Community Testing: Lateral Flow Device (LFD) Testing

CPV: Miscellaneous health services

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

7 May 2021, 11:10 BST

Last source update

7 May 2021, 11:10 BST

Authority reference

DN528256

FTS notice number

2021/S 000-009939

Classification (CPV)

Miscellaneous health services

Delivery area

South West (UKK3)

Official registry OCID

ocds-h6vhtk-02ae44 Find a Tender

Why no open competition

Extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable for the contracting authority/entity and in accordance with the strict conditions stated in the directive

Published justification

1. There are genuine reasons for treating this contract with extreme urgency.

The Government asked local authorities to provide a testing service for people who have to go to work during the current lockdown.

2. The events that have led to the need for extreme urgency were unforeseeable.

The need for large scale LFD testing could not have been predicted as it relates mainly to the increased infectivity of the new variant of coronavirus.

3. It is impossible to comply with the usual timescales in the PCRs. The Council could conduct an accelerated procurement under the open procedure (15 days).

Standard procedure with accelerated timescales of 15 days could have a significant impact on covid transmission and also business continuity at this difficult phase in the pandemic. The programme is due to run until 31st March (but may be extended). Therefore 15 days is a significant proportion of the programme timescale.

4. The situation is not attributable to the contracting authority..

Previously community testing (known as DPH led testing) was only available to LAs in Tier 3 and above restriction levels so not available to Cornwall. Most learning has come from urban models such as Liverpool. Therefore, we have no local experience and very little experience from rural areas to draw on.

Since the announcement on 10th January we have been developing a workplace based model that will be run using Council staff working with local businesses to set up their own programme. This is because the need to travel to a community testing site twice weekly for testing will be considerable barrier to taking part in this scheme for many workers in our rural county. It was previously proposed that home based testing would be authorised by MHRA and previous communication from DHSC suggested this may be from 18th January. On this basis we also worked up a home testing proposal with Devon and Cornwall Police but we have now been informed that home based testing will not be authorised for this programme.

On January 18th the Government announced asymptomatic testing for primary schools and nurseries. On January 21st it was confirmed that private, voluntary and independent providers would not be included and there was an expectation that these settings and childminders would be covered by LA community testing programmes. At this point the delivery model had to be revised to include some community testing sites as workplace based testing could not cover this cohort.

• Cornwall Ambulance Service LimitedAwarded supplier12299846 Gloweth House Unit 10 Great Brynn Barton Roche, St Austell, South West, PL26 8LH

No document links were published on the notice.