Southend Day Surgery Unit Managed Services Operator - Market Engagement Event

Descriptions

This is a preliminary market engagement notice only, to communicate that Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust (herein “the Authority”) invites interested providers to attend a virtual market engagement event for the Southend Day Surgery Unit Managed Services Operator contract opportunity, which will be broadcast via Microsoft (MS) Teams on Friday 2nd May 2025. The Authority is developing a dedicated Day Surgery Unit and 23 hour Ward to re-provide and replace elective surgical capacity and address growing demand and waiting list pressures. The facility will be a ring-fenced, standalone elective care centre connected to the main hospital to ensure access to inpatient services and diagnostics when required. This model will ensure the delivery of a high-quality, sustainable, and efficient elective surgical service for Mid and South Essex, aligning with national elective recovery priorities. The Authority is seeking to commission a fully managed service offer, providing the operational management and everything from the equipment to the required minimum specification, equipment installation, maintenance and consumables for NHS clinical teams, and potential to contract with the independent and private sector organisations to use. The primary objectives of the unit is to: • Provide a modern fit for purpose environment for day surgery theatres which supports the Authority’s strategy for being at the leading edge of surgery (through cutting edge equipment and responsiveness) that allows the maximum benefit for the Mid and South Essex population. • Implement high-volume, low-complexity surgical pathways in line with Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) principles. • Support recruitment and retention by providing a dedicated and purpose-built environment. The new 1900m² facility will form a fully functional, well maintained and operational suite and will comprise: • 2 Theatres (laminar flow enabled) for a range of elective procedures. • 1 Enhanced Treatment/Procedure Room for outpatient-based interventions. • Pre- and post-operative recovery areas, including 8 patient pods and 2 ensuite side rooms. • General spaces: Waiting, administration, admission and discharge areas, and staff welfare facilities. The expectation is that the below specialities (in the form of elective day-case and 23-hour stay surgeries) will use the facilities, but this is expected to evolve over the life of the contract: • ENT • General Surgery • Pain Management • Oral Surgery • Gynaecology • Burns and Plastics • Orthopaedics (excluding complex procedures requiring a clean facility) • Urology. In addition to providing the aforementioned services, the managed services operator will be required to enter into a separate lease arrangement for the building with a specialist developer/investor. To enable the funding and delivery of the building, the Authority has appointed a specialist developer to deliver the whole building and the fitout of the ground floor Day Surgery Unit. The funding of the project will require an established leasing structure to be implemented. This will therefore require the managed services operator to enter into lease agreements with the developer/funder. The Live Event will occur on Friday 2nd May 2025, from 10:35am to 12:00pm. The format of the Live Event will be a presentation from the Authority (10:35am - 11:30am) followed by a question and answer session (11:30am - 12:00pm). All organisations wishing to attend the event must complete a booking form via the eProcurement portal no later than 12pm on Monday 28th April 2025. The link to enable you to access the Live Event will be provided via the eProcurement Portal Message System, 48 hours prior to the event. A Microsoft Live Event - Instructions on how to Access' document can be found in the Buyer Attachment area within the Portal. To access the booking form please go to the eProcurement Portal at: https://attain.bravosolution.co.uk. Click on 'Register here' and follow the on-screen instructions. You can access 'sq_123 – Southend Day Surgery Unit Managed Services Operator - Market Engagement Event ‘ by clicking on the link called 'View current opportunities' on the Home Page. Please note that a Booking will not be accepted by any means other than through the e-Procurement Portal. Should you require any information regarding this event please contact the email address available in this notice. Procurement Timeline: This section provides a detailed timeline for the forthcoming procurement process which will be a multi-stage competitive flexible procedure with limited negotiation. The following sets out a summary of this process and a timetable. It should be noted that the dates are expected dates at the time of issuing the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) and may be subject to change (but only in exceptional circumstances). Market Engagement - Market Engagement Event as indicated above (2 May 2025) Phase One: PSQ - Tender notice and release of the PSQ documents (6 May 2025) - PSQ submission deadline (2 June 2025) - Bidders informed of outcome (18 June 2025) Phase Two: Initial Tender - Release of initial tender documents (19 June 2025) - Initial tender submission deadline (14 July 2025) Phase Three: Negotiations - Negotiation meetings (30 July 2025 to 18 August 2025) Phase Four: Final Tender - Release of final tender documents (25 August 2025) - Final tender submission deadline (17 September 2025) - Bidders informed of outcome (22 October 2025) - Operational contract start (1 April 2027)