Integrated Health and Wellbeing Services to Prisons in the South West region

NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) are recommissioning health and wellbeing services to prisons across the South West region. NHSE/I are seeking to secure Prime Provider(s) who have the capability and capacity to deliver services in line with the specified requirements.

There are 11 establishments across the South West, A single contract will be available for award to a Prime Provider for each lot.

Contracts will be for a term of 7 years, with no extension options. Services are scheduled to commence on 01 October 2022.

1. Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Wiltshire prisons:
HMP Bristol (Cat B)
HMP Ashfield (Cat C)
HMP Erlestoke (Cat C)
HMP Leyhill (Cat D)

2. Female closed prison: HMP Eastwood Park

3. Dorset prisons
HMP Guys Marsh (Cat C)
HMP Portland (Cat C)
HMP The Verne (Cat C)

4. Devon prisons
HMP Exeter (Cat B)
HMP Channings Wood (Cat C)
HMP Dartmoor (Cat C)

Social Care
Provision of social care varies across the prisons.

Where social care is in scope, a draft specification is available. There may be some minor changes to the specification(s) and the precise financial arrangements during the tender process. Unless advised otherwise, Bidders will be asked to design their delivery model using the published specification(s) and against the indicative values provided.

Where social care is not currently part of the delivery model at this stage, for certain prisons, the Commissioner hopes to move to a fully integrated service, either during the tender process or during the life of the contract, subject to emerging demand at that stage.

Any updates or changes in relation to social care, will either be communicated during the tender process, or will be managed through contract variation processes during the life of the contract.

Dentistry
Dental service provision is within scope and will be delivered via a dental provider operating under a Personal Dental Services (PDS) contract issued by NHSE/I. If the prime provider is unable to hold a PDS contract directly, a further tripartite agreement will be required between NHSE/I, the prime provider and the prime provider's dental services provider. Payments for dentistry will be made directly to the dental services provider on a fixed cost 'zero Units of Dental Activity (UDA) value' basis by NHSE/I but accountability for the management of the dental service will remain with the prime provider.

Change
There is a national prison expansion programme taking place to increase the number of available places in prison, and it is anticipated that there will be operational capacity changes across the South West prison estate.

The contract envelope is based on current operational capacity figures.

This, along with other changes resulting from reconfiguration, e.g. flow of people, resettlement and trainer populations, and aging populations, will need to be accounted for in the delivery of healthcare services.

Changes to prison population(s) will be managed through contract variation processes.