Official UK procurement notice
BSL Talking Therapy Service (Midlands Region)
Authority: NHS Derby & Derbyshire Integrated Care Board (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionNHS Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board ("the Authority") intends to award a contract for the
a British Sign Language (BSL) Talking Therapy Service for adults who are Deaf and use
BSL, in accordance with NHS Talking Therapies guidance and NICE?recommended
interventions. DDICB intend to award this contract under the Most Suitable Provider process and the contract will be initially for 3 years with up to 2 years of extensions available dependent on performance. This a new service with a new provider - the contract will run from 1st April 2026 to 31st March 2029 which is the initial period of the contract - extensions will be granted under due process according to contract monitoring conditions of KPIs to be met. The contract cost below is per annum.
The supplier will be required to provide evidence that their workforce is
qualified to the levels detailed in the NHS Talking Therapy guidance and the NICE-recommended interventions in order to be compliant for delivery of this service.
This a regional contract with Derby & Derbyshire acting as Lead Commissioner with
regional ICB partners as associates, therefore, we require a service provider to offer these
services at regional scales.
The service will provide assessment and evidence based psychological therapies
delivered directly in BSL, improving accessibility and outcomes for Deaf BSL users.
CPV: Health services · Psychiatrist or psychologist services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1The Authority has utilised the Most Suitable Provider process under the ProviderAwarded
The Authority has utilised the Most Suitable Provider process under the Provider
Selection Regime to identify a provider to deliver the BSL Talking Therapy Service.
The Authority considers that the proposed approach is appropriate having regard to the
nature of the service, the very specialist skills required, and the need to ensure continuity,
quality, and accessibility of provision for a population with very specific communication
needs.
The contract will be awarded in accordance with the Health Care Services (Provider
Selection Regime) Regulations 2023, subject to internal governance and approvals. The contract has been awarded to the provider according to the evidence provided to meet all key criteria of PSR Process Most Suitable Provider.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded without competition
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Direct award (no call for competition)
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 20 Mar 2026, 17:16 GMT
- Last source update
- 20 Mar 2026, 17:16 GMT
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-025983- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0670cfFind a Tender
- Why no open competition
The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator due to absence of competition for technical reasons
- Published justification
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 decision makers by 27th March 2026. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR.
Publisher note: 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 27.03.26. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR. Written representations can be sent to ruth.thomason@nhs.net The decision was reached by a panel of Senior Commissioning Managers across as part of a regional task and finish group. The Senior Commissioning Managers are Ruth Thomason, Senior Commissioning Manager, DDICB Clare Fox, Senior Commissioning Manager NNICB Claudia Slabon, Mental Health Programme Manager (Adults) MHLDA Collaborative Northamptonshire. The decision to proceed with this procurement with Derby & Derbyshire ICB as Leads was ratified by the DLN ICB Executive on 9th January 2026. No declared conflicts of interest were received and no percieved conflicts were noted through the decision making process. The decision makers gave due consideration to the achievements of the 5 year pilot run by NHSE, the need and efficacy of a BSL Talking Therapy service was established. Using the learning and developed service specification from this pilot, DDICB and regional partners decision makers have applied the PSR Key Criteria and consider how this service meets the specific specialist requirements to meet the complex needs of BSL users experiencing mental health difficulties. We considered evidence offered by the pilot and specification measures against the key criteria for PSR. Given the specialist nature of this service and the limited size of the provider market, the advice of procurement experts, MSP was agreed to be the most compliant process for procurement of this service. SIgnHealth are the only provider able to provide the required accredited therapists at a scale needed for a regional service. This provider also offer sufficient experience and activity to demonstrate evidence against all key criteria.
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SignHealth | £491,037 † | — | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 025983-2026-1 · SignHealth
- Signed
- 18 Mar 2026
- Value
- £491,037
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1bids · 0 electronic | 0 | — | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- DLN ICBReview body
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- SignHealthAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice.