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Provision of Simulated Patients for Brighton and Sussex Medical School

UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX(THE)

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

17 Aug 2026 at 14:25

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

17 Jun 2026 at 17:43

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

26 Jan 2026 at 12:26

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The University of Sussex is procuring specialist simulated patient services for Brighton and Sussex Medical School. The requirement is for a trained-actor agency to provide Simulated Patients for medical education and assessment, including GP simulated surgery and Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs). This is a medical education service, delivered for the medical school in the Brighton and Sussex area. The appointed provider is expected to supply suitable actors and coordinate their use in structured teaching and assessment activities. The requirement is relevant to agencies that recruit, train and manage actors for healthcare education, clinical skills assessment or similar specialist educational settings, particularly those able to support both recurring sessions and formal examination programmes. The University of Sussex is the public-sector buyer for this service.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded. It used an above-threshold open competitive flexible procedure, involving invitations to participate, tender documents, presentations and negotiations with the preferred bidder. One lot was awarded to Simactors Limited on 16 June 2026. The estimated gross value was £720,000; the award value was £612,388.80 gross (£510,324 excluding tax), and the signed contract value is £626,212.80 gross (£521,844 excluding tax). The contract was signed on 17 August 2026 and runs from 18 August 2026 to 31 August 2029, with one optional three-year extension to 31 August 2032. Evaluation weighted quality at 65% and commercial considerations at 35%. Three bids reached the final stage, including three from SMEs.

This award demonstrates recurring demand from the University of Sussex for managed actor provision within medical education and assessment. A credible future supplier would need to recruit and retain trained actors, match them reliably to clinical scenarios, and manage attendance across GP simulated surgery and OSCE activity. Experience supporting structured healthcare teaching or formal clinical examinations would be directly relevant, as would the operational capacity to coordinate multiple actors, sessions and assessment requirements for a medical school. The evaluation placed greater emphasis on quality than commercial terms, so evidence of actor training, consistency, safeguarding, professionalism, scenario delivery and dependable administration is likely to matter. The procurement was suitable for SMEs, and the successful supplier was an SME, indicating that specialist smaller agencies can compete when they can demonstrate sufficient capability and delivery capacity.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Provision of Simulated Patients for Brighton and Sussex Medical School

Notice Description

For the provision of a specialist agency to provide trained actors ("Simulated Patients") for medical education and assessment activities, including GP Simulated Surgery and Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs).

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: 1 x 3 year extension after initial 3 year term

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-060e6b
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078146-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Competitive flexible procedure
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

80320000 - Medical education services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£720,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£720,000 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£510,324 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
£521,844 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
17 Aug 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
23 Feb 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
16 Jun 20263 months ago
Contract Period
18 Aug 2026 - 31 Aug 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX(THE)
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
FALMER, BRIGHTON
Postcode
BN1 9RH
Postcode Area
Brighton
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ2 Surrey, East and West Sussex
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ21 Brighton and Hove
Delivery Location
TLJ2 Surrey, East and West Sussex
Local Authority
Brighton and Hove
Electoral Ward
Coldean & Stanmer
Westminster Constituency
Brighton Pavilion

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Simactors LTD

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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