---
title: "Who pays? Understanding cost misalignment between the NHS and Local Government"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-078110"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-078110"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078110.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078110.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Tender"
buyer: "Local Government Association (LGA)"
published: "2026-10-05"
---

# Who pays? Understanding cost misalignment between the NHS and Local Government

Buyer: Local Government Association (LGA)  
Current stage: Tender  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-078110

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## Summary

The Local Government Association (LGA) is commissioning a focused policy research project on how NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) interacts with local-authority adult social care. The work will examine local experience of CHC decision-making and spending pressures, whether health and social care funding and accountability arrangements create incentives that shift costs and risks between organisations, and the effects on councils, the NHS, people receiving care and support, and unpaid carers. It should identify reforms that could better align funding and accountability and inform the LGA’s policy development and engagement with government, national partners and stakeholders. This is research and related consultancy work. The procurement does not identify a delivery location.

The LGA invited offers through a below-threshold open competition. The tender deadline set by the buyer was 2 November 2026 at 23:59 UTC. The contract period runs from 10 November 2026 to 19 March 2027. The estimated value is £16,000 excluding VAT (£20,000 including VAT). The requirement is a single lot. The buyer will assess quality and price, combine the scores using the published percentage weightings, and select the quotation with the highest overall score. The contracting process reached the tender stage, when the buyer invited suppliers to submit offers.

This opportunity suits research and consultancy suppliers able to investigate health and social care policy, public funding and accountability, and the operation of NHS Continuing Healthcare alongside local-authority adult social care. Strong bidders will be able to analyse local variation and incentives, assess consequences for councils, NHS organisations, people receiving care and unpaid carers, and develop practical reform options. The findings need to support policy development and engagement with government and national stakeholders, so clear evidence synthesis and communication for policy audiences are relevant capabilities. The requirement is identified as suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises. The published scope does not set out particular accreditations, minimum staffing levels or required prior contracts.

## Notice

The Local Government Association (LGA) is seeking a supplier to undertake a focused policy research project exploring the interaction between NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) and local authority adult social care. Recent evidence has highlighted growing concerns about the relationship between CHC decision-making, adult social care expenditure and the incentives created by current funding arrangements. ADASS's Spring Survey 2026 found that 75% of Directors of Adult Social Services reported an increase in the number of people presenting to adult social care who were, or previously would have been, eligible for CHC, while 84% reported that Integrated Care Board (ICB) disinvestment in CHC was contributing to adult social care overspending pressures. Research published by The King's Fund found that CHC eligibility rates have fallen significantly despite no change to the national eligibility framework, alongside substantial variation between different ICB areas. While CHC provides the primary lens for this project, the LGA is also interested in the wider question of whether current funding and accountability arrangements across health and social care create incentives that transfer costs and risks between organisations rather than supporting whole-system decision making. The LGA wishes to better understand: * How these issues are playing out locally * Whether current arrangements create misaligned incentives between organisations * The impact on local government, the NHS, people drawing on care and support, and unpaid carers * What reforms could improve alignment between health and social care funding and accountability. This work will inform future LGA policy development and engagement with government, national partners and stakeholders.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093966-2026 |
| Notice type | UK4 - Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - open competition |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Tender |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 5 Oct 2026 |
| Submission deadline | 2 Nov 2026 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 10 Nov 2026 - 19 Mar 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £16,000 |
| Lots value | £16,000 |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Active |
| Lots status | Active |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Local Government Association (LGA) |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Postcode area | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1P 3HZ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | St James's |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73000000 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

## Release History

- 5 Oct 2026 at 16:09 - Tender - UK4 - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093966-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093966-2026
  5th October 2026 - Tender notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://app.panacea-software.com/LGA-Sourcing/eRFX-Suppliers/OpenReq.aspx?requirementId=605c7480-da44-4e75-a97f-2c2bafe97043
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## 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-078110. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078110.json.