Official UK procurement notice
Community Dental Services in Dorset
Authority: NHS Dorset ICB (NHS & healthcare)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionNHS Dorset Integrated Care Board (Dorset ICB) are looking to award a new contract for the provision of Community Dental Services in Dorset to the existing provider.
The existing contract for the provision of Community Dental Services in Dorset is due to expire on the 31st March 2026 and Dorset ICB have proposed that a new contract should replace the existing contract at the end of its term. All requirements outlined in Regulation 6(5) of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 have been met, including not breaching the considerable change threshold, and therefore direct award process C has been deemed the appropriate provider selection process.
After conducting an assessment, taking into account the key criteria and applying the basic selection criteria, Dorset ICB is content that the existing provider is satisfying the original contract and will likely satisfy the proposed contract to a sufficient standard.
The service is anticipated to commence on the 1st April 2026 for a contract duration of 2 years until the 31st March 2028. The estimated lifetime value of the contract is £7,427,988.00 based on 25/26 prices.
This notice serves as an intention to award the contract to the existing provider under Direct Award Process C of the Provider Selection Regime (PSR).
CPV: Dental practice and related services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1NHS Dorset Integrated Care Board (Dorset ICB) are looking to award a new contract for…Awarded
NHS Dorset Integrated Care Board (Dorset ICB) are looking to award a new contract for the provision of Community Dental Services in Dorset to the existing provider, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (SFT).
The Dorset Community Dental Service (CDS) is concerned with improving oral health care and reducing health care inequalities through the provision of primary care dental services within community settings.
The service includes the provision of Special Care and Paediatric Dentistry (SCPD) which is the treatment of:
- Adult patients who cannot be treated in a high street dental practice due to the nature of their physical or mental disabilities, or because they have a need for enhanced support to receive treatment and
- Paediatric patients who may have needs as described above, or who have more complex or significant treatment needs.
Patients who meet the eligibility criteria for SCPD are eligible to receive Mandatory Dental Services (MDS) from the Community Dental Service provider. This includes urgent care treatment and referral to other dental services where this is appropriate.
The service also includes the provision of:
- Domiciliary Care which is provided to patients who meet the special care eligibility criteria
- Treatment under Sedation
- Treatment under General Anaesthesia (GA)
The service is available to patients registered with a General Medical Practitioner in Dorset who meet the referral criteria.
The existing contract for the provision of Community Dental Services in Dorset is due to expire on the 31st March 2026, and Dorset ICB have proposed that a new contract should replace the existing contract at the end of its term. All requirements outlined in Regulation 6(5) of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 have been met, including not breaching the considerable change threshold, and therefore direct award process C has been deemed the appropriate provider selection process.
After conducting an assessment, taking into account the key criteria and applying the basic selection criteria, Dorset ICB is content that the existing provider is satisfying the original contract and will likely satisfy the proposed contract to a sufficient standard.
The service is anticipated to commence on the 1st April 2026 for a contract duration of 2 years until the 31st March 2028. The estimated lifetime value of the contract is £7,427,988.00 based on 25/26 prices.
The contract value will be subject to the Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body (DDRB) annual percentage uplift from 2026/27 onwards, when applied.
The Commissioner will be contracting for the services using the Standard clauses for a Personal Dental Services (PDS) agreement, with an NHS Standard Contract included as an appendix for the provision of treatment under General Anaesthesia.
This notice serves as an intention to award the contract to the existing provider under Direct Award Process C of the PSR.
During the life of the proposed new contract, Dorset ICB intend to conduct a review of the CDS and where appropriate, redesign and commission services for the future, under new longer term contractual arrangements.
This procurement has been carried out by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of the Commissioners.
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
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 13 Mar 2026, 10:47 GMT
- Last source update
- 26 Mar 2026, 09:30 GMT
- Authority reference
WA17703- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-027675- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-066975Find a Tender
- Why no open competition
- The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the directive
- 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 and The Procurement Act 2023 do not apply to this award. The publication of this notice marks the start of the standstill period. Representations by providers must be made to the relevant authority by 23:59 on Wednesday 25th March 2026. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR.
Publisher note: The decision to award this contract in line with Direct Award Process C was based on assessment against the basic selection criteria, which were assessed on a "Pass" / "Fail" basis, and the 5 key criteria, which were assessed on an "Assured" / "Not Assured" basis. Multiple assessment areas were included under each of the key criteria and the provider's performance against the current contract, as well as their likely performance against the new contract was assessed. Due to the nature of the assessment and the assessment methodology applied, each key criteria was deemed of equal importance and individual weightings were not applied. Evidence was gathered against the basic selection criteria and each of the key criteria using information available through the existing contract/contract management, published sources and information requests sent to the provider. An assessment panel was then convened to review the evidence gathered for each element of the assessment and agree an assessment score for each criteria, using the relevant assessment matrix. The provider scored a "pass" on all elements of the BSC and 'assured' on all elements of the key criteria assessment, therefore meeting requirements of the assessment. Award decisions have been recommended by the Direct Award Process C Assessment Panel, of which NHS Dorset's Principal Lead for Primary Care was a member. Award decisions have been taken through the ICB's governance proceedings and have been approved by the Oral Health Programme Board and Finance and Planning Committee, with final decision making made by the Board. One potential / perceived conflict of interest was made via the conflict of interest process for this procurement and recorded accordingly. The non-conflicted members of the procurement have assessed the nature and risk of the declared conflict and decided which steps to take to avoid or mitigate them. The declaration was deemed as not being an actual conflict of interest but was still managed with appropriate mitigations into place to facilitate the individuals' involvement in the process while removing the potential for any undue influence. The declarant was a member of the Direct Award Process C Assessment Panel but was not involved in the process prior to this nor the decision making relating to provider selection process. Furthermore, the declarant only inputted into the areas of the assessment relevant to their expertise and did not review all of the assessment criteria. The Assessment Panel consisted of a number of individuals ensuring that decision making was not made by a singular individual, reducing any undue influence. The outcome of the assessment was also subject to Dorset ICB's wider governance and approval processes of which the declarant was not involved with. 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 and The Procurement Act 2023 do not apply to this award. The publication of this notice marks the start of the standstill period. Representations by providers must be made to decision makers by 23:59 on Wednesday 25th March 2026. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR. Written representations for this award should be sent to scwcsu.procurement@nhs.net
Notice history
2 releases on Find a TenderPublished amendments (1)
Contract award took place on 26th March 2026 following conclusion of the standstill period. The service will commence on the 1st April 2026 for a contract duration of 2 years until the 31st March 2028. The estimated lifetime value of the contract is £7,427,988.00 based on 25/26 prices. This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) confirmation of contract award notice. This contract has been awarded …
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (SFT) | £7,427,988 † | — | Awarded |
Contracts
Community Dental Services in Dorset · Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (SFT)
- Signed
- 12 Mar 2026
- Value
- £7,427,988
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1bids | — | — | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- NHS EnglandMediation body
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (SFT)Awarded supplier
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice.