---
title: "RQIC"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NHS NORTH EAST AND NORTH CUMBRIA INTEGRATED CARE BOARD"
published: "2026-09-11"
---

# RQIC

Buyer: NHS NORTH EAST AND NORTH CUMBRIA INTEGRATED CARE BOARD  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0

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## Summary

NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board procured Royal Quays Intermediate Care Beds, a health and social care service classified under CPV 85000000. The requirement is for intermediate care bed provision, delivered through the Royal Quays service. The procurement concerns services rather than goods or construction works. The existing provider, Akari Care Limited, is identified as the supplier and is based in Leeds. The buying organisation is a public healthcare body serving North East and North Cumbria. The service supports the delivery of intermediate care through bed-based provision, with activity carried out on an ad hoc basis. The opportunity is therefore relevant to care home operators, intermediate care providers and healthcare organisations able to provide and manage suitable beds and associated care services.

The procurement has reached the award and contract stage under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. It used Direct Award C, described as a limited procedure without prior publication of a competition. Akari Care Limited was selected as supplier, with one bid recorded. The contract was signed on 1 July 2026 and has a value of £943,764, although the service activity is ad hoc and the value cannot be confirmed. The contract period runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027; services were delivered from the start date under an implied contract. The stated evaluation considered whether the existing provider would continue to satisfy the requirement to a sufficient standard, with quality and cost criteria each described as 100%.

This procurement demonstrates established demand for intermediate care beds within the NHS North East and North Cumbria system, at a substantial single-service scale and through a Provider Selection Regime route. A credible future competitor would need to operate suitable bed capacity, deliver safe and effective intermediate care, and manage variable, ad hoc demand over the service period. Relevant providers are likely to include care home operators, rehabilitation and step-down care organisations, and healthcare providers with experience of supporting patients between hospital and community settings. Evidence of consistently satisfactory performance, operational resilience, quality assurance and the ability to maintain the existing service standard would be important, since the selection rationale focused on the incumbent’s performance and likely ability to continue meeting the requirement. Cost control and reliable delivery would also be central to competing for this buyer’s requirement.

## Notice

Royal Quays Intermediate Care Beds

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Royal Quays Intermediate Care Beds The relevant authority intends to award a contract to an existing provider under Direct Award C under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) regulations 2023. The contract value is PS943,764. The contract value cannot be confirmed as the services carried out within this contract are ad hoc. Contract Start Date: 01/04/2026 Contract End Date: 31/03/2027 Although the contract start is 01/04/2026, the services have been delivered on an implied contract.

### Procurement Information

This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) intention to award notice. The awarding of this contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Procurement Act 2023 and the Procurement Regulations 2024 do not apply to this award. The publication of this notice marks the start of the Standstill Period. Representations by providers must be made to decision makers by midnight on 23/09/2026. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR. A contract will not be awarded until after the 9th working day following standstill.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/086359-2026 |
| 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 | 11 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £943,764 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | NHS NORTH EAST AND NORTH CUMBRIA INTEGRATED CARE BOARD |
| Locality | SUNDERLAND |
| Postcode area | Sunderland |
| Postcode | SR5 3XB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLC North East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLC4 Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear |
| ITL 3 | TLC44 Sunderland |
| Local authority | Sunderland |
| Electoral ward | Castle |
| Westminster constituency | Washington and Gateshead South |
| Delivery location | TLC North East (England) |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | AKARI CARE LIMITED |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 85 - Health and social work services

### Codes

- 85000000 - Health and social work services

## Release History

- 11 Sep 2026 at 12:13 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/086359-2026

## Notice URLs

- https://northeastnorthcumbria.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-06f7f0. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f7f0.json.