Devon Community Mental Health Framework

The NHS in Devon are seeking to engage with the market to help determine the most effective method of collaborating and working with the VSCE/I sector in order to commission and deliver an enhanced range of community mental health services.

This Notice seeks feedback from the market to inform the future requirements. The full scope of the services is in the process of being defined, and the Commissioners will be holding a series of market engagement activities with the aim of: • Engaging with and enabling the market, particularly VCSE/I participants • Understanding the interest there might be in providing such services from suitably qualified VCSE/I providers, and the manner in which the services can best be collaboratively provided • Co-produce the service specification for a VCSE/I Alliance and informing the commissioning and contracting process

The expected services, with a total value of £3.65 million over a 3 year period, under consideration for commissioning are: • Psychological Therapies • Community Development • Rehabilitation and recovery navigation • Support for people with older people's mental health needs

The proposed objectives of the service are: • Link with broader system and locality-based provision to develop and strengthen community assets for people with mental health conditions (Community Development) • Reduce loneliness and isolation with a specific focus on older people's mental health • Support the reduction of digital exclusion to enable more mental health clients to access support via digital options where appropriate. • Support the mental health recovery and rehabilitation delivery by commissioning a recovery navigator function • Delivery of therapeutic interventions to support and maintain people's mental health in the community to include delivery of psychological therapies for clients whose needs sit between Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) and Step 4 Psychological Therapies • Support and contribute to multi-disciplinary team approach and person-centred care planning where appropriate

The Commissioners seek Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from providers who have the capability and capacity to take part in the delivery (whether that be in a major or minor capacity) of the Services within Devon (Devon, Plymouth and Torbay), either within a specific locality or across the entire geography.

In addition to the above, we will in the course of this engagement consider additional services to be included in this approach. Additional services up to a total of £1.326 million per annum may be considered for future involvement within any subsequent contract following this process. This would include services relating to counselling, bereavement, employment support and services commissioned within the VCSE/I sector linked to Community Mental Health Framework. Further to this, services relating to urgent and emergency mental health, crisis cafés within Devon, Plymouth and Torbay may also be considered.

Additional information: This PIN as a call for competition is initially published as a notice for expressions of interest and particularly about the market engagement activity being undertaken throughout July 2021. The Commissioners may then choose to proceed directly to a commissioning process with parties who have responded to the notice and there will be no further notice published. EOIs received will be used to help the Commissioners finalise their commissioning and contracting approach for these services.

An initial Market Engagement Event is being held virtually over MS Teams on 7 July 2021. To attend this event please formally express interest through the In-Tend portal as detailed below. Please note that further market engagement activity will be conducted with those providers that have expressed interest in this Notice, so providers should ensure they express interest even if they are unable or uninterested in attending the specific Engagement Event on the 7 July.

Interested providers will be able to view this opportunity via the 'current tenders' list on the e-procurement system, In-Tend, available on the following link: https://in-tendhost.co.uk/scwcsu/aspx/Home

If you are not already registered on the system you will need to do so before you can fully access the opportunity. On registration, please include at least two contacts to allow for access to the system in times of absence.

Should the Commissioners proceed to a procurement process it is anticipated to consist of two stages: (1) Stage 1 The aim of this shortlisting stage is predominantly to test the capability and capacity of potential provider collaboratives and to identify whether there is more than one capable provider alliance; (2) Stage 2 will either be: (a) a competitive process (if more than one capable provider alliance is identified at Stage 1), which may involve dialogue and will involve assessment of bids against published evaluation criteria and weightings; or (b) an alliance "Assurance Process" with a single provider, if only one capable provider alliance is identified at Stage 1. Both approaches will involve evidence being considered by subject matter experts and assessed against critical success factors and expected minimum standards. Any new contracts let as part of this commissioning process are expected to be for a period of 3 years, with the option to extend by up to a further 2 years.

The services are health and social care services falling within Schedule 3 to the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 ("the Regulations") which are not subject to the full regime of the Regulations but are instead governed by the "Light Touch Regime" contained within Chapter 3, Section 7 of the Regulations (Regulations 74 to 77). For the avoidance of doubt, the Commissioners will not be bound by the Regulations or any other regulations or legislation except for the specific parts or circumstances that apply to the pr