Planning

Level 1 Dental Sedation Service in Mid and South Essex

NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX INTEGRATED CARE BOARD

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

18 Mar 2026 at 18:50

Summary of the contracting process

The NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board is planning to procure Level 1 Dental Sedation Services for children and adults in Mid and South Essex through the Most Suitable Provider (MSP) process. The procurement process is currently in the planning stage, with a transparency notice published on 18th March 2026. The focus is on increasing sedation capacity from Chelmsford northwards, specifically along the A12/A120 corridor. The procurement falls under the health services category and aims to award three contracts, scheduled to commence on 1st July 2026. Providers must adhere to various regulations, including the meeting of IACSD 2020 Standards, respectful of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. The overall contract value is approximately £210,000, with each contract worth roughly £70,000 over a potential 21-month duration, inclusive of an extension period.

This tender presents significant opportunities for dental practices with existing operations in Mid and South Essex, specifically providing Level 1 conscious sedation services. Businesses equipped with the required clinical facilities, trained sedation teams, SAAD accreditation, and a robust sedation governance framework will have an advantage. The contract requires integration with local care pathways, necessitating established referral routes with local dental services or hospitals. The contract aims to meet specific regional patient needs, potentially increasing patient volumes for qualifying practices. The procurement process enables providers to expand their service offerings within a defined demographic while ensuring compliance and operational stability. Successful bidders will have the opportunity to contribute to addressing health inequalities and patient access challenges in the region.

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Notice Title

Level 1 Dental Sedation Service in Mid and South Essex

Notice Description

NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board (the Authority) intends to award three contracts to deliver Level 1 Sedation Services for children and adults in Mid and South Essex, following a Most Suitable Provider (MSP) process under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. Level 1 conscious sedation services provide basic, safe sedation, mainly inhalation sedation and single drug intravenous sedation, to help patients undergo routine dental treatment. These services follow nationally recognised IACSD Standards, which set requirements for trained staff, appropriate clinical environments, monitoring, and safe recovery. The Authority seeks to increase Level 1 dental sedation capacity in North Mid and South Essex, specifically from Chelmsford northwards, with services located along the A12/A120 corridor to ensure good patient access. Providers will only be deemed suitable therefore if they operate an existing dental practice within this defined catchment. In applying the Process, the Authority has assessed the five Key Criteria and updated its provider landscape knowledge through a key criteria assessment and data gathering process, to confirm provider capability and local connections. Based on its assessment, the Authority believes it can identify the MSP without a competitive process.

Lot Information

Lot 1

This notice is an intention to award a contract under the most suitable provider process in accordance with the Provider Selection Regime 2023 (PSR). The Authority will only consider organisations as suitable, that can meet the following basic selection criteria: The Authority seeks to increase Level 1 dental sedation capacity in North Mid and South Essex, specifically from Chelmsford northwards, with services located along the A12/A120 corridor to ensure good patient access. Providers must operate an existing dental practice within this defined catchment. Providers must hold an existing GDS or PDS contract for NHS mandatory services within Mid and South Essex. They must meet all IACSD 2020 Standards for Level 1 sedation, including compliant clinical facilities and appropriate environment. A fully trained sedation team (IACSD and CQC aligned) must be in place at contract start. Providers should hold relevant SAAD accreditation (SSC and/or SSPS, or equivalent). Providers must evidence robust sedation governance, including a sedation policy, protocols aligned to IACSD 2020 and the UK Sedation SOP, appropriate screening and assessment processes, and clear escalation pathways for Level 2/3 or GA referral. Providers must demonstrate compliance with CQC Regulations 11, 12, 15 and 18, with no outstanding CQC enforcement relating to sedation. There must be no unresolved NHSBSA Sedation Assurance issues, and Providers must be able to self declare evidence of safe historical sedation activity. Providers must not be subject to remedial notices or clinical safety investigations. Providers must be able to deliver sedation for adults and children, and demonstrate integration with local care pathways, including established referral routes with local dental services or hospitals for escalation and cross provider collaboration. The planned service model is designed to meet a specific, limited level of patient need, with an annual total of 500 Courses of Treatment (CoT) each reimbursed at a tariff of PS240 per CoT. As this activity is distributed across all appointed providers, individual provider volumes will be modest. Providers should consider how these limited activity levels align with their operational planning and service delivery model when assessing suitability for this opportunity. The total funding available across all appointed providers equates to PS120,000. The Authority intends to award three contracts, so each Provider can expect an annual contract value of approximately PS40,000. Providers must be able to mobilise by 1 July 2026, and the contract will be awarded for a duration of 9 months, up to 31st March 2027, with the option of a further 12 month extension, subject to the Authority's requirements, which may be enacted at the Authority's discretion where extension is considered necessary to ensure uninterrupted service provision, ongoing compliance and performance, operational stability, or where financial or strategic considerations justify continuation of the existing arrangements. The aggregate contract value per each contract based on the contract duration (21 months) is approximately PS70,000, based on a third of the CoT funded. Therefore the total budget for this Service across all three contracts is approximately PS210,000 over the contract duration including extension period, if enacted. Key Criteria Assessment: The key criteria are being assessed on a pass / fail basis and are weighted by the Authority as follows: 1. Quality and Innovation (20%) 2. Value (20%) 3. Integration, Collaboration, Sustainability (15%) 4. Access and Health Inequalities (35%) 5. Social Value (10%) Additional information: Please see VI.3) Additional information, for further details.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066e35
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024864-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Planning Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

85 - Health and social work services


CPV Codes

85100000 - Health services

85120000 - Medical practice and related services

85121000 - Medical practice services

85130000 - Dental practice and related services

85131000 - Dental-practice services

85140000 - Miscellaneous health services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£210,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
18 Mar 20264 days ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
18 Mar 2026Expired
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planned
Lots Status
Planned
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX INTEGRATED CARE BOARD
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
BASILDON
Postcode
SS14 3HG
Post Town
Southend-on-Sea
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH3 Essex
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH37 Essex Thames Gateway
Delivery Location
TLH3 Essex

Local Authority
Basildon
Electoral Ward
Fryerns
Westminster Constituency
Basildon and Billericay

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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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