We require the provision of a Point of Care Testing (POCT) External Quality Assessment (EQA) service to support GP practices who use POCT to provide their NHS Health Checks to their patients in East Sussex. The provider will provide a monthly, quality lipid and HbA1c POCT EQA service to the agreed NHS Health Checks providers, mainly GP practices, in East Sussex to ensure the safe and correct use of the POCT equipment and reliability of accurate cholesterol and HbA1c results within the NHS Health Check programme.

About the buyer

East Sussex County Council buys as a local government organisation through Orbis Procurement, a shared service with Surrey County Council and Brighton & Hove City Council. Contracts above a set value are advertised on the Proactis Supplier Network, the council's main tenders site. Larger opportunities also appear on the government's Find a Tender service. Purchase orders and payments run through SAP, the council's purchase-to-pay system, with suppliers paid by BACS. Procurement sits in three categories, People, Place, and Corporate, IT and Governance, each with its own Procurement Partner. An Orbis Joint Committee oversees the partnership's shared procurement service.

UK local government drives £140bn in annual procurement, led by social protection (£66.6bn) and education (£57.1bn).

Over the past 5 years, most of East Sussex County Council's contract awards have been in transport services, construction work and transport equipment.