---
title: "NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX INTEGRATED CARE BOARD"
published: "2025-05-21"
---

# NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems

Buyer: NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX INTEGRATED CARE BOARD  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c

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## Summary

The NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board has awarded a contract for NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies aimed at severe mental health issues, focusing on community health services. This urgent contract, awarded under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023, commenced on 1st April 2025 and concludes on 31st July 2025, with a contract value of £1,441,136.00. The contract was assigned to VITA HEALTH GROUP LIMITED due to immediate circumstances requiring continuity of care and the provider’s established expertise and infrastructure, mitigating the gap that might have arisen from a transition to a new provider. The procurement method utilised was a limited, non-competitive approach due to the urgency of maintaining uninterrupted service delivery across Mid and South Essex.

This tender presents significant business opportunities for service providers specialising in mental health services capable of delivering timely, evidence-based therapeutic interventions through both digital and face-to-face consultations. Businesses with expertise in handling urgent procurement situations, ensuring quality and continuity of care, and addressing mild to moderate mental health issues could effectively position themselves for future opportunities. Organisations that are agile and prepared to navigate urgent regulatory frameworks, while demonstrating immediate capacity in providing critical health services, are well-suited to compete in such procurements. The focus on improving mental health outcomes in the Mid and South Essex region suggests further demand for comprehensive service offerings in community health.

## Notice

Urgent award notice under the Provider Selection Regime 2023 for the provision of NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems Services for NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board (herein referred to as 'the Authority'). The awarded contract is for the provision of NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems Services, that are aimed at improving mental health outcomes by providing evidence-based therapeutic interventions. The services will be delivered through a combination of face-to-face, online, and telephone consultations. It will cater to individuals experiencing mild to moderate mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, ensuring timely access to professional support.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Urgent award notice under the Provider Selection Regime 2023 for the provision of NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems Services for NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board (herein referred to as 'the Authority'). The awarded contract is for the provision of NHS Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems Services, that are aimed at improving mental health outcomes by providing evidence-based therapeutic interventions. The services will be delivered through a combination of face-to-face, online, and telephone consultations. It will cater to individuals experiencing mild to moderate mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, ensuring timely access to professional support. This contract is being awarded on an urgent basis due to the abandoned Most Suitable Provider (MSP) procurement process (Notice Number 2025/S 000-003056, Notice Reference 2025-040279) necessitating the continuation of services with the current provider to avoid disruption. A delay in awarding this contract through standard procurement routes would have led to a service gap, negatively impacting service users by increasing waiting times and deteriorating mental health conditions. Due to urgent circumstances, the Authority has awarded a 4 month contract to incumbent provider: Vita Health Group The contract period is for a total of 4 months from 01st April 2025 - 31st July 2025. The total aggregate contract value is estimated at PS1,441,136.00

### Procurement Information

This contract has been awarded under the urgent circumstances provision of the Provider Selection Regime (PSR). This contract has been awarded under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply in this award. Rationale as to why this provider has been awarded: In line with the guidance for exemptions in urgent situations under the Public Contracts Regulations (PSR), the current provider has been awarded the contract due to the following reasons: *Continuity of Care: The current provider has established relationships with service users, ensuring seamless care and avoiding disruption that could arise from transitioning to a new provider. *Immediate Capacity and Expertise: The provider possesses the necessary infrastructure, workforce, and clinical expertise to continue delivering services without requiring additional mobilisation time. *Avoidance of Service Gap: Appointing a new provider would require a significant transition period, during which service users could experience delays or a temporary lack of access to critical mental health support. *Compliance with Urgent Procurement Regulations: this urgent award is justified as the ICB has identified extreme urgency that prevents the implementation of a competitive tender process to cover the service provision. The abandoned MSP procurement process has necessitated this approach to protect patient care, whilst a competitive procurement approach is being undertaken by the Authority to identify the most suitable and capable provider in order to award a single contract for these services. Proposed review date to conduct a full application of the PSR for that service: N/A as the Authority is undergoing a competitive procurement process to determine the most technically capable provider to award these services.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024363-2025 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 21 May 2025 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 31 Mar 2025 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £1,441,136 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Cancelled |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX INTEGRATED CARE BOARD |
| Locality | BASILDON |
| Post town | Southend-on-Sea |
| Postcode | SS14 3HG |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLH East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLH3 Essex |
| ITL 3 | TLH37 Essex Thames Gateway |
| Local authority | Basildon |
| Electoral ward | Fryerns |
| Westminster constituency | Basildon and Billericay |
| Delivery location | TLH3 Essex |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | VITA HEALTH GROUP |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 85 - Health and social work services

### Codes

- 85323000 - Community health services

## Release History

- 21 May 2025 at 17:51 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024363-2025

## Notice URLs

- https://www.midandsouthessex.ics.nhs.uk

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051c3c.json.