NHS Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG

Community Extended Minor Surgery Services

Invitation to Tender – Supplementary Information

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD Table of Contents

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 1 PURPOSE, STRUCTURE AND NEXT STEPS FOR APPLICANTS

1.1 Purpose of this document 1.1.1 This document provides an overview of the:-

Procurement and its objectives; The commissioner’s service requirements; Procurement process; Procurement commercial framework; and Procurement governance and administration requirements.

1.1.2 The purpose of this document is to provide Applicants with sufficient information to enable them:- To make an informed decision about whether they wish to submit a tender; To submit a completed tender document.

1.2 Next Steps for Applicants

1. The proposed procurement was advertised on Contracts Finder and the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). 2. Applicants must ensure that completed tender documents are submitted by 1700hrs on 08th June 2015. 1.2.3 Applicants will find details of the evaluation methodology for tenders in section 5 of this document. 1.2.4 Note that all communications will be conducted on BRAVO. Therefore, Applicants should monitor BRAVO throughout the procurement process.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 2 INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

2.1 Background to the Project

3. The Department of Health’s ‘Transforming Community Services: Ambition, Action, Achievement: Transforming services for Acute Care Closer to Home (2009)’ suggests that moving day to day care, that would traditionally be provided in hospital settings into the community, has been shown to provide an equally effective service. Evidence suggests that these services have an impact on hospital admission rates and a reduction in hospital outpatient appointments. Also, comparative cost analysis on services suggests that it is more cost effective to provide services in the community. 4. The Right Care Right Here (RCRH) Partnership is Sandwell & West Birmingham CCGs vehicle of delivery for meeting our local health challenges. It is a well-established partnership between the CCG, the two local authorities and other health services, formed to achieve major transformational change. Part of this focuses on expanding the level of provision of services in community settings, bringing appropriate elements of care closer to home and making more consistent the range, availability and quality of services in primary and community settings. Currently the scope and availability of Extended Minor Surgery services in Community settings is varied when comparing Sandwell to West Birmingham. The commissioning of this service will ensure consistency across the CCG footprint with all patients registered with a Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG practice being able to access the full range of Extended Minor Surgical procedures.

2.2 Scope of Services

5. The Community Extended Minor Surgery service will provide a range of high quality cost effective procedures which are beyond the scope of core activities within primary care services.

The aims of the service are to:

 Improve patient experience and widen patient choice by providing access to high quality community based Extended Minor Surgery services in a range of locations.  Deliver a reduction in waiting times with patients being treated within 8 weeks of referral or 12 weeks for any procedure that needs investigation.

2.3 Critical Success Factors

6. The commissioner requires the Provider to meet the following critical success factors throughout the life of the Contract: Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD  Accessibility – patient friendly, accessible service that is responsive to the individual, including those with special needs, -  Capacity – the service provided must meet demand and meet acceptance of referral timescales.  Quality – patient centred, high quality, safe and effectively delivered service  Value for Money – affordable service that meets the quality standards required.  Resources – the service provided will be resourced with appropriately qualified, skilled and experienced staff throughout the contract.  Integration – service to be integrated where applicable with other services and service providers within the health economy.  Business Continuity – plan to be in place to ensure continued delivery of care in the event of a disruption  Policies and procedures – to be in place to support patient and staff safety and delivery of high quality care  Responsiveness – the service should be responsive in order to prevent delays in delivery of service

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 3 THE COMMISSIONER

3.1 Midlands & Lancashire CSU acting on behalf of Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG who wish to receive Expressions of Interest and responses to the ITT from suitably qualified and experienced providers with the necessary capacity and capability (or a demonstrable ability to provide the necessary capacity and capability) and financial standing to provide the services outlined.

3.2 A map highlighting the geographical area of responsibility of the commissioner is below:-

Figure 1 Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG and surrounding area

3.3 The following provides some background information on the Commissioning Organisation:

Sandwell and West Birmingham (SWB) is, in the main, a deprived area. It has a young, ethnically diverse population - over 150 different languages are spoken in local schools – with a high prevalence of long-term conditions, such as diabetes.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG covers a population of 535,000. The CCG is a membership organisation made up of five Locality Commissioning Groups (LCGs) Black Country, HealthWorks, ICoF, Pioneers for Health, Sandwell Health Alliance. These LCGs are in close touch with the needs of their local communities and plan to strengthen their engagement with patients.

There are significant inequalities in outcome between SWB and national averages – and between different communities within SWB. The points to note are that, relative to England as a whole SWB is: ■ Young, with a significantly higher birth rate. The proportion of older people is currently lower, although this is likely to change in the coming years, with the number of people of pensionable age in Sandwell increasing by 33% (2008 – 2033).

■ Deprived. Sandwell is the 12th most deprived local authority in England. Areas to the West of the CCG, (the former Heart of Birmingham Primary Care Trust (HoB PCT), is the most deprived in England. Employment rates are low; many people lack skills and qualifications; there are areas where the quality of environment is very poor.

. Diverse. Sandwell’s population is 77% ‘White’, the HoB area is 37% ‘White’, with a large proportion of the community being Pakistani in origin. And, in terms of selected health outcomes, people in SWB:

■ Die sooner. Life expectancy is lower in males and females than the England average, at -3.5 and -1.4 years respectively. There are also significant inequalities within SWB: males living in the more affluent parts of the area could expect to live around 10 years longer than those in the most deprived areas.

■ Don’t live as healthily and develop ‘lifestyle-related’ diseases. For example, mortality attributable to smoking is higher than for England as a whole; this is likely to be a major factor in the high rates of cardiovascular, respiratory, and oncological disease. Obesity is higher than for England (with rates for young people being especially high), as are alcohol-related hospital admissions.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 4 PROCUREMENT PROCESS – OVERVIEW

4.1 Procurement Timeline

The timeline for the procurement is set out in Table 1 below. It should be noted that the dates are expected dates at the time of issuing this ITT and may be subject to change as we move through the procurement process.

Table 1 Procurement Timeline (guideline dates only – subject to change)

Task Date Advert published and Expressions of Interest invited 15th April 2015 ITT Published 15th April 2015 Deadline for submission of clarification questions 22nd May 2015 Deadline for submission of completed tenders 08th June 2015 Evaluation of Tenders commences 10th June 2015 Premises visits undertaken (if required) TBC Bidder Presentations (not scored) TBC Evaluation completed & Notification of Evaluation result (Start 07th September 2015 of Standstill Period) Standstill Period ends (midnight) 17th September 2015 Contracts signed 02nd October 2015 Service Start 04th January 2016

4.2 Invitation to Tender

4.2.1 This procurement is using a procurement process which mirrors the Public Contracts Regulations 2006 (as amended) “Open” procedure.

4.2.2 Under the “Open” process invitation to tender documents are sent to all organisations who express an interest in the procurement

4.2.3 The questions relating to this Invitation to Tender are provided in the BRAVO ITT which you have been invited to complete.

4.2.4 The BRAVO ITT consists of two “envelopes”, the “Qualification Envelope” which contains advice, notes and some general questions and the “Technical Envelope” which contains the majority of questions.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 4.2.5 The Technical Questionnaire is in two parts:-

Part 1 – Sections A to J are questions to establish each bidder’s capability and capacity to undertake the contract. Only those bidders who pass this section of questions will have Part 2 questions assessed. Any bidder failing Part 1 will be eliminated from the procurement.

Part 2 – These questions are designed to assess the bidder’s ability to deliver the service in accordance with the specification requirements.

4.2.6 A clarification question and answer process will operate during the period that the advert is live. Bidders wishing to ask clarification questions should submit these through the BRAVO e – procurement system. Clarification questions will be received up to 1700hrs on 22nd May 2015. Bidders should note that responses to all clarification questions will be circulated to all bidders unless information is confidential to a particular bidder.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 5 EVALUATION PROCESS

5.1 Introduction

The Procurement for Extended Minor Surgery is a combined Pre-Qualification Questionnaire and Invitation to Tender process.

The ITT is in two parts as described in Section 4.2.5 above.

Bidders are advised that the following evaluation procedure will be undertaken.

5.2 Part 1 Sections A to J – “Pre-Qualification Questions”

This section of the ITT is designed to evaluate the capacity, capability and eligibility of potential Bidders to provide the care services which are the subject of the Scheme.

The evaluation criteria and process for the Procurement is outlined below. Potential Bidders should note that the commissioner reserves the right to vary the selection procedure to support continued competition, adhere to subsequent technical or legal guidance, or for other reasons at its sole discretion.

The evaluation of responses to Part 1 (sections A to J) will consist of three stages: - 1. Preliminary compliance review; 2. Initial evaluation; and 3. Detailed evaluation.

7. Preliminary Compliance Review The information supplied by each potential Bidder in response to the PQQ sections of the ITT will be checked for completeness and compliance with the requirements of the PQQ sections before responses are evaluated. The preliminary compliance review will check that submissions:

 Answer all questions (or explain satisfactorily if considered not applicable);  Are made in the format, medium and quantity requested; and  Where, in the opinion of the commissioner, a response is non-compliant, the potential Bidder may be excluded from further consideration. Failure to provide a satisfactory response (or any response) to any element of the questions may result in the commissioner not proceeding further with that potential Bidder.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 8. Initial Evaluation

At initial evaluation, unsatisfactory answers in the following areas may result in a failure to pre-qualify and be short-listed:  Previous failure to complete a significant contract (if one held) and / or previous or on-going damages claims;  On-going liabilities which threaten the potential Bidder’s solvency;  Unresolved conflicts of interest;  Eligibility to bid (under the Public Procurement Regulations).

Potential Bidders should note: providers MUST include a response for each question or an explanation as to why this information has not been supplied. Failure to comply will result in a fail.

9. Detailed Evaluation In undertaking the pre-qualification process, Bidders will be assessed against the criteria set out in the table below:

PQQ Section Description Evaluation Sectio Methodology n Section header For Information A Company Information pass/fail B Legal and Regulatory pass/fail C Financial Information pass/fail D Insurance pass/fail E Health and Safety pass/fail F CQC/Monitor pass/fail G Resources, Policies and Training pass/fail H Equalities and Diversity pass/fail I Data Protection and Information Governance pass/fail J Relevant Experience pass/fail

Sections are evaluated as pass/fail, and each group of questions within that section will be

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD assessed as pass/fail. Potential bidders must pass every section in order to progress to having the remainder of the document (Part 2 of the ITT sections, K to M, and Finance section, N) scored. In order to pass a section, the bidder MUST pass all questions within the section.

Conflict of Interest Evaluation (Question 1.17) Where there is a potential Conflict of Interest, the Applicant must either satisfy the Commissioner that they have processes in place to overcome the potential conflict or explain why the circumstances do not give rise to a potential or actual conflict.

Legal and Regulatory (Section B) Please provide the required details. Providers should note that failure to disclose the requested details may result in the disqualification of your tender.

Financial & Economic Evaluation (Section C) PQQ Questions 3.1 – 3.13 inclusive require responding to in order to provide the information to enable the financial evaluation to be carried out.  The financial evaluation will be undertaken against three criteria to establish the Applicant’s overall Financial Stability: - Stability, Cash Flow and Scale as detailed in the table below. NOTE: where 50% of more of the service delivery is to be undertaken by a single sub-contractor, all Questions in Section B must also be submitted for both the Applicant and for the sub-contractor. The Commissioner will examine both sets of accounts and responses and award an overall Pass/Fail per question. CRITERIA EVIDENCE ( Sub Criteria) OUTCOME Stability Audited accounts and \ or any other recent A Pass will be management accounts show a stable in profit achieved if either of (Earnings Before Interest & Tax) trading the sub criteria is position for the last 2 years. met. Guarantee offered by a group company of the Applicant, any consortium member or other third party that meets the above sub criteria. Cash Flow Audited accounts and \ or any other recent A Pass will be management accounts show a positive cash achieved if either of flow (after adjusting for investment in fixed the sub criteria is assets) for the last 2 years. met. Guarantee offered by a group company of the Applicant, any consortium member or other third party that meets the above sub criteria. Scale The Indicative annual contract value is less A Pass will be Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD than 200% of the Applicant’s annual turnover achieved if either of based on the latest set of audited annual the sub criteria is accounts or management accounts. met. Guarantee offered by a group company of the Applicant, any consortium member or other third party that meets the above sub criteria. NB: In circumstances where the Applicant cannot comply with a sub criteria but has clearly identified the reasons why in their submission, then provided that the Applicant has provided satisfactory and realistic plans and\or guarantees from an investor demonstrating that the failure will not affect the Applicant’s ability to undertake the contract then the Commissioner may consider such evidence demonstrates meeting the requirement and therefore will give a discretionary pass.

Insurance (Section D) Specific levels of insurance for this service are required as follows:

Insurance Type Minimum Level Required (£) Clinical Negligence £2m Public Liability £5m Professional Indemnity £5m Employer’s Liability £5m

Bidders must provide evidence to demonstrate that they have the required minimum insurance values as detailed in the table above. NOTE: If you do not currently have the levels of insurance required you must confirm that you will do so – this will be a Condition Precedent if you are awarded a contract.

The Commissioner needs to be satisfied that its interests are fully protected and members of the public and/or service users utilising the services are fully protected to the extent that they have a valid claim against the Provider and/or Commissioner; and

Providers will be required to indemnify the Commissioner against any claims that may be made against the Commissioner arising from the provision of the services by the Providers. All questions are pass / fail.

Health and Safety (Section E)

If you are required by law to have a Health & Safety Policy, your response must provide evidence that you have a comprehensive health & safety policy and health & safety record with no record of material health & safety incidents being disclosed, or

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD if disclosed, evidence you have taken appropriate remedial & preventative action.

All questions are pass\ fail.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) and Monitor (Section F)

. Monitor Licence (Question 6.1) If you require a Monitor Licence this must be provided. Details of any suspension or restrictions must also be detailed. If necessary advice will be sought from Monitor if there are any issues identified in an Applicant’s response.

. CQC Registration (Question 6.2) Applicants must provide their CQC registrations details. If you are unable to provide these you must provide an explanation why you are unable to do so (for example you are currently not required to be registered). If the service is a registered service as determined by CQC and you do not currently have such registration, you MUST demonstrate and confirm how you will ensure appropriate registration will be obtained prior to the designated service start date otherwise your application will be failed. NOTE: this will be a Condition Precedent if you are awarded a contract.

If necessary advice will be sought from the CQC if there are any issues identified in an Applicant’s response. NOTE: evidence of Registration must be provided for the organisation delivering the clinical services detailed in the Outline Specification (which are subject to CQC registration). Where a consortium member or sub-contractor will be providing the clinical services, you must clearly state this in your response and attach their CQC certification.

. Registration (Question 6.3) Applicants must obtain and attach a copy of their CQC certificate or certificates with their PQQ response

. Reports, Complaints, Notices & Alerts from any Regulatory Body (Question 6.4) Where an Applicant has received any reports, complaints, notices or alerts from any Regulatory Body in the last three years these must be disclosed. The Applicant will need to satisfy the Commissioner that the issues concerned have been resolved and that steps have been put in place to mitigate against the risk of these issues arising in the future.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD . CQC Registration of Premises (Question 6.5) By undertaking a regulated activity it is likely that any premises used in the delivery of the services will require CQC registration. Please confirm that your premises have CQC registration or confirm you will register your proposed premises where required by CQC. NOTE: this will be a Condition Precedent if you are awarded a contract. State ‘Not Applicable” and provide reasons why if CQC registration of premises does not apply to you.

Staffing Resources and Workforce Policies & Strategies

 Staffing Resources (Questions 7.1 – 7.5) In your response, the Commissioner will be looking for evidence that you will have an adequate number of staff and will continue to have an adequate number of staff to ensure you would be capable of delivering the services and continue to be capable of delivering the services throughout the contract.

All questions are pass\fail.  Workforce Policies & Strategies (Questions 7.6 – 7.8)

Applicants must be able to demonstrate that they have in place suitable workforce policies and strategies that comply with current employment legislation.

These questions are pass\fail.

Equality and Diversity (Questions 8.1 – 8.11)

 Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG are committed to equality and its legal duties, both as a commissioning organisation in its own right, and through the provider organisations which deliver the services it commissions to meet the general public sector equality duty set out in s149 Equality Act 2010, and any relevant specific equality duties which may be set by the Government under s153 of the Act.

 Applicants must provide sufficient information to enable assessment of how, as an employer and/or provider, you have dealt with equality issues. Each Applicant must demonstrate that they have an Equal Opportunities Policy and training in place. If action has been taken against the Applicant on grounds of unlawful discrimination the Applicant must demonstrate that they have implemented appropriate changes to address the issues raised and that steps have been put in place to avoid any future breeches.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD An Applicant’s Equal Opportunities Policy must be comprehensive and proportionate to the size and scale of their organisation.

All questions are pass\fail.

Data Protection and Information Governance (Questions 9.1 – 9.9)

 Should there have been any breaches of information governance or information governance serious untoward incidents in the last five years, the Applicant must provide evidence that appropriate remedial action, risk management and monitoring processes have been put in place. Applicants must also provide evidence that they are compliant with the Data Protection Act. If not and a satisfactory explanation is not provided then the PQQ will be failed.

o IG Toolkit (9.8) Applicants who have not completed the IG toolkit must confirm that you will do so prior to commencement of service. NB. This will be a condition precedent if you are awarded a contract.

o N3 & IGSoC Compliance (9.9) Applicants who do not have a N3 connection and/or are not compliant with IGSoC must confirm that you will do so prior to the commencement of service. NOTE: this will be a Condition Precedent if you are awarded a contract.

Previous Experience (Questions 10.1 & 10.2)

For question 10.1 applicants are required to confirm they can meet the requirements of the Service Specification and will do so from the start of the contract. This is a pass/fail question. Applicants who state they can/will not meet the requirements of the specification will be disqualified.

For question 10.2 applicants are asked to give examples of previous experience of providing Minor Surgery services. This question is for information only.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 10. Part 2 of ITT (sections K to N) Evaluation

Sections K to N will be assessed on the basis of the overall criteria below. For the avoidance of doubt, quality will be weighted at 60% and Finance at 40%. The full breakdown of how these areas shall be scored is set out in the table below. Bidders' attention is drawn to the fact that section 2.13 is the section header and is not scored:

SECTIO QUALITY SUB- SECTION TOTAL OVERALL N CRITERIA WEIGHTING (*a) WEIGHTING (*b) K Service Delivery 70 L Quality, Safety and 20 Governance 100% 60 M Facilities and 10 Equipment SECTIO FINANCE SUB- SECTION TOTAL OVERALL N CRITERIA WEIGHTING (*c) WEIGHTING (*d) N Price 100 100% 40 Presentations will be required but will not be scored – Not Scored instead they will be used to evidence your bid. Details of the presentation requirements will be uploaded as a separate attachment within the attachments area of the project in Bravo shortly. Date/time/location will be sent via the Bravo messaging service to bidders individually once the process has closed. Total 100%

*The total Score achieved from the quality sub sections (a) will be multiplied by the overall weighting for Quality (b) to give a final weighted score for Quality.

All questions within each Quality sub-criteria are weighted equally.

The total Score achieved from the finance sub sections (c) will be multiplied by the overall weighting for Finance (d) to give a final weighted score for Finance

The overall score for Quality and the overall score for Finance will be added together to give an overall score for the ITT submission.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD Questions within each quality sub-criteria, which are weighted as listed above, are scored using the following scoring system, with the exception of site visits which will be scored using the regime outlined in 5.3 (vii) below:-

SCORE LABEL SCORE PERFORMANCE MEASURE Excellent answer 5 Excellent answer. High degree of confidence in the Bidder’s ability to do what is stated through a thorough understanding of what is being requested and responses demonstrate that the Bidder can do what they say they will. Responses are supported by evidence as appropriate. Potential system/stakeholder benefits described with evidence/rationale. Good answer 4 Good understanding of the issues and /or requirements, good level of detail, and demonstration that proposals are feasible so that there is a good level of confidence that the Bidder will deliver. Some potential system/stakeholder benefits described with some evidence/rationale. Acceptable answer 3 (60%) Acceptable answer. Understands the issues and addresses them appropriately with sufficient information. Poor answer 2 Limited answer. Some misunderstandings and a generally low level of information and detail. Fails to meet expectations/requirements and provides insufficient confidence of delivery. Very poor answer 1 Very poor answer. Barely understood by the Bidder and limited on relevant information. Provides no confidence that the issues will be addressed and managed in line with expectations. Unacceptable or no answer0 Unacceptable answer or no answer given given

5.3 ITT (Invitation to Tender) Evaluation

5.3.1 Quality

i. Each bid submission will be scored in accordance with the weighting and scoring criteria stated above.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD ii. Within each scored quality section the scores awarded to each response will be added together, converted to a percentage of the total marks available and the weighting for each section applied. Each weighted section score will then be added together to give a total quality score. The overall quality weighting will then be applied to the total quality score to arrive at a final quality score.

iii. Clarifications may be sought in writing or at interview from the Bidders. Scores given per question may then be altered accordingly.

5.3.2 Price

Price will be scored for each bid with the lowest overall price being awarded the highest mark (ie 100%). Scores for the prices submitted by other bidders will be awarded a score as an inverse percentage and will receive a mark below 100%. The price weighting will then be applied to the price score. The commissioner reserves the right to reject any bids that are unrealistically low.

5.3.3 Recommendation for award

Bidders must achieve a pass for all questions posed in sections A – J and at least a minimum overall mark of 60% for the Quality sub-criteria (sections K-M). Failure to achieve this will result in the rejection of the bidder’s submission.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 6 CONTRACT AWARD Based on the outcome of the evaluation, recommendations will be made to the Governing Bodies of Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG the members to consider. Following approval by the governing body, the recommended Bidders may enter into a contract.

6.1 Service Commencement

Following contract award and in accordance with the Provider’s mobilisation plan, the commissioner and the Provider(s) will work together towards service commencement at the contractually agreed date.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 7 COMMERCIAL FRAMEWORK

The Applicants’ attention is drawn to the following commercial information:

7.1 Contract The contract to be entered into by the commissioner and the selected Provider(s) for the Services will be the NHS Standard Contract a copy of which can be found at the NHS England website:- http://www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-standard-contract/

Each Contract will be separate to and independent of any existing contract currently in place between the Provider and the commissioner unless otherwise agreed. In addition to this, an example contract with some schedules populated is provided in order that providers can be equipped with a more complete picture of the contractual expectations which will be placed on them should they be successful. Providers should note, however, that the partially completed contract is based on the NHS Standard Contract for 2013/14. It is likely that by the time contracting for this scheme is taking place any contract will be based on the NHS Standard Contract for 2014/15.

7.2 Contract Duration The Contract will be for a term of 3 years with the option to extend for 2 years.

7.3 Currency Bids at the ITT stage will only be accepted in pounds sterling.

7.4 Funding Authorisation Prior to being allocated any placements, providers will be issued with an individual authorisation which will be made up of a patient ID and a contract number and the weekly cost of the package will be confirmed. The authorisation number should be quoted on each invoice raised in respect of nursing home placements made under the terms of this contract. Invoices raised should not contain any information by which a patient could be directly identified. The commissioner will further communicate the regime which must be followed for invoicing once the contract has been awarded.

1. Premises, Facilities Management & Equipment

8 7.5.1 Premises

The provider shall be responsible for identifying, securing, redevelopment of (where necessary) and maintaining suitable premises. The provider shall ensure that all Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD accommodation meets Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) standards for delivery of safe and secure environments within which to deliver clinical care.

9 7.5.2 Facilities Management Services

The provider is responsible for all facilities management activities associated with the delivery of this service.

10 7.5.3 Equipment

Providers will be responsible for the provision and cost of equipment, unless there are compelling reasons in respect of the Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG Scheme why this would not be the optimal equipment solution. Equipment should include, as a minimum all equipment referred to in the Service Specification.

10.1 Staffing

Providers will need to be clear on the staff to patient ratios available to manage these beds and be committed to ensuring that staff receive the necessary education and training to provide the highest standard of care to patients.

10.2 IM&T The provider must ensure that the necessary IT infrastructure is in place to enable the delivery of this service, this should include, as a minimum:

 Telecommunications systems  Safe Haven fax or secure email (nhs.net)

Furthermore, the provider must ensure that robust Information Governance systems are in place to ensure:  information is handled in a confidential and secure manner to appropriate ethical and quality standards  necessary safeguards for, and appropriate use of, patient and personal information Providers are advised to visit http://systems.hscic.gov.uk/infogov to ensure compliance with relevant standards.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 10.3 Financial Standing Financial standing requirements for Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG Scheme will include a requirement of confirmation of identity, solvency and proposed business structure, along with detailed proposals as to how the Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG Scheme funding requirement would be met.

10.4 Insurance A comprehensive schedule of insurances that the Provider(s) will be required to obtain for the Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG Scheme will be set out in the Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG Scheme documentation. This will typically include public liability, corporate medical malpractice and certain property cover.

The insurance requirements will also require Providers to ensure that:

. Midlands and Lancashire CSU and Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG interests are fully protected; . Members of the public utilising the services are fully protected to the extent that they have a valid claim against the Provider and / or CSU/CCG(s); and . The Provider maintains insurance which meets at least the minimum statutory requirements.

Providers will be required to indemnify the CCG against any claims that may be made against the CCG arising from the provision of the services by the Provider. Midlands and Lancashire CSU and Sandwell & West Birmingham CCG will expect the Provider(s) to offer evidence that they have sourced appropriate (and sufficient) insurance or other arrangements. For the avoidance of doubt, this will include provisions for clinical negligence insurance covering all staff and operational risk in the facilities from which the Provider’s care services are to be provided.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 11 TERMS OF OFFER

11.1 Information and Confidentiality

8.1.1 Information that is supplied to bidders as part of the procurement exercise is supplied in good faith. However, bidders must satisfy themselves as to the accuracy of such information and no responsibility is accepted for any loss or damage of whatever kind or howsoever caused arising from the use by the bidders of such information, unless such information has been supplied fraudulently by the commissioner.

8.1.2 All information supplied to bidders by the commissioner in connection with this procurement exercise shall be regarded as confidential. By submitting an offer the bidder agrees to be bound by the obligation to preserve the confidentiality of all such information.

8.1.3 This invitation and its accompanying documents shall remain the property of the commissioner and must be returned upon demand.

1. Freedom of Information Act 2000

8.2.1 The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) applies to the commissioner.

8.2.2 Bidders should be aware of the commissioner's obligations and responsibilities under the FOIA to disclose, on request, recorded information held by the commissioner. Information provided by bidders in connection with this procurement exercise, or with any contract that may be awarded as a result of this exercise, may therefore have to be disclosed by the commissioner in response to such a request, unless the commissioner decides that one of the statutory exemptions under the FOIA applies. The commissioner may also include certain information in the publication scheme which it maintains under the FOIA.

8.2.3 In certain circumstances, and in accordance with the Code of Practice issued under section 45 of the FOIA or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, the commissioner may consider it appropriate to ask bidders for their views as to the release of any information before a decision on how to respond to a request is made. In dealing with requests for information under the FOIA, the commissioner must comply with a strict timetable and the commissioner would, therefore, expect a timely response to any such consultation within five working days.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 8.2.4 If bidders provide any information to the commissioner in connection with this procurement exercise, or with any contract that may be awarded as a result of this exercise, which is confidential in nature and which a bidder wishes to be held in confidence, then bidders must clearly identify in their offer documentation the information to which bidders consider a duty of confidentiality applies. Bidders must give a clear indication which material is to be considered confidential and why it is considered to be so, along with the time period for which it will remain confidential in nature. The use of blanket protective markings such as “commercial in confidence” will no longer be appropriate. In addition, marking any material as “confidential” or equivalent should not be taken to mean that the commissioner accepts any duty of confidentiality by virtue of such marking. Please note that even where a bidder has indicated that information is confidential, the commissioner may be required to disclose it under the FOIA if a request is received. 8.2.5 The commissioner does not accept that trivial information or information which by its very nature cannot be regarded as confidential should be subject to any obligation of confidence.

8.2.6 In certain circumstances where information has not been provided in confidence, the commissioner may still wish to consult with bidders about the application of any other exemption such as that relating to disclosure that will prejudice the commercial interests of any party.

8.2.7 The decision as to which information will be disclosed is reserved to the commissioner notwithstanding any consultation with the bidder.

2. Prices

1. Prices must remain open for acceptance for a minimum of 180 days from the closing date for the receipt of offers. Bidders must confirm this as part of their bid submission.

2. Prices submitted as part of this tender should be quoted exclusive of VAT.

3. Offer documentation and ‘Quality’ submission

8.4.1 Offers must be submitted for all services.

8.4.2 The services offered should be strictly in accordance with the Specification (Section 5). Alternative goods and/or services may be offered but all differences between such items and the Specification must be indicated in detail in the Offer.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 8.4.3 In submitting an offer the Bidder must complete the Qualification and Technical envelopes in BRAVO.

8.4.4 Offers submitted utilising the BRAVO system by the supplier will be regarded by both parties as a bona fide offer and therefore signatures to documents normally required will be deemed to have been given by use of the BRAVO system to submit offers.

8.4.5 The BRAVO documents must be completed in full as any offer may be rejected which:

1. Contains gaps, omissions or obvious errors; or

2. Is received after the closing time.

8.4.6 For help in completing your response or if you require any clarifications, please use the BRAVO messaging service in every instance for this tender. Any BRAVO system technical queries should be referred to the BRAVOSolution helpdesk on telephone number 0800 368 4850.

8.4.7 Offers must be submitted via the e-tendering portal https://mlcsu.BRAVOsolution.co.uk All documents where requested must be uploaded and all templates must be completed using the BRAVO system. All written communications must be carried out via the BRAVO system. Failure to do this will result in your offer being rejected.

8.4.8 The commissioner may at its own absolute discretion extend the closing date and time specified for the receipt of Offers.

8.5.9 The commissioner does not bind itself to accept the lowest or any offer.

8.5 Contract award criteria

The contract will be awarded on the basis of the most economically advantageous offer based on the criteria stated in Section 6.

8.6 TUPE

8.6.1 The attention of bidders is drawn to the provisions of the European Acquired Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD Rights Directive EC77/187 and TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment Regulations). TUPE may apply to the transfer of the contract from the present provider(s) to the new one, giving the present provider’staff the right to transfer to the employment of the successful bidder on the same terms and conditions. The above does not apply to the self-employed.

8.6.2 Bidders are advised to form their own view on whether TUPE applies, obtaining their own legal advice as necessary.

8.6.3 The successful bidder(s) will be required to indemnify Midlands & Lancashire CSU and the commissioner against all possible claims under TUPE.

8.6.4 It is a further requirement that the successful bidder(s) will pass on all details of their own workforce towards the end of the contract period so that this information can be passed to other bona fide suppliers to enable them to assess their obligations under TUPE in the event of a subsequent transfer.

8.6.5 Bidders attention is drawn to the Cabinet Office's Principles of Good Employment Practice which has replaced the Code of Practice on Workforce Matters in Public Sector Service Contracts 2003.

8.7 Collusive tendering

Any bidder who:

8.7.1 Fixes or adjusts the amount of his offer by or in accordance with any agreement or arrangement with any other person, or

8.7.2 Communicates to any person other than the Commissioning Authority the amount or approximate amount of his proposed offer (except where such disclosure is made in confidence in order to obtain quotations necessary for the preparation of the tender for insurance), or

8.7.3 Enters into any agreement or arrangement with any other person that he shall refrain from tendering or as to the amount of any offer to be submitted, or

8.7.4 Offers or agrees to pay or give, or does pay or give any sum of money, inducement or valuable consideration directly or indirectly to any person for doing or having done, or causing or having caused to be done in relation to any other Offer or proposed Offer for the Services, any act, omission or thing of the

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD sort described in sections 8.7.1, 8.7.2 and 8.7.3 above;

will be disqualified (without prejudice to any other civil remedies available to the Commissioning Authority and without prejudice to any criminal liability which such conduct by a bidder may attract).

8.8 EU Procurement Regulations

The healthcare services to which this procurement relates fall within Part B of Schedule 3 of The Public Contracts Regulations 2006. Neither placement of an advertisement for this procurement, nor the use of an open procurement process, nor any other indication shall be taken to mean that the commissioner intends to hold itself bound by any of the regulations save those applicable to Part B services.

8.9 NHS (Procurement, Patient Choice & Competition) Regulations 2013 (No.2)

Applicants should be aware that the NHS (Procurement, Patient Choice and Competition) Regulations 2013 (No. 2) apply to this procurement. The procurement may also be subject to any future guidance issued by the Department of Health, NHS England or other NHS Bodies.

8.10 Procurement Costs

Each Applicant will be responsible for its own costs incurred throughout each stage of the Procurement process. Neither the Commissioner, ML CSU, the NHS Commissioning Board, the Department of Health nor their advisors will be responsible for any costs incurred by the Applicant or any other person through this process.

8.11 Transparency

The government has set out the need for greater transparency across its operations to enable the public to hold public bodies and politicians to account. This includes commitments relating to public expenditure intended to help achieve better value for money.

As part of the transparency agenda, the government has made the following commitments with regard to procurement and contracting:

 All new central government tender documents for contracts over £10,000 to be Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD published on a single website from September 2010, with this information to be made available to the public free of charge.  New items of central government spending over £25,000 to be published online from November 2010.  All new central government contracts to be published in full from January 2011.

The above rules apply to the NHS, therefore bidders should be aware that there is a requirement to publish the contract documents, which may include parts of or all of the successful bidder's response and the contract price, following contract award.

8.12 Conflicts of Interest

In order to ensure a fair and competitive procurement process, the Commissioner requires that all actual or potential conflicts of interest that an Applicant may have are identified and resolved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner.

Applicants must notify the Commissioner of any actual or potential conflicts of interest in their response to the Invitation to Tender (ITT). If the Applicant becomes aware of an actual or potential conflict of interest following submission of the ITT it must immediately notify the Commissioner via the BRAVO messaging system. Such notifications should provide details of the actual or potential conflict of interest.

If, following consultation with the Applicant, such actual or potential conflict(s) are not resolved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner, then the Commissioner reserves the right to exclude at any time any Applicant from the Procurement process should any actual or potential conflict(s) of interest be found by the Commissioner to confer an unfair competitive advantage on one or more Applicant(s), or otherwise to undermine a fair and competitive Procurement process.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD 12 GLOSSARY

Advert The Commissioner’s advertisement in relation to the Project as published on NHS Supply2Health and/or in the OJEU. Applicant Any organisation submitting a response to the Pre – Qualification Questionnaire. AWARD Electronic evaluation system developed by QinetiQ Commercial Systems BRAVO An E – Tendering portal developed by BRAVO Solution Candidate Any organisation submitting a response to the Pre – Qualification Questionnaire. CCG Clinical Commissioning Group a GP Lead Commissioning Organisation Commissioner The Commissioner or commissioners named in this MOI Commissioning Support Unit Central Midlands Commissioning Support Unit which is undertaking this procurement on behalf of the Commissioner Conflict of Interest A situation that has the potential to undermine the impartiality of a person because of the possibility of a clash between the person's self-interest and professional interest or public interest. OR A situation in which a party's responsibility to a second- party limits its ability to discharge its responsibility to a third-party. Consortium Members All legal entities, including the Candidate, bidding as part of a consortium. Evaluation Methodology The methodology to be used by the Commissioner to assess the Candidates’ Responses in relation to the PQQ as set out in Section 5 of this MOI Material Sub-Contractor A sub-contractor that would be material to the delivery of the Requirements and/or bring capabilities or experience that the Candidate is seeking to rely on for any part of its Response. NHS England NHS Commissioning Board NHS Supply2Health The NHS Supply2Health website (https://www.supply2health.nhs.uk) OJEU Official Journal of the European Union. Process The procurement process being followed for this Project. Procurement, Patient Choice and NHS ( Procurement, Patient Choice & Competition) Competition Regulations Regulations 2013 ( No.2) Procuring Entity The Commissioner or Commissioning Support Unit undertaking this procurement.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD Project The project referred to on the front page of this MOI Regulations The Public Contracts Regulations 2006 as amended. Organisation(s) or person(s) connected with a response to Relevant Organisation. the ITT and / or connected with a bid submission. Requirements The Commissioner’s requirements, as set out in the relevant Advert And this Invitation to Tender Response All information requested from the Candidate, including references, in the ITT

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Kingston House 438-450 High Street West Bromwich B70 9LD