Notice Information
Notice Title
Consultancy and advisory services_Leadership and professional development programme_Bands 7 & 8a
Notice Description
In accordance with the relevant provisions of the Procurement Act 2023, 2gether Support Solutions, on behalf of the Contracting Authority is looking to direct award a contract for the provision of a leadership development programme for delivery to the Contracting Authority's employed Nurses, Midwives and AHPs (Agenda for Change bands 7 and 8a), across six cohorts (three cohorts per banding) between December 2025 to July 2026. All workshops are to be delivered with two facilitators per session, with the programme structured into multiple modules, include one module which incorporates three professional actors for experiential learning.
Procurement Information
This direct award is made under the provisions of the Procurement Act 2023, Schedule 5, which permits the Contracting Authority to award a contract without competition where extreme and unavoidable urgency renders compliance with standard procurement procedures impracticable. The urgency arises because the previous procurement process conducted under a Public Contracts Regulations 2015 compliant national framework agreement was terminated following internal determination that the proposed award was not viable. These issues were identified during governance review and could not reasonably have been foreseen at the outset of the procurement. As a result, the Contracting Authority is now faced with an immediate and critical need to secure consultancy and advisory services_Leadership and professional development programme to maintain continuity of essential services. Restarting a full competitive procedure would introduce delays incompatible with statutory obligations and operational requirements, creating significant risk of consequences, e.g., patient safety compromise, regulatory non-compliance, or operational disruption. Alternative procurement routes, including framework call-offs and expedited competitions, were assessed but found to be infeasible within the required timeframe. This direct award is therefore necessary to address the urgent requirement and is strictly limited to the scope and duration required to mitigate the risk. Future requirements will be subject to a compliant competitive process. In accordance with Section 44 of the Procurement Act 2023, this Transparency Notice is published prior to contract award, and the Contracting Authority will observe the mandatory standstill period to allow representations from interested parties. The standstill period begins on the day after the publication of this notice. Representations by capable, experienced and suitable providers must be made to the Contracting Authority's decision makers before midnight on 24th November 2025. Any representations must be made in writing to email address: ekh-tr.procurement@nhs.net, with the subject line titled 'C401193_PA2023_Representations_[insert your company name]'. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the Procurement Act 2023. This direct award decision has been made a per the Contracting Authority's governance processes, with decision makers being the Contracting Authority's Chief Finance Officer and Chief Nurse and Midwifery Officer. No declared conflicts or potential conflicts of interest of the individuals making the decision were identified.
Notice Details
Publication & Lifecycle
- Open Contracting ID
- ocds-h6vhtk-05dff6
- Publication Source
- Find A Tender Service
- Latest Notice
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/073341-2025
- Current Stage
- Award
- All Stages
- Award
Procurement Classification
- Notice Type
- UK5 - Transparency Notice
- Procurement Type
- Standard
- Procurement Category
- Services
- Procurement Method
- Direct
- Procurement Method Details
- Direct award
- Tender Suitability
- SME, VCSE
- Awardee Scale
- SME
Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)
- CPV Divisions
79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security
-
- CPV Codes
79410000 - Business and management consultancy services
Notice Value(s)
- Tender Value
- Not specified
- Lots Value
- Not specified
- Awards Value
- £173,700 £100K-£500K
- Contracts Value
- Not specified
Notice Dates
- Publication Date
- 12 Nov 20253 months ago
- Submission Deadline
- Not specified
- Future Notice Date
- Not specified
- Award Date
- 12 Nov 20253 months ago
- Contract Period
- 27 Nov 2025 - 31 Jul 2026 6-12 months
- Recurrence
- Not specified
Notice Status
- Tender Status
- Complete
- Lots Status
- Complete
- Awards Status
- Pending
- Contracts Status
- Not Specified
Buyer & Supplier
Contracting Authority (Buyer)
- Main Buyer
- EAST KENT HOSPITALS UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUST
- Contact Name
- Senior Category Manager - Corporate (C401193)
- Contact Email
- ekh-tr.procurement@nhs.net
- Contact Phone
- Not specified
Buyer Location
- Locality
- CANTERBURY
- Postcode
- CT1 3NG
- Post Town
- Canterbury
- Country
- England
-
- Major Region (ITL 1)
- TLJ South East (England)
- Basic Region (ITL 2)
- TLJ4 Kent
- Small Region (ITL 3)
- TLJ44 East Kent
- Delivery Location
- Not specified
-
- Local Authority
- Canterbury
- Electoral Ward
- Barton
- Westminster Constituency
- Canterbury
Further Information
Notice Documents
-
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/073341-2025
12th November 2025 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender
Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)
View full OCDS Record for this contracting process
The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.
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