• Brunton Bid Writing

    Summary – Workforce Alliance RM6380 Health Workforce Solutions Framework

Summary of ESPO Tender

GENERAL

Critical Timescales

  • Contract noticed published – 8th August 2025
  • Deadline for receipt of clarification questions – 3pm, 3rd September 2025.
  • Deadline for clarification responses – 12th September 2025.
  • Deadline for submission of the bid – 3pm, 22nd September 2025.
  • Intention to award letters published to all bidders – 12th January 2026.
  • Framework award – 22nd January 2026.

Contract Duration
This is made up of three frameworks which when combined will last for 8 years, but there are “breaks” where suppliers can be added to the framework as follows:

  • Framework 1 – duration 3 years.
  • Framework 2 – duration 3 years.
  • Framework 3 – duration 2 years.

 

Registration & Accessing the Documents

To access the tender documents, you must first register on the following link:  https://crowncommercialservice.bravosolution.co.uk.

Once you have registered for an account, click the “PQQs/ITTs Open to All Suppliers” section to search for the opportunity, then register your interest and work through the instructions online.

 

Clarification Questions

Questions, clarifications and queries must be asked using the message facility on the portal.  Try to ensure the question is specific and clear, and do not include your company’s identity in the question as the full question and corresponding answer will be published on the portal for all bidders to see.

 

The Framework

This will be a multi-supplier framework to replace the following existing frameworks:

  • Workforce Improvement Services (RM6163)
  • Managed Staff Banks (RM6278)

PLEASE NOTE – this is not a traditional recruitment tender covering transactional recruitment services!  The framework covers mandatory services (List A and List B) and non-mandatory services (List C) as follows:

LIST A – MANAGED STAFF BANK.  This refers workers who provide flexible cover and support to permanent staff for planned and unplanned gaps in staffing, to help manage the workforce and maximise shift fill rates.  This will include setup and mobilisation of services, implementation of staff bank systems (including interface and interoperability with the Buyer’s systems and booking management),  candidate attraction, compliance, maintaining sufficient numbers of suitably qualified workers in the staff bank, training the Buyer’s personnel in processes/procedures relating to operation and management of the staff bank, managing communication with workers and migration of the service where an existing staff bank is being outsourced by the Buyer.  Staff bank management and operation includes:

  • Booking management.
  • System integration.
  • Internal and external recruitment of bank workers
  • Ensuring workers are compliant with NHS Employment Check Standards
  • Employment and engagement of workers.
  • Worker pay management including payrolling services.
  • Worker performance management.
  • Onsite presence (where specified).
  • Provision of a staff bank management technology platform.
  • Management of the agency cascade where the bank cannot fill a particular requirement.

LIST B – AGENCY SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT AND DIRECT ENGAGEMENT. 

  • Agency supply chain management includes the provision and management of a dynamic supply chain based on the Buyer’s requirements in order to optimise workforce planning, minimise skills gaps, reduce labour costs and ensure the smooth delivery of public services.  This will include design, implementation and management of a tailored supply chain of appropriate agencies to meet Buyer requirements and may include acting as a master vendor or neutral vendor including provision of a Vendor Management System (VMS).
  • Direct engagement will be used in the event that a Buyer seeks to engage a Temporary Worker directly, meaning they will facilitate the Temporary Worker contract, timesheet and payroll.  Suppliers must design, implement and manage direct hire routes to talent including providing resources and technology to manage the end to end process which includes defining role profiles, benchmarking day rates, filtering applications and shortlisting, providing CVs, managing communication between workers and Buyers, providing worker feedback and introducing new technology (e.g. video interviews) on request.

LIST C – PERMANENT RECRUITMENT (DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL), STATEMENTS OF WORK, RECRUIT/RETAIN/DEPLOY AND ADVISORY DISCOVERY SERVICES.  These include:

  • Permanent recruitment  includes UK permanent and fixed term including search services, evaluation of applicants and appointment to the role, strategy and planning and talent development services
  • International recruitment including attracting, sourcing and employing healthcare professionals from outside the UK to fill gaps in the existing substantive workforce in alignment with the NHS Code of Practice for International Recruitment and ethical recruitment principles as set out by the WHO.
  • Recruit, train deploy (RTD) offers a route for contingency labour where workers are employed by the Supplier, suitably trained and deployed to the Buyer on a temporary basis and the Service also includes Supply Chain design, implementation and management.
  • Statements of work (SOW) are set packages of output-based work with payment against agreed outcomes, which outline specific services the supply chain is expected to deliver. Outcomes will be measured against milestones and deliverables including the type, level, quality, and cost of the service, as well as the time schedule required.  Services delivered under a SOW may include supply chain design and implementation; tailored supply chain management and provider management.
  • Advisory services includes consultancy services to help Buyers understand demand patterns and current utilisation of substantive and flexible workforce.

*** YOU MUST BE ABLE TO SUPPLY ALL OF THE MANDATORY SERVICES IN LIST A AND LIST B ABOVE ***

List C is non-mandatory services and you can choose to supply these IN ADDITION to those in List A and B above, but not as a stand-alone.

 

Suppliers must also provide a technology solution which has the capability to manage:

  • Vendor management system (VMS) 24/7/365.
  • Booking platform (online/web-based) including a self-fill facility and help desk for users.  This system must allow workers to access role details electronical via mobile devices and accept roles electronically.  It must also have the ability to authorise role requests through multiple authorisation levels, operate 24/7/365 and enable the buyer to access necessary documentation.
  • e-Rostering software to enable staff management and deployment, leave requests, shift swaps and identification of agency requirements.
  • Electronic job planning system.
  • System integration (ensuring your technology platform integrates with that of the Buyer and any 3rd party IT systems the Buyer requires including system upgrades).

Please note this framework does NOT replace RM6277 Non-Clinical Staffing or RM6281 Clinical Staffing and does not directly enable provision of transactional agency supply in isolation.

Winning a place on the framework does not guarantee you any business – it is just a “right to supply” and you will need to do traditional business development to generate business once the framework goes live.

 

TENDER REQUIREMENTS

The framework is not sub-divided into lots. The strategic services that will be delivered under this agreement are holistic in nature and breaking the services down into their constituent parts in the form of lots is not considered appropriate.

There are unlimited places on this framework for suppliers who meet all of the required criteria and meet the required scoring criteria.

 

Evaluation & Qualifying Criteria

Your bid will be evaluated in the following order.  If you fail at any stage, the rest of your bid will not be evaluated:

  1. PROCUREMENT SPECIFIC QUESTIONNAIRE (PSQ) – pass / fail (Attachment 2a).
  2. TECHNICAL ABILITY CERTIFICATES (TACs) x 2 which must demonstrate solid experience of a similar contract (these must be completed and verified via Attachment 2b).
  3. TURNOVER the entity that you are bidding as must be able to demonstrate a turnover of £10m+ for at least one of the last 2 financial years.  This cannot be circumnavigated by using a parent company as a guarantor as this is about capacity and not economic and financial standing.  If bidding as a consortium, the lead bidder must have a turnover of £10m+ in at least one of the last 2 financial years – pass/fail.
  4. FINANCIAL ASSESSMENT – FVRA “Gold” tool (provide the most recent 3 years figures to complete spreadsheet – Attachment 5a).  The FVRA tool is a complex spreadsheet that need to be completed by your accountant or a finance professional.  The FVRA has RAG thresholds which self-score when completing the tools as follows:
    • Green – pass with no further action.
    • Amber or red – this is not an automatic fail; however you will need to use the black tabs on the spreadsheet to explain any amber or red results.
  5. QUALITY QUESTIONS detailed in the quality questionnaire (Attachment 2d) require text answers with maximum 6,000 characters each.  They are weighted as follows:
    • Social value (focussing on tackling economic inequality) – 10% weighting.
    • Delivering workforce efficiencies (covering actions to ensure efficiencies are delivered, monitoring effectiveness and technology solutions) – 30% weighting.
    • Contract implementation (covering how you manage implementation to buyer requirements, how you monitor progress throughout implementation and how you will integrate technology successfully) – 30% weighting.
    • Agency supply chain management (covering how you will work with buyers to increase efficiencies, how you will monitor effectiveness and details of your technology solution) – 30% weighting.
  6. PRICING (attachment 3).

 

You must also have:

  • Cyber essentials before framework start
  • ISO 27001 before first call-off or within 6 months of the framework award date – whichever is sooner.
  • Insurances (employer’s liability, public liability and professional indemnity all at £10m minimum cover).
  • A link to a carbon reduction plan on your website or complete the Carbon Reduction Plan template (Attachment 2c).

 

If you are confident that you qualify for this tender after reading the above summary, and you require further information, please contact Catherine Turner on catherine.turner@bruntonconsultancy.co.uk.

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