The panel was asked by Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT) to advise on the award of a single provider contract by NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board (MSE ICB) for its Talking Therapies and Psychological Therapies for Severe Mental Health Problems (mental health core services) in Mid and South Essex.

There are currently four providers of mental health core services in the MSE ICB area: MPFT, Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Vita Health Solutions Limited (Vita Health)

An Independent Patient Choice and Procurement Panel review told the ICB to return to an earlier step in the selection process or ‘abandon the provider selection and start a new one' after finding several breaches of regulations.

The panel found staffing costs required under TUPE transfer exceeded the budget provided for the first year of the contract by approximately £2.2m with bidders asked to ‘use resources external to the contract to assist in financing the cost of service provision'.

A spokesperson for NHS Mid and South Essex ICB: ‘We will review the advice from the panel and will respond accordingly. We are unable to comment further due to legal and governance processes.'

The ICB said the consolidation of mental health core services in Mid and South Essex under a single contract was to ensure consistent and equitable service delivery, improve patient experience, address health inequalities, and achieve better value for money.