South Thames Retrieval Service (STRS) Patient Transport Services

Tender description

The South Thames Retrieval Service (STRS) provides specialist paediatric critical care retrieval and transfer services for critically ill children across a network of hospitals. Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust is preparing to procure a dedicated 24/7 patient<br/>transport service, including specialist ambulances and Ambulance Technicians, to support the safe and timely transfer of patients to specialist paediatric intensive care units (PICUs). Lot 1: This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) intention to award notice<br/><br/>Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust ("the Authority") is seeking to procure Patient Transport Services for the South Thames Retrieval Service (STRS).<br/><br/>STRS is a specialist paediatric critical care retrieval service based at Evelina London Children’s Hospital. The service provides emergency and urgent retrieval and transfer of critically ill children between referring hospitals and specialist paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) across a regional network.<br/><br/>The Authority is seeking to procure a dedicated specialist patient transport service operating on a 24/7 basis. The proposed service is expected to support the rapid deployment and transfer of specialist clinical retrieval teams and critically ill paediatric patients.<br/><br/>The anticipated scope of services includes, but is not limited to:<br/>Provision of specialist ambulances suitable for paediatric critical care transport; Provision and maintenance of associated ambulance equipment; Provision of Ambulance Technicians and operational support staff; Vehicle maintenance, servicing, cleaning, and compliance management; Support for rapid mobilisation and time-critical patient transfers; Provision of contingency and resilience arrangements; and Participation in contract governance and performance management arrangements.<br/><br/>The Authority anticipates that the service model will operate on the basis that:<br/>The Supplier provides ambulances, associated equipment, and Ambulance Technicians; and The Authority provides the clinical retrieval team (e.g. doctors and nurses).<br/><br/>The service is expected to include:<br/>Two (2) dedicated ambulances available on site at all times;<br/>One (1) backup vehicle available 24/7; and Access to a resilience vehicle for contingency scenarios.<br/><br/>The future provider is anticipated to:<br/>Be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC);<br/>Have a certified CQC Registered Manager in place;<br/>Operate within a clinical healthcare environment; and Demonstrate the ability to deliver a highly reliable, time-critical service.<br/><br/>This is an existing service and the Authority intends to award the contract to a new provider.<br/><br/>The services are expected to be provided between 1 November 2026 until 31 October 2031 with the option to extend the contract for a further two (2) further periods of 12 months each. Additional 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 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award. The standstill period begins on the day after the publication of this notice. Representations by providers must be made to the relevant authority by midnight on 10th September 2026. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award a contract under the competitive process of the PSR.<br/><br/>The award decision-makers were:<br/>• Manal Alasnag – STRS Medical Lead<br/>• Grace Banks – STRS Nurse Lead<br/>• Louise Preston – STRS Advanced Nurse Practitioner<br/>• James Diviney – STRS Deputy Medical Lead<br/>• Marilyn McDougall – Medical Director, CRIC<br/>• Bradley Tobin – Senior Finance Manager (commercial evaluation)<br/><br/>A conflicts of interest declaration process was completed and no conflicts of interest were declared or identified.<br/><br/>In assessing proposals, the authority applied the below weightings to the key criteria to ensure the selection of a provider that best aligned with strategic priorities, delivering high-quality, cost-effective, and sustainable services. The key criteria were assigned weightings based on their importance in achieving the authority's objectives.<br/><br/>Relative Importance of Key Criteria and Rationale<br/><br/>1. Quality and Innovation (36.00%)<br/>Quality and innovation were prioritised as the most critical factors, representing 36% of the total evaluation. This criterion ensured that providers demonstrated a commitment to safe, responsive and resilient service delivery, covering operational model and staffing, vehicle and fleet resilience, and workforce training and competency, to ensure that patient transport services are delivered effectively and efficiently for the STRS.<br/><br/>2. Value (30.00%)<br/>The second most important factor was value, ensuring that the selected provider delivered cost-effective services without compromising quality. The authority emphasised a balance between affordability and the long-term sustainability of service provision, assessed via the commercial schedule.<br/><br/>3. Integration, Collaboration, and Service Sustainability (16.00%)<br/>Given the necessity of seamless service delivery and partnerships within the healthcare ecosystem, this criterion was weighted at 16%. This covered governance, integration and continuous improvement arrangements, and the provider's mobilisation and implementation plan for achieving operational readiness by service commencement.<br/><br/>4. Improving Access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice (8.00%)<br/>Ensuring that providers would deliver an inclusive, patient-centred service supporting critically ill children and their families, covering communication with families, support for vulnerable patients, safeguarding and dignity, and use of feedback to improve services, was given a weighting of 8%.<br/><br/>5. Social Value (10.00%)<br/>Social value was an essential component in evaluating the provider's commitment to reducing carbon emissions and fighting climate change, and to identifying, managing and mitigating modern slavery and labour exploitation risks within their organisation and supply chain.<br/><br/>The winning provider achieved the total highest overall score demonstrating strong performance across all criteria.