How to win NHS contracts: a guide for small suppliers

To win NHS contracts as a small supplier, start by working out which rulebook applies. Relevant health care services (defined by CPV code) bought by NHS trusts, ICBs, NHS England and English local authorities fall under the Provider Selection Regime, which has applied since 1 January 2024 (SI 2023/1348; light touch guidance, para 12). Other purchases follow the Procurement Act 2023.

Then find the notice, check the stated requirements before you spend a day on the response, and look for a way in that suits your size: a lot, a subcontract, or a lower-value notice. This guide is part of our guide to winning public sector contracts.

Who buys in the NHS

“The NHS” is not one buyer. The Provider Selection Regime regulations define the “relevant authorities” they cover (reg 2):

• combined authorities
• integrated care boards (ICBs)
• local authorities in England
• NHS England
• NHS foundation trusts
• NHS trusts

So the buyer for a given contract might be a hospital trust, an ICB, NHS England or a council. Each runs its own procurement and publishes its own tender pack. The regulations apply to providers of health care services for the health service in England.

NHS bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland buy under their own nations’ arrangements. The Act’s guidance on devolved authorities explains how the Act applies in each nation. Check each notice for the rules that apply.

Two rulebooks: PSR or Procurement Act?

Health care services in England: the Provider Selection Regime

The Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 cover “relevant health care services”, which are health care services that fall within the CPV codes listed in Schedule 1 of the regulations (reg 2). If you are not sure whether your service is covered, the Schedule 1 code list is the place to look. Our CPV code finder can help you find your own codes to compare.

The regulations set out several procurement processes (contents): three direct award processes (A, B and C), a most suitable provider process, and a competitive process. They also have a part on framework agreements. Not every award under the regime is a competition, and which process a buyer uses depends on the circumstances. The notice should tell you which it is following.

What the processes mean for a small supplier

Regulation 6 sets out the routes. In plain terms:

• Direct award process A applies where there is an existing provider and the authority is satisfied that only that provider can deliver the services, given their nature.
• Direct award process B applies where patients are offered a choice of provider, the authority does not restrict the number of providers, and it offers contracts to all providers who meet the requirements.
• Frameworks must use the competitive process.

If you are not the existing provider, process A will not open a door for you. Look for patient-choice arrangements (process B) and competitive processes instead. Because direct award is allowed, some work under the regime is never advertised as an open tender.

The regulations also have their own standstill period (reg 12) and their own rules on exclusions (reg 20; see the contents). For contracts under the regime, look up those regulations rather than the Act’s equivalents.

Goods and non-health services: the Procurement Act 2023

Government guidance on light touch contracts says that regulated health procurement is governed by the Provider Selection Regime rather than the Act, and that the Act is disapplied for those procurements (paras 12-13). NHS Trusts and NHS Foundation Trusts also appear in the Act’s below-threshold guidance, which shows they buy under the Act where the regime does not apply (below-threshold guidance, para 10).

In plain terms: if what you sell is within the regime’s CPV-defined health care services, expect the regime. Otherwise, expect the Act. We have not tried to list example services for either side, because the dividing line is the regulations’ scope, not a general description. Read the notice, which should say which regime applies.

Mixed contracts

If a contract combines health care services with other things, ask the buyer which regime it is using. We can’t give legal advice on mixed procurements. Government guidance says regulation 43 of the Procurement Regulations 2024 disapplies the Act for regulated health procurement, and points to the mixed procurement guidance for more detail (light touch guidance, para 13).

Thresholds and notices for NHS buyers

Under the Procurement Act 2023, the thresholds from 1 January 2026, including VAT, are £135,018 and £207,720 for goods and services (the figure depends on the type of buyer), £5,193,000 for works, and £663,540 for light touch contracts (Schedule 1, thresholds guidance, paras 9 and 12). The notice states which regime and values apply.

Light touch contracts are a separate category of certain social, health, education and other public services provided directly to individuals or groups (guidance, para 1).

Below threshold, NHS Trusts and NHS Foundation Trusts are now subject to the lower £12,000 (including VAT) notifiable figure, rather than the £30,000 that applied to them formerly, under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (below-threshold guidance, para 10). Below-threshold tender notices go on the central digital platform before anywhere else (para 12).

The same guidance explains why: the Act’s definition of a central government authority covers NHS Trusts and NHS Foundation Trusts (para 10). That also means the central government goods and services threshold, £135,018 including VAT (Schedule 1), applies to Trusts and Foundation Trusts. The figure for other NHS buyers depends on the type of buyer.

When a Trust buys something outside the Provider Selection Regime, below threshold, the Act’s rules for regulated below-threshold contracts apply. A buyer cannot restrict who may submit a tender by assessing their suitability, except for works contracts of £135,018 or more awarded by a central government authority (s.85). Valid invoices must be paid within 30 days (s.88). A tender notice is required from £12,000 for central government authorities, and the duty does not apply where the buyer invites only pre-selected suppliers (s.87). Any time limits in the notice must be reasonable and the same for every supplier (s.87), and after the contract is entered into the buyer publishes a contract details notice.

Before inviting tenders for a regulated below-threshold contract, the buyer must also consider whether small and medium-sized enterprises may face particular obstacles in competing, and whether they can be removed or reduced (s.86). It is a duty to consider, not a guarantee of anything, but it is a fair thing to ask a Trust about. It does not apply to contracts awarded under a framework.

Where NHS opportunities are published

• England: notices are published on the central digital platform (Find a Tender); below-threshold notices must now go on the platform rather than Contracts Finder (below-threshold guidance, para 11). Our feed also checks Contracts Finder. Our live tender pages let you browse health and social care tenders or medical equipment tenders without searching each site.
• Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland: NHS bodies there buy under their own nations’ arrangements. Our Scotland and Wales pages show what appears on Find a Tender and Contracts Finder for each. They may not be the full picture, so check each buyer’s own procurement page too.

Frameworks and dynamic markets in the NHS

Both rulebooks allow frameworks. Under the Act, a framework is a contract that provides for future awards, and call-offs follow the rules in s.45. The Provider Selection Regime regulations have their own part on framework agreements (regs 16-18), including a regulation on additional provider parties during a framework’s term (reg 17; see the contents). So check the framework’s own terms to see whether and when new suppliers can join.

We have not named specific NHS frameworks here. Open the notice or the buyer’s page to see which frameworks it uses. For how frameworks and dynamic markets work and how to get on them, see NHS frameworks and dynamic markets.

What to check in an NHS tender

Requirements vary by contract. Any requirement not stated in the notice will be in the tender documents, if there is one. Rather than guess at what a typical health tender requires, here is what to look for as you read it:

• Insurance. The level, whether it is per claim or total, and when it must be in place. Under the Act, a buyer cannot require insurance for performing the contract to be in place before it awards the contract (s.22(3)(b)). Check how the notice treats it. See professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance.
• Cyber and data security. Look for any named scheme or standard and whether it is needed at bid or at award. See Cyber Essentials.
• Regulated activity or registration. If the service involves a regulated activity, look for what registration the buyer expects and when.
• Vetting and safeguarding. Look for any DBS or similar checks on staff.
• Health and safety. Look for the accreditation or policy the pack asks for.

For the Provider Selection Regime, Part 4 of the regulations sets “further requirements when procuring relevant health care services”, including basic selection criteria (contents). Read what the notice says rather than assuming.

Our tender eligibility checker is coming soon. Until then, tell us your trade and postcode to join the free weekly list of live tenders, starting soon. If the pack has a social value question, see social value answers.

Getting a foothold: lots, subcontracting, below-threshold

Health and social care was the second-busiest division in our data, with 68 live notices (as of 10 Oct 2026, covering the week to that date, from our own data; how we count). Large contracts can be hard to bid for alone, so look for these ways in:

• Lots. Look for tenders split into lots by area or service. You may fit one lot.
• Subcontracting. Larger suppliers that win big contracts may need specialist or local partners. Approach them after award notices are published.
• Below-threshold notices. The £12,000 figure for NHS Trusts and Foundation Trusts brings smaller contracts into the open (guidance, para 10).

Before you commit time to any of them, run through the bid or no-bid checklist and the first tender checklist.

Where to see NHS tenders now

Our live tender pages list current notices from Find a Tender and Contracts Finder, by sector and trade. They are not limited to NHS buyers, so check the buyer name on each notice. Browse health and social care tenders, or by trade: medical equipment, social care, home care, cleaning and facilities management.

Tell us your trade and postcode to join the free weekly list of live tenders, starting soon. On Pro (£49/month), notices that fit your trade and area are checked against what each states about insurance, certifications and location, and you get an email each morning on days with new matches. Start here.