of the contract/lot/concession: £4,182,000
five.2.5) Information about subcontracting
The contract/lot/concession is likely to be subcontracted
Short description of the part of the contract to be subcontracted
Subcontractor: Ultrasound Direct Ltd.
The Institute of Reproductive Sciences8000, Alec Issigonis Way, Oxford Business Park North, Oxford, England,OX4 2HW.
The value / proportion to be subcontracted is unknown.
Section six. Complementary information
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
NHS Cheshire & Merseyside ICB
Liverpool
Country
United Kingdom