Contracts and Care: Navigating the Tender Process

 

What is a Tender?

A tender allows care providers to establish working relationships with Councils, Clinical Commissioning Groups, the NHS, and other bodies. Most tenders are within the public sector, administered by Local Authorities. Still, private companies may also conduct ITTs (Invitation to Tender) to, for example, subcontract a portion of their work. 

Almost all public sector purchasing is done through a Dynamic Purchasing System or Special Purchasing Vehicle in the health and social care sector. This is a register of approved suppliers maintained by the council, from which they can match individuals with care needs to a suitable provider. This is the list of suppliers seeking to join by applying for a tender.

In simple terms, a tender is an application or formal process in which a supplier/care provider expresses their interest in working with a council and then provides evidence of their suitability in meeting the needs of the council's individuals in need of care. We have broken down the tender process in detail below.

1. Market Engagement Event

A tender begins as a 'Market Engagement Event,' when the commissioner invites local interested suppliers to provide their feedback, opinions and input on how the tender and subsequent social care purchasing framework should be conducted. These events also consider the input of individuals receiving care under the framework and that of other relevant stakeholders like social workers and safeguarding teams.

2. Standard Selection Questionnaire

When the tender opportunity goes live, suppliers can download the service specification and other attached documents and prepare their response.

The first step is the Standard Selection Questionnaire, a universal information-gathering form for public sector procurement. This records the supplier's details and information about their accounts and cash flow (to establish their financial stability), previous contract experience, insurance arrangements, and their ability to comply with the standards and policy requirements of the contract.

Note: The Standard Selection Questionnaire was updated this year in March.

3. Quality Review

The commissioning body will also seek to verify that suppliers can perform the responsibilities of the contract to a high standard. This stage of the tender process can take several forms: suppliers may have to complete a series of extended written questions to explain their systems and processes, pricing schedules to break down the constituent costs of their hourly prices to the council or submit their policy set and operational documents for review.

In some cases, the commissioning authority will perform in-person inspections or conduct interviews with key staff members.

This part of the process allows suppliers to convince the council that their business will be effective and resilient in delivering the service, with sufficient business infrastructure to manage increasing capacity as a response to demand, mitigating the effects of unforeseen and force majeure events, and liaising effectively with partner agencies and stakeholders.

In general, councils and commissioners will publish an Invitation To Tender (ITT) with a stated start and end date for the contract. Applications are accepted in rounds, allowing the council to manage the flow of applications and evaluate the responses to one round before receiving the next batch. 

As a typical example, a Domiciliary Care purchasing framework may run from August 2024 to August 2030. The first round will open for applications before the contract start date, e.g. in June, so that the first batch of suppliers can apply and be evaluated before the framework is operational. This period also allows the council's existing suppliers to reapply and transition from the existing purchasing system onto the new one and to adjust their offering in line with any further requirements or the findings of the Market Engagement Event. Once the first round closes for evaluation in July, a second round will typically open immediately and automatically, and this regular cycle of receiving and evaluating applications for the council – in this case, two months – will continue until just before the end of the contract (early 2030). In almost all cases, suppliers rejected in one round are welcome to reapply as often as they like before the end of the contract.

Once a tender bid has been submitted, the council will usually offer a rough timeline for evaluation based on the volume of applications received. If an application is unsuccessful, most councils will provide detailed feedback and invite providers to reapply. If the tender is accepted, suppliers will be asked to sign the contract, join the council's referral system and begin receiving work.

Social workers, council or healthcare staff will use this system to send referrals to suppliers describing an individual's care needs, personal preferences, etc. These may be shared directly with a particular supplier the commissioner believes would be a good fit or shared with some or all providers on the framework to submit further bids and explain why they are a good match. This additional bidding stage is called a mini-competition and compares each provider's pricing and unique strengths to find the best fit for the service user.

If your business wants to win a tender or learn more about tender writing services for care or healthcare tenders, visit our website now.