Official UK procurement notice
NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems Services for NHS Essex ICB
Authority: NHS Essex Integrated Care Board (NHS & healthcare)·Consortium: 3 public authorities
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThis is a Contract Award Notice (Intention to Award) communicating NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board 's intention to award a public contract for provision of this 'NHS Talking Therapies (NHS TT) and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems (PT SMHP) services (the Service). The process will be conducted in accordance with Regulation 11 of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023.
The proposed contract term is from 01st April 2027 – 31st March 2030, with the option to extend for a maximum of 24 months, until 31st March 2032.
CPV: Health services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1The Authority has undertaken a competitive process under the Health Care Services…AwardedPublished value£156,223,810
The Authority has undertaken a competitive process under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 (the Regulations) and intends to award the Proposed Contract for a new NHS Talking Therapies (NHS TT) and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems (PT SMHP) services (the Service) to the Preferred Bidder identified through the process, Vita Health Group.
Approximate lifetime value of the contract: At the point of publication of the PIN, the Authority proposed that the aggregate contract value is £94,118,443 pound sterling for the 3-year contract term (01st April 2027 – 31st March 2030). The financial envelope which acted as an affordability cap for the purposes of the procurement was based on the initial 3-year contract term.
The maximum total contract value over the 5-year period (where optional extension provision is enacted) is £156,223,810 pound sterling. The Proposed Contract for the first three years has been awarded at £93,177,260.
The Proposed Contract to be entered into by the Authority and the Preferred Bidder will be based on the NHS Standard Contract 2026/27 (full-length) and all subsequent variations thereof from time to time during the contract term.
Services:
NHS Talking Therapies (formally known as IAPT): The new service will provide a single integrated NHS Talking Therapies which should be accessible, person-centred, and integrated within the wider health system. This will support improvement in service provision, reduce health inequalities, improve patient experience, communication and waiting times for patients. Flexible provider, Partnership working, consistent service delivery across Essex. The aims of the delivery of the Service include: Improve Mental Health & Wellbeing, Ensure Equitable Access, Support Early Intervention & Prevention, Promote Patient Choice & Personalisation, Enhance Recovery & Long-Term Resilience, Integrate with Wider Health & Social Care Services, Deliver NICE-approved, evidence-based psychological therapies for people with depression and anxiety disorders using an integrated but stepped approach to care, appropriate to the needs of those people accessing the service.
The new PT-SMHP service will ensure that individuals with severe mental health conditions receive timely, effective, and person-centred psychological interventions. By focusing on accessibility, integration, and recovery, the service can enhance quality of life, support long-term stability, and reduce demand on crisis and inpatient care. Flexible provider, Partnership working, consistent service delivery across Essex. To provide better quality care and improved outcomes through the delivery of NICE-recommended psychological therapies for people with severe mental health problems; to increase and ensure timely access to evidence-based psychological therapies, as recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), in order to improve outcomes for people with a diagnosis of psychosis, complex emotional needs/‘personality disorder’, bipolar disorder or eating disorder; to promote recovery, stability, and independence - Support patients in developing coping mechanisms, resilience, and skills for independent living and self-management of their condition. Additional information: This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) Contract Notice. The awarding of this contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award.
See Additional information VI.3
What 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).
Published sub-criteria (6)
- Quality and Innovation: 45%
- Improving Access, Reducing Health Inequalities and Facilitating Choice: 14.4%
- Value: 5.4%
- Price (Commercial Offer Template): 10%
- Social Value: 9%
- Integration, Collaboration and Service Sustainability: 16.2%
Published award criteria (6)
- Quality and Innovation: 45.00
- Integration, Collaboration and Service Sustainability: 16.20
- Improving Access, Reducing Health Inequalities and Facilitating Choice: 14.40
- Social Value: 9.00
- Value: 5.40
- Price (Commercial Offer Template): 10.00
- Suitability
The award criteria, including Basic Selection and Key Criteria are outlined within the procurement documentation. The service requirements and details are outlined in the Document 3 - Service Specification included in the procurement pack. All relevant information can be obtained for free via the e-procurement portal at atamis-1928.my.site.com ↗ under Contract Reference: C443109<br/>If you require assistance / supplier support, please see the Portal Helpdesk: suppliersupport.atamis.co.uk/hc/en-gb/sections/46… ↗
- Technical & professional ability
Execution of the service is reserved to a particular profession
- Staff
- Names and qualifications of delivery staff must be submitted
- Price carries 10 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 1 point. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- No (one-off requirement)
- First published
- 23 Mar 2026, 18:02 GMT
- Last source update
- 1 Oct 2026, 18:34 BST
- Award evaluation window
- 17 Jun 2026 – …
- Authority reference
ACE-0868-2026-ESX- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-093056- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-067205Find a Tender
- Performance terms
Selection criteria as stated in the procurement documents.<br/>All relevant information can be obtained for free via the e-procurement portal at atamis-1928.my.site.com ↗ under Contract Reference: C443109<br/>If you require assistance / supplier support, please see the Portal Helpdesk: suppliersupport.atamis.co.uk/hc/en-gb/sections/46… ↗
- Review procedure
The standstill period requirements, including for review of decisions, are detailed in Regulations 12 and 14(3). Representations should be made by midnight on 14th October 2026, latest.
Provision for independent expert advice is set out in Regulation 23, including how the Independent Patient Choice and Procurement Panel may provide advice during the standstill period.
Where Representations are received by 14th October 2026, initial reviews will be undertaken by the Authority via an appropriate internal governance mechanism that has been established to deal with representations made against provider selection decisions.
The Authority will follow the relevant transparency requirements for the approach they take and will keep internal records of their decision-making.
Where a provider(s) requests a further review by the Independent Patient Choice and Procurement Panel (within 5 working days of the Authority' publication of it's Further Decision) they should seek relevant advice via the contact details provided herein at VI.4.4
Publisher note: This form has incorrectly identified that the number of tenders received from SMEs, number of tenders from EU states and non-EU states are '1' respectively. These should read as '0'. This is an intention to award notice for a contract that is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 23. The provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award. The publication of this notice marks the start of the standstill period. Representations to the Authority must be made using the contact details contained herein by midnight on 14th October 2026. The contract will be formally awarded upon standstill conclusion. On 19th March 2026 the ICB Board (the Decision Makers) approved the commencement of a competitive process, delegating the authority for the contract award decision to the TT PTSMHP Procurement Project Board. An assessment process was undertaken against the published award criteria, and in consideration of the five Key Criteria, to award the Proposed Contract based on the Authority’s requirements. The total technical score achievable was 90% and the total commercial score achievable was 10%. The five Key Criteria were linked to multiple tender questions which were all weighted according to priority, as indicated below: 2.1 Delivery Model 12.00% (out of 100) 10.80% - (out of 90), 2.2 Service Delivery 12.00% (out of 100) 10.80% - (out of 90), 2.3 Delivery, Improvement and Integration 10.00% (out of 100%) 9.90% - (out of 90), 2.4 Data, Performance & Quality Assurance (1) 8.00% (out of 100%) 7.20% - (out of 90%), 2.5 Data, Performance & Quality Assurance (2) 8.00% (out of 100%) 7.20% - (out of 90%), 2.6 Workforce & Capacity Planning 8.00% (out of 100%) 7.20% - (out of 90%), 2.7 Mobilisation & Implementation 10.00% (out of 100%) 9.90% - (out of 90%_, 2.8 Access, Inclusion & Health Inequalities 8.00% (out of 100%) 7.20% - (out of 90%) 2.9 Innovation & Digital Transformation 8.00% (out of 100%) 7.20% - (out of 90%), 2.10 Social Value MAC 7.1 5.00% (out of 100%) 4.50% - (out of 90%), 2.11 Social Value MAC 8.1 5.00% (out of 100%) 4.50% - (out of 90%), 2.12 Value for Money & Financial Sustainability 6.00% (out of 100%) 5.40% - (out of 90%) The chosen provider submitted a compliant Tender Response, which passed all aspects of the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (basic selection criteria) achieving the highest Weighted Technical Score (71.10%) for their Technical (Quality) Response, significantly exceeding the 45% Minimum Quality Pass Threshold. They scored the second highest Commercial Score (9.91%) for their Commercial (Price) Response. The chosen provider achieved a Total Weighted Score of 81.01%, ranking 1st place and achieving the highest overall Total Score (quality & price) out of 4 compliant bidders. The Authority complied strictly with its legal duty to take appropriate measures to effectively prevent, identify and remedy conflicts of interest in the conduct of procurement procedures so as to avoid any distortion of competition and to ensure equal treatment of all economic operators. Amongst members of the Board and Executive Committee, No conflicts declared. Decisions made at Board and Executive Committee levels were made by non-conflicted members. The ICB followed its COI Policy. Any conflicted individuals recused themselves from any decision regarding this matter at the Board and did not receive any documentation regarding this case. Only no/low risk potential COI were identified among the TT PTSMHP Project Group and / or Evaluation Panel. 36 non-conflict COI returns were made by project group / evaluators, with 14 instances of potential noted across 14 individuals. The Authority has recorded and implemented effective mitigations accordingly in each instance, full details of which cannot be detailed here due to the character restrictions within this Notice, but are available to any organisation/party by request from [email protected]
How it was run
Official noticeTender documents are also served through a separate tool: https://atamis-1928.my.site.com/s/Welcome ↗
- Submission deadline
- 17 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission","written"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bid validity
- 180 days from the deadline
- Bids opened
- 17 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
Timeline
1 May 2026 → 1 Apr 2027 · 5 dates- Next notice expected169 days ago1 May 2026, 00:00 BST
- Submission deadline121 days ago17 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
- Bids opened121 days ago17 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
- Notice published15 days ago1 Oct 2026, 18:34 BST
- Today16 Oct 2026
- Contract startsin 166 days1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
7 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 6 May 2026- Published value updated to £203,000,0006 May 2026, 18:01 BSTwas £1
- Status changed to active6 May 2026, 18:01 BST
- Procurement method changed6 May 2026, 18:01 BST
- Deadline published: 17 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST6 May 2026, 18:01 BST
- Buyer details updated6 May 2026, 18:01 BST
- Status changed to complete1 Oct 2026, 18:34 BST
- Buyer details updated1 Oct 2026, 18:34 BST
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vita Health Solutions t/a Right Corecare LimitedNHS Talking Therapies (NHS TT) and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems (PT SMHP) services (the Service) | — | — | Awarded |
Contracts
NHS Talking Therapies (NHS TT) and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems (PT SMHP) services (the Service) · Vita Health Solutions t/a Right Corecare Limited
- Signed
- 18 Sept 2026
- Value
- £93,177,260
- Period
- … – 31 Mar 2030
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Lot | Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Authority has undertaken a competitive process under the Health Care Services… | 4bids · 4 electronic · 2 from abroad | 1 | — | — |
| Whole notice | — | — | — | £94,118,443 – £156,223,810 |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
2 public bodies on the noticeConsortium members and other public bodies
- NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care BoardContracting authorityBody governed by public lawHealth
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- NHS E Independent patient choice and procurement panelReview contact point
- NHS Essex Integrated Care Board Internal PSR Review PanelReview body
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- Vita Health Solutions LtdAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Economic and financial selection criteria
- Technical selection criteria