---
title: "NP605223 SMS Smart Messaging Service"
ocid: "ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754.json"
source: "Public Contracts Scotland"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "THE COMMON SERVICES AGENCY (MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS NHS NATIONAL SERVICES SCOTLAND) (\"NSS\")"
published: "2023-06-16"
---

# NP605223 SMS Smart Messaging Service

Buyer: THE COMMON SERVICES AGENCY (MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS NHS NATIONAL SERVICES SCOTLAND) ("NSS")  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754

[View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754)  
[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754.json)

## Summary

The National Services Scotland (NSS), more commonly known as NHS National Services Scotland, has awarded the contract for the "NP605223 SMS Smart Messaging Service" to British Telecommunications PLC. The procurement method used was a limited award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition. The contract, valued at £4,320,000 GBP, was signed on 1st June 2023. This procurement opportunity falls within the Health industry category and is located in Edinburgh, UK. The tender stage has concluded, and the procurement process was initiated through a mini-competition under the CCS Framework RM6261 Lot2 (Network Services), with BT being the sole bidder.

This tender for the Smart Messaging Service presents an opportunity for businesses in the services sector to engage with the NHS National Services Scotland. The procurement, aimed at supporting NHS Boards in Scotland, focuses on improving communication efficiency through text messaging. Businesses offering innovative messaging solutions could find this tender particularly relevant. The competitive pricing offered by British Telecommunications PLC and the focus on enhancing communication within the healthcare sector indicate opportunities for companies with expertise in telecom services or digital communications to compete effectively in this market segment.

## Notice

The service is currently made available to all NHS Boards and its primary uses are to remind NHS patients via text message to attend clinical appointments and to communicate staff rotas to NHSS employees. NHS Boards collectively sent an average of 4,805,793 fragments per month over the period April 2021 to March 2022. For the corresponding period 2022 / 2023 the average monthly fragment volume increased to 6,870,128.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

The service is currently made available to all NHS Boards and its primary uses are to remind NHS patients via text message to attend clinical appointments and to communicate staff rotas to NHSS employees. NHS Boards collectively sent an average of 4,805,793 fragments per month over the period April 2021 to March 2022. For the corresponding period 2022 / 2023 the average monthly fragment volume increased to 6,870,128. All figures quoted are based on a fragment containing 160 characters. 20 NHSS Health Boards currently rely on the SMS service for various business/clinical purposes. NSS Procurement, Commissioning & Facilities conducted a full procurement to establish a single supplier Agreement for the provision of SMS Services. A mini-competition for the requirement was published via CSS Framework RM6261 Lot2 (Network Services). 8 suppliers are included in this framework but only 1 BT, submitted a bid. This bid was evaluated by the project team and are now seeking approval to renew this contract starting on 15th May 2023. Due to market instability, the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) have significantly increased pricing over the past 6 months (all the major UK MNOs are investing in solutions to tackle spam/smishing in order to maintain trust in SMS as a communication channel. The UK MNOs are all focused on closing SIM farms and ensuring the protection of all consumers through activities such as the addition of network firewalls and Spam shields) and as a result this will result in an 11.3% price increase compared to the price paid in the previous 12 months. However, prior to running the mini-competition a PIN was published in October of 2022 and the new price offered by BT (1.79p per fragment) is very competitive when compared to other pricing offered by other suppliers via the PIN. 8 suppliers responded to the PIN including BT. BT also offered the cheapest prices with the closest supplier (Reach Data) at 3% more expensive. Having been offered a final price by BT the recommendation is to award a 3-year contract.

### Procurement Information

A mini-competition for the requirement was published via CCS Framework RM6261 Lot2 (Network Services). 8 suppliers are included in this framework but only 1 BT, submitted a bid.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Public Contracts Scotland |
| Latest notice | https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN481348 |
| Notice type | OJEU - F3 - Contract 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 | 16 Jun 2023 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 1 Jun 2023 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £4,320,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | THE COMMON SERVICES AGENCY (MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS NHS NATIONAL SERVICES SCOTLAND) ("NSS") |
| Locality | EDINBURGH |
| Post town | Edinburgh |
| Postcode | EH12 9EB |
| Country | Scotland |
| ITL 1 | TLM Scotland |
| ITL 2 | TLM1 East Central Scotland |
| ITL 3 | TLM13 City of Edinburgh |
| Local authority | City of Edinburgh |
| Electoral ward | Drum Brae/Gyle |
| Westminster constituency | Edinburgh South West |
| Delivery location | TLM Scotland |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 64 - Postal and telecommunications services

### Codes

- 64212100 - Short Message Service (SMS) services

## Release History

- 16 Jun 2023 at 00:00 - Award - OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN481348

## Documents

- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN481348
  NP605223 SMS Smart Messaging Service - The service is currently made available to all NHS Boards and its primary uses are to remind NHS patients via text message to attend clinical appointments and to communicate staff rotas to NHSS employees. NHS Boards collectively sent an average of 4,805,793 fragments per month over the period April 2021 to March 2022. For the corresponding period 2022 / 2023 the average monthly fragment volume increased to 6,870,128.

## Notice URLs

- http://
- http://www.nss.nhs.scot/browse/procurement-and-logistics
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754

## 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-r6ebe6-0000735754. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000735754.json.