NEL Single Point of Access - Ophthalmology and Enhanced Optometry Services

Description

North East London (NEL) Integrated Care Board (ICB) is seeking to procure an NEL wide ophthalmology SPOA service that ensures referrals are managed by one provider across the system, serving all our providers equitably with reduced costs, delivering efficiencies and identifying issues to help support the NEL population with targeted and improved education and feedback to referrers. North East London (NEL) Integrated Care Board (ICB) is looking to procure the SPOA across its seven places (Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Redbridge, Newham, Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets and City and Hackney). The services need to be able to provide fast access improved pathway to enhance referral processing and clinical triage. The SPOA will facilitate digital enablement and innovations with a dynamic system to coordinate advice and refer, capacity planning and implement patient choice. Thereby reducing the pressure and avoidable referrals to specialist led services. The SPOA should provide a strong collaboration between primary, optometry, community and secondary care systems as we are looking for a partnership in delivering the best quality service for NEL patients. The service specification provides details of what will need to be delivered, and we welcome providers who can demonstrate suitable experience of delivering similar services in the community that are both effective and of high quality. The procurement will be undertaken under the Provider Selection Regime regulations, competitive process. Applications are now open from Friday 13th February 2026 with a deadline for applying of the 20th March 2026 17:00. Applications must be made through Atamis. Lot 1: North East London (NEL) Integrated Care Board (ICB) is seeking to procure a NEL wide ophthalmology SPOA service to manage all referrals from optometrists and GPs to ophthalmology services. The successful provider will work in partnership with commissioners, providers and referrers (GPs and Optometrists) to ensure referrals are processed efficiently and all NEL patients are seen at the right place at the right time. The service will include clinical triage, administration of referrals, referrer/patient education, development of pathways and capacity in the NEL system whilst driving for a reduction in unnecessary referrals and secondary care activity with increased management of eye related issues in primary care and community services. The ICB is looking for a provider that understands how to ensure equitable access that tackles inequalities, enables referrers to learn from feedback and can reduce the overall costs within the NEL system but still help to improve the patients experience and outcomes. The NEL population is diverse and is approximately over 2.2 million people covering seven boroughs (places); Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Redbridge (outer NEL), Newham, Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets and City and Hackney (Inner NEL). Potential providers should be forward thinking looking to incorporate digitalisation to improve efficiency and build on the core service by using appropriate new technologies to enhance referral and provider capacity management. The SPOA will facilitate the use of technology to coordinate advice and guidance/refer, capacity planning and implement patient choice where required. Thereby reducing the pressure and avoidable referrals to specialist led services. The service specification provides details of the service and outcomes that will need to be delivered, and we welcome providers who can demonstrate suitable experience of delivering similar services in the community that are both effective and of high quality.