Talking Heads: The Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 - Part Two

The Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 came into effect on 1 January 2024. They bring in a completely new regime for the procurement of health care services in England that aims to give commissioners of health care services more flexibility in selecting providers and mean that competitive tendering will not be the default for all above threshold contracts. Instead, relevant authorities will have a choice of five different award processes, only one of which involves bidders submitting tenders in response to published requirements.

We have prepared a series of videos that break down the Provider Selection Regime into short topics that we hope you will be able to digest over a coffee. The series covers the following topics:

1. Introduction: covering start date/application to current procurement, coverage, mixed procurement, the general principles, key criteria and basic selection criteria
2. The direct award processes: Direct Award Processes A, B and C
3. The other award processes: Most Suitable Provider Process and Competitive Process
4. Standstill and the representations phase
5. Modifications of contracts and dealing with urgent situations
6. Other points: grounds for exclusion, dealing with conflicts of interest, termination of contracts and record keeping

This Part Two of the series covers the second three videos.

Standstill and the representation process

In this video we discuss the requirements around running a standstill period prior to awarding a contract under Direct Award Process C, the Most Suitable Provider Process and the Competitive Process. We also talk through the options available to unsuccessful suppliers to ask for a review of the award decision via the written representations process under Regulation 12.

Modification of contracts and urgency

In this video we discuss the rules around the ability of a relevant authority to modify a contract once awarded and we consider what a relevant authority can do to award a contract in situations of urgency.

Other points

In our final video, we cover some additional points that are relevant to all processes being run under the Provider Selection Regime. This covers the Basic Selection Criteria, exclusion grounds, management of conflicts of interest, the requirements around the recording and publication of information, and what is required in relation to the inclusion of termination provisions in contracts.

Watch the first three episodes here.

We hope that you have found these videos helpful. If you would like to enquire about bespoke training for your organisation, please get in touch with Fran Mussellwhite.