Contract notice for delivery partner to oversee 鈥榝undamental shift鈥� in healthcare schemes to be posted by September
Last week, 好色先生TV revealed that the government is preparing to announce a significant new funding package for the New Hospital Programme (NHP), the plan to build 40 new hospitals in England by 2030.
First announced by Boris Johnson in the run-up to the 2019 general election, the programme was immediately criticised for its vagueness about what constituted a hospital. Many of the schemes were in fact extensions of existing hospitals or smaller health projects.
Since officially being set up in 2020, the NHP has made little progress. A BBC report last week found that just seven out of the 40 identified schemes had started construction, while all six of the full-size hospitals which had been promised to open by 2025 lack both funding and planning permission.
In an online market update last week, NHP leaders sought to reassure suppliers that the programme was not on life support, as many had feared. They said they had agreed a 鈥渧ery significant top-level funding package鈥� from the Treasury which will be announced 鈥渋mminently鈥�.
>> Also read: Exclusive: Government to unveil major funding package for New Hospital Programme 鈥榳ithin a week鈥�
More details were provided about how the schemes would be built using modern methods of construction (MMC) integrated throughout the supply chain, creating a 鈥渘ational industry that will sustain us for many years to come鈥�.
The NHP also revealed the appointment process for a programme delivery partner (PDP), a consortium of project managers which will drive efficiencies in schemes using MMC and material standardisation.
Here鈥檚 what we know so far:
What is going to be built ?
The NHP says it will build at least 1 million m2 of new hospital space by 2030, keeping the original deadline. These 鈥渟marter, greener, efficient multiple mega projects鈥� are part of a wider plan to transform how healthcare is delivered in England. It is a 鈥渙nce in a generation opportunity to create a fundamental shift of how healthcare facilities are conceived, developed and delivered鈥�, the NHP representatives told suppliers during the online market update last week.
This is about much more than construction, NHP chief programme officer Morag Stuart said. 鈥淲e are genuinely trying to transform a very significant part of the NHS system. Half of what we鈥檙e doing is a transformation programme, and the other half is an infrastructure programme,鈥� she said.
At the centre of the programme will be the 鈥渉ospital 2.0鈥� concept, a vision for how hospital schemes can be delivered with greater efficiency and reduced cost. An integrated systems approach will provide 鈥渙ptimised, standardised and repeatable solutions for scheme development, design, construction and operation,鈥� the NHP said.
Potential efficiencies will include vastly reducing the types of components used in hospitals, including cutting the number of door types from around 27,000 to 700.
Sustainability is also central to the programme, with all schemes aiming to achieve BREEAM Excellent.
Modern Methods of Construction
好色先生TV such a large programme efficiently will require an industrialisation process that 鈥渦nlocks economies of scale by integrating policies into key design principles鈥�. Use of standard rule sets will aim to allow the market to proactively plan resources and innovate using manufacturing strategies, the NHP said.
Programme director Saurabh Bhandari said the NHP would 鈥渟eed the market to go on that direction鈥�, adding: 鈥淲e need to industrialise the way we design, the way we manufacture and assemble the buildings, and for that we need to engage with the market proactively to innovate these strategies.鈥�
As part of the hospital 2.0 plan, the NHP leaders said it will pursue standardised designs and product modularization to create an NHS kit-of-parts, employing modern methods of construction to speed up the build, reduce cost and increase quality.
It is believed this will allow the NHP to build its schemes up to 20% cheaper and up to 25% faster.
The approach appears to be a super-sized version of the Ministry of Justice鈥檚 拢1bn prisons programme, which is using material and design standardisation to build four new adult male prisons. It is unclear if the NHP will also use an alliance contract, which is currently being used for the prisons programme with Kier, ISG, Wates and Laing O鈥橰ourke.
In its early phases, the NHP presentation said it will be 鈥渞eliant on assumptions and existing practices鈥�, but will amass evidence on all aspects of hospital design as the programme matures. This intends to avoid the shortfalls of traditional standalone schemes, which result in a 鈥渘ew solution to the same fundamental challenges developed each time and no learning between projects鈥�.
How will the programme delivery partner role work?
The programme delivery partner (PDP) is likely to be a consortium of project manager firms that will have responsibility for delivering the NHP鈥檚 strategic goals on time and within budget. It will be the 鈥渞esponsible鈥� party, with the NHP remaining the 鈥渁ccountable鈥� party.
The PDP鈥檚 key functions will include management of the overall programme, design, cost assurance, setting standards and delivery. It will need to have the technical capability to inform and deliver strategy for 鈥渢ransformational design鈥�, maintenance, management and operation of hospitals, business case preparation and approval, digital transformation and MMC. It will directly procure and manage hospital designs up to RIBA stage 3.
In its presentation to suppliers the NHP said it wants the PDP to be a 鈥渨orld class leadership team鈥� across these disciplines, with a supply chain that can deliver the programme鈥檚 goals. The PDP will be a coherent and collaborative organisation with the 鈥渞ight culture and behaviours鈥�, and the flexibility to meet changing requirements and emerging risks, the NHP said.
A wish list of attributes wanted by the NHP includes 鈥渟trategists and futurists鈥� to develop innovative solutions, systems engineering 鈥減edigree鈥� to aid MMC and industrialisation, a data-driven and evidence-based culture, and an ability to implement 鈥渕arket-shaping鈥� changes.
How will the programme delivery partner be appointed?
A call for competition using a contract notice posted on the government鈥檚 Find a Tender portal will be used to appoint the PDP. This will be followed by a selection stage where bidders will be evaluated and shortlisted for tendering.
Shortlisted firms will then be invited to enter a negotiation stage with the NHP, which will leave flexibility to either award on the basis of initial tenders or negotiate an improved tender. Firms will then be invited to submit a final tender stage before the final tender evaluation and the award stage.
The NHP says it will launch the competition by September this year, but aspires to launch earlier if possible. Further pre-launch briefings, following last week鈥檚 update and a previous update in January, are planned.
Award criteria, which the NHP said is subject to change, is currently based on people and behaviours, including a behavioural assessment, delivery approach, transformation approach and social value.
Price criteria will be based on social value, pay rates for the PDP leadership team, overheads and fees.
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