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RFI - National Recruitment Service (Postgraduate Training)

NHS England

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

26 Oct 2026 at 15:41

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

NHS England intends to procure a national digital recruitment service for postgraduate training across medical, dental, pharmacy and healthcare science programmes. The service would cover England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The supplier would implement, operate, support and continuously improve a secure, cloud-based, scalable platform for the full recruitment journey: advertising, applications, shortlisting, assessment, offers, onboarding, communications and reporting. The work also covers migration of existing data, integration with current systems and APIs, analytics, cyber security, information governance, service management and ongoing development. Delivery would be phased, progressing from existing Alpha prototypes through Beta and transition to live service, in collaboration with NHS England and other stakeholders. The service is intended to replace the current system and maintain continuity of national recruitment activity.

This is at the planning stage: NHS England is conducting an initial request for information to understand suppliers’ capabilities, costs and possible commercial models, not inviting tenders. The procurement method and procedure have not yet been set out. The service is intended to start on 1 April 2028 and run to 31 March 2033, with a possible extension to 31 March 2035. The indicative estimate is £20 million excluding VAT (£24 million including VAT); it is not an approved budget or committed contract value, and the eventual procurement value may differ. The buyer expects a further notice by 31 March 2027. The requirement is one lot, identified as suitable for SMEs and voluntary, community and social enterprises. The market engagement response date is 10 November 2026; this is not a tender deadline.

The work is likely to suit suppliers with experience delivering large-scale digital recruitment or application platforms, particularly for public services or complex, multi-programme recruitment. Strong candidates will be able to design, build and operate secure cloud services, manage substantial national volumes and provide an accessible, user-centred experience. The scope calls for capability in end-to-end recruitment workflows, data migration, systems and API integration, reporting and analytics, cyber security, information governance, service management and agile product development. Suppliers should be prepared to work collaboratively with NHS England and multiple stakeholders, deliver a phased transition from prototype to live service, and protect continuity of recruitment throughout implementation. The buyer is seeking a scalable platform that can adapt as recruitment and workforce needs change. SMEs and social enterprises are expressly considered suitable for the requirement. No specific accreditation or qualification is identified in the planning information.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

RFI - National Recruitment Service (Postgraduate Training)

Notice Description

The work is to conduct an initial RFI with the intention of later procuring a new national digital recruitment service for postgraduate training across Medical, Dental, Pharmacy and Healthcare Science programmes in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The supplier will be responsible for implementing, operating, supporting and continuously improving a secure, cloud-based and scalable platform covering the full recruitment journey, including advertising, applications, shortlisting, assessment, offers, onboarding, communications and reporting. The service will replace the current solution before its contract expires in April 2028 and will need to manage significant national volumes while providing a modern, accessible and user-centred experience. The requirement also includes data migration, integration with existing systems and APIs, reporting and analytics, cyber security, information governance, service management and ongoing agile development. Implementation will be phased, building on the existing Alpha prototypes through Beta and transition to live service, with the supplier expected to work collaboratively with NHS England and other stakeholders to ensure continuity of recruitment activity and establish a platform that can evolve as future recruitment and workforce needs change. You must be registered on the supplier portal and logged into your portal account to register your interest. You can search for the opportunity using the code: C485695 In order to register on the Supplier's portal, please follow the following link to the welcome page: https://atamis-1928.my.site.com/s/Welcome The value stated is an indicative estimate only and does not represent an approved budget or committed contract value. This RFI is intended, in part, to inform the Authority's understanding of potential costs and commercial models. The value of any subsequent procurement may therefore differ from this estimate.

Planning Information

You must be registered on the supplier portal and logged into your portal account to register your interest. You can search for the opportunity using the code: C485695 In order to register on the Supplier's portal, please follow the following link to the welcome page: https://atamis-1928.my.site.com/s/Welcome

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-07906e
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/101159-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

85100000 - Health services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£20,000,000 £10M-£100M
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
26 Oct 2026Today
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
31 Mar 20276 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
1 Apr 2028 - 31 Mar 2033 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
NHS England
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
LONDON
Postcode
SE1 8UG
Postcode Area
South East London
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI4 Inner London - East
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI45 Lambeth
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Lambeth
Electoral Ward
Waterloo & South Bank
Westminster Constituency
Vauxhall and Camberwell Green

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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