Public procurement notice: Contract Notice
Published: 2016-08-30
Buyer: Arden & Gem CSU
Country: UK
Region: East Anglia
Contract type: Services
Procedure: Open procedure
CPV classification: 85130000: Dental practice services
Submission deadline: 2016-09-30
Award criteria: The most economic tender

Technical requirements: Arden & Greater East Midlands Commissioning Support Unit (AG CSU) on behalf of NHS England Midlands & East (East), referred to as the Commissioners, welcomes interest from suitably qualified and experienced providers with the necessary capacity and capability (or a demonstrable ability) within the requisite time-scale to provide the Out-of-Hours Urgent Dental Service in a safe and effective manner.
The key objective of the Procurement is to commission Out of Hours Dental service provision on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays for Lot 1 — South West and South East Essex.
The key objective of the Procurement is to commission Out of Hours Dental service provision on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays for Lot 2 — Mid and West Essex.
The key objective of the Procurement is to commission Out of Hours Dental service provision on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays for Lot 3 — Suffolk, Great Yarmouth and Waveney.
The normal working hours for the majority of NHS dental practices fall within 8:00 to 18:30 on weekdays. Out-of-hours dental services are those which have been specifically commissioned to provide treatment for urgent dental problems which occur on Saturdays, Sundays and all Bank Holidays (including Christmas Day and Boxing Day).
Urgent dental care services are particularly important in managing severe dental and facial pain and preventing dental conditions from becoming life threatening. Users of urgent dental care services tend to be those with a high level of oral health needs. This service will integrate with local dental pathways, including 111.
— Deliver high quality, patient-centred urgent dental care to patients outside of core dental working day hours, namely weekends and Bank Holidays;
— Provide a Service that will be delivered in a safe and effective manner and delivered via a competent workforce with appropriate skills, responsibilities and training;
— Ensure patients, staff, other health and social care professionals are satisfied with the quality and delivery of the Service;
— Encourage and introduce affordable innovations in clinical practice to improve the quality and responsiveness of patient care, and encompass a health and social care approach;
The location of service provision will enable patients across Essex and East Anglia to access multiple Service locations. The proposed location for each Service will be a matter for each Bidder. The tender has been split into 3 Lot to ensure there is service coverage across the geographical region.
NHS England expects bidders to have innovative solutions including consortia, strategic alliances and sub-contracts which will deliver value for money and improved services to patients.
The Contract will be for a minimum period of 5 years. The contract for this service will be a Personal Dental Services (PDS) Agreement, with a Service commencement date of 1.4.2017.
All correspondence relating to this procurement throughout all the stages of the process must be managed through the Arden & GEM CSU eTendering Procurement Portal messaging facility only.
Note: If you are intending to participate as any of the above, the Bidder will need to ensure that the appropriate agreements between the proposed organisations are firmly in place, and roles and responsibilities are clearly defined in advance of submitting the ITT questionnaire.