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Prior Information Notice

Specialist Healthcare Tasks

  • First published: 11 August 2025
  • Last modified: 11 August 2025
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To record your interest or obtain additional information or documents please find instructions within the Full Notice Text. (NOTE: Contract Award Notices and Prior Information Notices do not normally require a response)

Contents

Summary

OCID:
ocds-h6vhtk-05847d
Published by:
Essex County Council
Authority ID:
AA20967
Publication date:
11 August 2025
Deadline date:
-
Notice type:
Prior Information Notice
Has documents:
No
Has SPD:
No
Has Carbon Reduction Plan:
N/A

Abstract

The existing Specialist Healthcare Tasks Service was jointly commissioned in 2003 to ensure that children and young people with identified medical needs access the community and enjoy the same opportunities as their peers. It is expected that the service will be provided to a range of staff working with these young people, including Special Educational Needs School transport providers, identified Essex Social Care staff, short break Foster Carers, Education staff supporting children with medical needs in local schools and settings; and workers supporting young people who access Essex short breaks.

Full notice text

Prior information notice

This notice is for prior information only

Section I: Contracting authority

I.1) Name and addresses

Essex County Council

County Hall, Market Road

Chelmsford

CM11QH

UK

Contact person: Jake Berridge

E-mail: jake.berridge@essex.gov.uk

NUTS: UKH36

Internet address(es)

Main address: https://www.essex.gov.uk/

I.3) Communication

Additional information can be obtained from the abovementioned address


I.4) Type of the contracting authority

Regional or local authority

I.5) Main activity

General public services

Section II: Object

II.1) Scope of the procurement

II.1.1) Title

Specialist Healthcare Tasks

II.1.2) Main CPV code

85141220

 

II.1.3) Type of contract

Services

II.1.4) Short description

The existing Specialist Healthcare Tasks Service was jointly commissioned in 2003 to ensure that children and young people with identified medical needs access the community and enjoy the same opportunities as their peers. It is expected that the service will be provided to a range of staff working with these young people, including Special Educational Needs School transport providers, identified Essex Social Care staff, short break Foster Carers, Education staff supporting children with medical needs in local schools and settings; and workers supporting young people who access Essex short breaks.

II.1.5) Estimated total value

Value excluding VAT: 1 257 436.00  GBP

II.1.6) Information about lots

This contract is divided into lots: No

II.2) Description

II.2.3) Place of performance

NUTS code:

UKH3

II.2.4) Description of the procurement

The Specialist Healthcare Tasks Service should deliver good quality competency-based healthcare training, assessment and delegation to support workers in order to meet the bespoke care needs of children and young people that will enable them to access and attend a range of settings and make progress in education.

Staff delivering the training must have the appropriate clinical competence to train, assess and delegate delivery of healthcare tasks to support workers. All training, assessment and delegation should be underpinned by an evidence-based methodology and process which complies with all relevant professional standards. The provider of the service will also ensure there is a robust governance framework in which to deliver all aspects of this service.

(NB: this list is not exhaustive and will be reviewed regularly between provider and commissioners)

• Administering medicine in accordance with prescribed medicine, with pre-calculated dosage provided via naso-gastric tube, gastrostomy tube, orally or applied to skin, eyes and/or ears.

• Injections (intramuscular or subcutaneous). These may be single dose or multiple dose devices which are pre-assembled with pre-determined amounts of medication to be administered as documented in the individual child's care plan (preloaded devices should be marked when to beadministered e.g. for diabetes where the dose might be different am or pm. In many circumstances there may be two different pens, one with short acting insulin and another for administration at night with long acting insulin).

• Inserting suppositories or pessaries with a pre-packaged dose of a pre-prescribed medicine.

• Rectal medication with a pre-packaged dose i.e. rectal diazepam.

• Rectal paraldehyde which is not pre-packaged and has to be prepared - permitted on a named child basis as agreed by the child's lead medical practitioner i.e. Pediatrician or GP.

• Administration of buccal or intra-nasal Midazolam and Hypo Stat or Gluco Gel.

• Assistance with inhalers, cartridges and nebulisers.

• Emergency treatments covered in basic first aid training including airway management.

• Tracheostomy care for a stable stoma including suction using a suction catheter.

• Emergency change of a tracheostomy tube.

• Nasal or oral suctioning and nasal/oro pharangeal suction to a prescribed depth . This should be prescribed by a doctor, children's respiratory nurse specialist or a paediatric respiratory physiotherapist.

• Use of cough assist devices when prescribed as part of a respiratory care plan.

• Assistance with prescribed oxygen administration including oxygen saturation monitoring where required.

• Administration and care of liquid oxygen administration.

• Ventilation care for a child with a predictable medical condition and stable ventilation requirements (both invasive and non-invasive ventilation).

• Blood glucose monitoring and carbohydrate counting as agreed by the child's lead nursing/medical practitioner. E.g. GP, Pediatrician, Children's Diabetes Nurse Specialist.

• Bolus or continuous feeds via naso-gastric tube or gastrostomy.

• Bolus or continuous feeds using a pump via gastrostomy or jejunostomy.

• Intermittent catheterisation and catheter care.

• Supporting a child/young person to access a mitrofanoff.

• Stoma care including the requirement to maintain patency of a stoma in an emergency situation prior to seeking advice from the registered nurse.*

Please note this list is not exhaustive and only includes some of the most common clinical tasks which require competency training

II.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice:

22/09/2025

Section IV: Procedure

IV.1) Description

IV.1.8) Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)

The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes

Section VI: Complementary information

VI.3) Additional information

This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) intended approach 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 Award decision-maker is:

Christopher Martin - Director of Strategic Commissioning & Policy (Children & Families)

The intention is to award a contract using the most suitable provider process.

VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice

08/08/2025

Coding

Commodity categories

ID Title Parent category
85141220 Advisory services provided by nurses Services provided by medical personnel

Delivery locations

ID Description
100 UK - All

Alert region restrictions

The buyer has restricted the alert for this notice to suppliers based in the following regions.

ID Description
There are no alert restrictions for this notice.

About the buyer

Main contact:
jake.berridge@essex.gov.uk
Admin contact:
N/a
Technical contact:
N/a
Other contact:
N/a

Further information

Date Details
No further information has been uploaded.

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