Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract (North Shoebury)

This is a Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice to communicate to the market the Authority's clear intention to award a public contract to the incumbent provider, North Shoebury Surgery for F81684 North Shoebury Practice, by a negotiated procedure without prior publication, under regulation 32 (2)(c) of the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (as amended The Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020). The Authority has made this decision for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the Authority and can confirm that the time limits for the open or restricted procedures or competitive procedures with negotiation could not be complied with before 1st April 2023. This is to ensure that patient service continuity is maintained and to ensure that patients are not without a service from 1 April 2023, onwards. The Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board ("the Authority") concluded a multi-lot procurement process for Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contracts under six Lots across Thurrock and Southend, which commenced on 6th October 2022. The Authority used an 'Open procedure' under Section 7 of the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (as amended The Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020). The 6 geographic Lots were as titled below: • Lot 1 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - Y00999 Oddfellows Hall and St Clements • Lot 2 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - F81110 Tilbury Health Centre (including Dilip and Chadwell) • Lot 3 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - Y02807 Thurrock Health Centre • Lot 4 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - F81206 - Commonwealth Health Centre • Lot 5 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - Y00033 Purfleet Care Centre • Lot 6 - Provision of Alternative Provider of Medical Services (APMS) Contract - F81684 North Shoebury Practice Summary of events: • Prior Information Notice published on 7th September 2022 via Find a Tender Service (FTS) and early engagement opportunity via Contracts Finder (CF) • 2 MS Teams 'Live' Market Engagement Events were held on 21st & 22nd September 2022 • Contract Notice published on 6th October 2022 in FTS (Notice reference: 2022-043094) and subsequently on CF, with a deadline for submission of ITT's on 14th November 2022. • 35 potential Bidders expressed an interest in the tender documentation, nine of which submitted a tender by the deadline. All bidders passed the Qualification envelope, one Bidder withdrew from the competition, and the Authority's Evaluation Panel therefore conducted the quality and price evaluation on eight remaining Bidders ITTs, across the six Lots. • As a result of the procurement process, the contracts for Lots 1 to 6 were awarded based on Most Economically Advantageous Tender, to a single provider called Spirit Healthcare Ltd • Outcome letters were issued on 22nd December 2022 and the Authority adopted a voluntary standstill period, which expired midnight on 6th January 2023. • The Contract Award Notice was published in FTS on 18th January 2023 followed by a notice in CF. The Authority's position is that the contracts for Lots 1 to 6 were awarded in strict accordance with the Regulations and in conformity with the information contained in the Contract Notice and to date, the Authority has not received a legal challenge to the outcome of the procurement from any Bidder. Unfortunately, since 18th January, several factors during the Preferred Bidder Stage and Mobilisation Phase, have resulted in an unfortunate situation whereby the Contracts for each of the six Lots have not been executed between the Preferred Bidder and the Authority, with the totality of such issues only becoming apparent on 15 March 2023. This resulted in a minimal amount of time for the ICB to ensure safe and effective mobilisation prior to 1st April 2023 via alternative routes. Please review the Justification section for further details. A decision has been made by the Preferred Bidder to step away from the Contract and not proceed to signature. As such, a decision has been made by the Authority to cancel the procurement and put in place emergency arrangements with incumbent providers to ensure continuity of provision of Primary Care Services for the population associated with each of the six lots across Southend and Thurrock. The ICB's key priority is ensuring safe and effective service continuity for the patient population associated with this practice from 1st April 2023.