Official UK procurement notice
Independent Learning Responses Framework
Authority: East Of England NHS Collaborative Hub c/o West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Independent Learning Responses Framework will replace what was previously known as the Independent Investigations Framework.
This proposed procurement is required to modernise and strengthen the independent investigations supply market, to align with national expectations for learning responses. The proposed framework will be used by NHS England independent investigation teams, national commissioning teams and other authorised NHS commissioners who require independent, system‑based investigations or assurance/learning reviews.
The framework will be divided into the proposed Lots:
Lot 1. Specialist Advisor Role(s)
Including: - Chair/Lead
- Clinical Expert
- Safety/Investigations Expert
- Family Liaison
Lot 2. Quality Governance Review
Lot 3. Patient Safety Incident Investigation
Lot 4. Thematic Review
Lot 5. Pathway/service Review
Lot 6. Post Response Impact Assurance Review
The open framework will run under the new regulations, the Procurement Act 2023 and under Light Touch Regime. The framework will run for a maximum of 8 years. The estimated start date for the framework agreement is 4th May 2027.
CPV: Health services · Investigation services · Safety consultancy services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Framework period
- 2 yrs · up to 8 yrs from 4 May 2027
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedWhat it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
- “Independent Learning Responses Framework” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.
Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How East Of England NHS Collaborative Hub c/o West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust buys Business and management consultancy services (CPV 7941), and who usually turns up
East Of England NHS Collaborative Hub c/o West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust’s own published record, next to the published market for the same work. This notice is a framework or DPS, so only frameworks and DPS are compared. Whole-market view: Business and management consultancy services (CPV 7941) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
i
How often small and medium firms win.
Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.
The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.
Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Here, local means registered in East of England.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
No winner locations published for this authority. Local means a registered address in East of England.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards were announced within 68 days of the bid deadline.
i
How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.
Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.
The market share is a minimum: some awards have no bid count.
Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.
Awards are recorded, but published direct routes and bid counts do not establish this buyer’s share.
How many bids did past lots attract?
i
How many bids past lots received.
Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.
Past bids do not predict this tender.
1 bid0% / 6%
2–33% / 23%
4–613% / 18%
7+84% / 53%
How did awards compare with estimates?
i
Where winning prices landed against estimates.
Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.
On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Not comparable on a framework or DPS. The notice sets up a supplier panel and a ceiling value; what the work actually costs is agreed later, on each call-off or mini-competition, and those publish as contract notices of their own. The award-vs-estimate record of this market therefore sits on the call-offs; this page shows it on the contracts, not on the panel that frames them.
Assess each lot i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list
Lot #1CPV 7941Published estimate£20m
i
How many bids this lot may attract.
The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.
Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative. The bar shows 52 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid2%
2–315%
4–617%
7+65%
i
Where the award price may land.
The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.
No comparable awards for this lot yet.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Who has supplied this buyer on similar work? i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.
Who could compete for this lot? i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
- Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
- Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Planned procurement
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Light touch regime
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 23 Feb 2026, 14:12 GMT
- Last source update
- 10 Jun 2026, 15:23 BST
- Authority reference
C452691- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-054842- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-065a37Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- —
Timeline
23 Feb 2026 → 4 May 2027 · 5 dates- Planning notice published240 days ago23 Feb 2026, 14:12 GMT
- Latest notice published133 days ago10 Jun 2026, 15:23 BST
- Market engagement100 days ago13 Jul 2026, 23:59 BST
NHS England in collaboration with EoE NHS CPH is issuing this market engagement in connection with the potential procurement to establish a new framework agreement for Independent Learning Responses which improves and will replace the Independent Investigations framework.
As part of this market engagement, NHS England in collaboration with EoE NHS CPH will be hosting a supplier engagement webinar on 14th July, 2 - 4pm. Please confirm you would like to attend the supplier webinar by completing the form available through this link: forms.cloud.microsoft/e/5ARtWt0iPf ↗
Further information and an agenda will be shared closer to the event. Attendees will receive a teams link closer to the event day.
Preliminary Market Engagement Process:
Please view the draft specification on the Atamis portal: health-family.force.com/s/Welcome ↗
- Suppliers should register on the portal, if not already registered:
- Search and select contract reference C452691 – Market Engagement Independent Learning Responses Framework to register and view the draft specification.
Suppliers can contact the Atamis helpdesk at [email protected] or by calling +44 800 098 8201 for technical assistance.
- Tender notice expected77 days ago5 Aug 2026, 23:59 BST
- Today21 Oct 2026
- Contract startsin 194 days4 May 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
6 events · 4 releases on Find a Tender · since 23 Feb 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published23 Feb 2026, 14:12 GMTUK2
- Preliminary market engagement notice published26 Mar 2026, 13:28 GMTUK2
- Pipeline notice published26 May 2026, 10:43 BSTUK1
- Status changed to planned26 May 2026, 10:43 BST
- Procurement method changed26 May 2026, 10:43 BST
- Preliminary market engagement notice published10 Jun 2026, 15:23 BSTUK2
Routine re-releases (4)
- 2026-02: 1 release · 23 Feb 2026
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (4)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender