PROVISION OF ALL AGE CONTINUING CARE (AACC)

Description

NHS Midlands & Lancashire (MLCSU) on behalf of the Commissioner, NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (SSOT ICB), is intending to follow the Most Suitable Provider process (MSP) in accordance with Regulation 10 of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) (PSR) 2023 for its provision of All Age Continuing Care (AACC) Service, with the CPV codes 85100000-0 (Healthcare Services) and 85323000-9 (Community health services, but only in respect of community health services which are delivered to individuals). Lot 1: INTENDED APPROACH NOTICE FOR MOST SUITABLE PROVIDER PROCESS FOR PROVISION OF ALL AGE CONTINUING CARE (AACC) SERVICE FOR NHSSTAFFORDSHIRE AND STOKE-ON-TRENT INTEGRATED CARE BOARD (SSOT ICB)<br/>NHS Midlands & Lancashire (MLCSU) on behalf of the Commissioner, NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (SSOT ICB), is intending to follow the Most Suitable Provider process (MSP) in accordance with Regulation 10 of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) (PSR) 2023 for its provision of All Age Continuing Care (AACC) Service, with the CPV codes 85100000-0 (Healthcare Services) and 85323000-9 (Community health services, but only in respect of community health services which are delivered to individuals). <br/><br/>The MSP process involves awarding a contract to provider(s) without running a competitive process, because the relevant authority (SSOT ICB) is of the view it can identify the most suitable provider(s).<br/><br/>The current contract is coming to an end on 30th of November 2024. The SSOT ICB wants to consider potential providers and is considering awarding the new contract to one provider, subject to the assessment of basic selection criteria and key criteria using the Most Suitable Provider (MSP) process. <br/><br/>In response to this advertisement providers may approach the SSOT ICB and express their interest in being considered as the ‘Most Suitable Provider’.<br/><br/>Providers being considered or wishing to be considered, must submit information against questionnaires contained within the project (reference ref. C282693) in the NHS Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit (MLCSU) Atamis e-Tendering portal (https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome).<br/><br/>Responses to the questionnaires must be submitted via the Atamis portal under the response functionality within the project.<br/><br/>The SSOT ICB will assess how providers can meet the basic selection criteria and the key criteria<br/>of the MSP process to enable them to confirm that a contract can be awarded under the MSP process.<br/><br/>The closing time/date for receipt of responses is 12:00 hours on 24th of May 2024. Interested providers are recommended to submit their response in sufficient time for it to reach the system prior to the closing time/date of 12:00 hours on 24th of May 2024.<br/><br/>Providers will have the opportunity to ask clarification questions of the SSOT ICB before submitting their responses, via the messaging system within Atamis until 12:00 hours 21st of May 2024. <br/><br/>Following the receipt of responses the SSOT project panel will assess the responses to determine whether the responses meet the requirements. The SSOT ICB reserves the right to ask further clarification questions from those providers that respond to this MSP process once the assessment process is underway.<br/><br/>The contract is anticipated to start on the 1st of December 2024 and be for a term of 3 years with the possibility of extension for up to another 2 years. The SSOT ICB has set an indicative contract annual value of £2.9.m per annum, with a £14.66m value for the lifecycle of the contract (including extensions), providers are encouraged to submit their costings within this budgetary threshold, as higher cost submissions may not be considered.<br/><br/>It is envisaged that TUPE provisions will apply to the new contract.<br/><br/>Please see below a brief outline of the service.<br/><br/>The AACC Service will be responsible for the care planning, commissioning, and procuring of services for AACC individuals on an individual basis, and where required, the AACC service will work with the SSOT ICB and Local Authority to commission and procure services for the local population, in order to:<br/> Deliver the best possible health and well-being outcomes and promote equality;<br/> Support independence where possible;<br/> Provide the best possible health and social care provision; and;<br/> Achieve this with the best use of available resources.<br/><br/>The aims and objectives of the service are:<br/><br/>The commissioning, assessment, and sourcing the provision of quality All Age Continuing Care (AACC) services for individuals who living/residing in a community setting and registered with a GP within the ICB or where the ICB is identified as the responsible commissioner.<br/><br/>Enabling AACC through the lens of personalisation, right care, right time, right service with continuous quality improvement to ensure individual safety, best experience, and effectiveness. An AACC offer that is fair and equitable, is delivered efficiently to optimise value and best use of taxpayer’s money. <br/><br/>This will be achieved by working with system partners to deliver the best outcomes that enhance personalisation and personal responsibility for the people of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent,. fFocusing on prevention and access at the right time whilst working with partners to jointly respond to challenges. <br/><br/>Personalised care means people have choice and control over the way their care is planned and delivered, based on ‘what matters’ to them and their individual strengths, needs and preferences. The NHS Long Term Plan places a commitment for ICBs and wider ICS partners to roll out personalised care to its population to enable individuals to have more choice and control over the way their care is planned and delivered. Choice plays a big factor in everyday life, and that should be no different when it comes to decisions about the care received for physical or mental health. <br/><br/>The process of assessment and decision making should be person-centred however the ICB needs to carefully balance individual choice alongside quality, safety and value for money to ensure consistent and transparent decision-making that is: <br/> Person-centred.<br/> Based on a comprehensive assessment of the individuals assessed need, safety, and best interest.<br/> Considers the need for the ICB to allocate resources in the most cost-effective way.<br/> Fair, safe, consistent, transparent, and equitable.<br/> Supports individual preference and choice where possible considering the above factors.<br/><br/>Pathways applicable:<br/> Continuing Healthcare (CHC).<br/> Funded Nursing Care (FNC).<br/> Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)<br/> Fast track – end of life planning (locally developed pathway)<br/><br/>Further information can be found in the project MSP documentation, namely, the service specification. Additional information: To register on Atamis<br/>If you have not accessed the portal before you will need to click Register from the landing page and complete the required form.<br/>1) Register on the portal webpage https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome (registration and use of the website is free of charge).<br/>2) Once registered, to search for tendering opportunities that have been published by the buying organisation, click Find Opportunities.<br/>3) From the Find Opportunities page, click on the title of an opportunity. If the tendering project is at the stage where it is open for suppliers to express interest, you will be able to click Register Interest.<br/>For technical support in submitting your Expression of Interest or registering on the ‘Atamis Electronic Sourcing system please contact the Atamis helpdesk via email: support@atamis.co.uk.<br/>All communications from providers should come through the Atamis portal. Strictly no other forms of communication to MLCSU or the Commissioner will be accepted (including telephone calls, postal queries/submissions, faxes or email communications) during this period.<br/><br/>Provider Selection Regime<br/>The ICB are aware of their transparency obligations under The Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. Please note for those providers expressing interest for these services, this does not guarantee that they will not be required to register for any future provider selection process, and they should not rely on their response to this notice as confirmation that the ICB will proceed further. <br/><br/>This notice is issued subject to Provider Selection Regime regulations. Please note that any subsequent contract emanating from this notice will be subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015 will not apply to any future award.<br/><br/>Right to Cancel<br/>The SSOT ICB reserves the right not to proceed with the MSP process; if SSOT ICB proceeds at any point, they reserve the right to discontinue the MSP process at any time, which shall include the right not to award a contract or contracts. The SSOT ICB shall not be liable for any costs or expenses incurred by any provider in connection with the completion and return of the information requested in this Intention to proceed to MSP Notice, or in the completion or submission of any response, irrespective of the outcome of the MSP process if the process is cancelled or postponed. All dates, time periods and values specified in this notice are provisional and the SSOT ICB reserves the right to change these.<br/><br/>Transparency<br/>The SSOT ICB is subject to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) and may be required to disclose information received in the course of this MSP process under FOIA or the EIR. In addition, and in accordance with the UK Government's policies on transparency, the SSOT ICB contracting authority intends to the Intention to Award notice, and subsequently Contract Award notice, publish Contract Award documentation and the text of any resulting contractual arrangements, subject to possible redactions at the discretion of the contracting authority. Any redactions, whether in relation to information requests under FOIA, the EIR or policies on transparency will be in accordance with those grounds prescribed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004