Public Health Primary Care Services - Contraceptives

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure a comprehensive Primary Care Contraceptive Services provision designed to improve access to high‑quality contraceptive care across the local area. The service will support public health responsibilities and primary care duties by enabling residents to access a full range of contraceptive options.

The proposed service will include:

• Provision of long‑acting reversible contraception (LARC) fittings, removals, and follow‑up care.
• Access to contraceptive counselling, information, and sexual health advice.
• Ongoing clinical assessment, diagnostics, and prescribing to support contraceptive choices.
• Integration with wider sexual and reproductive health pathways, including safeguarding, STI testing, and onward referral services where appropriate.
• Support for data reporting, activity monitoring, and service quality assurance aligned with local authority and NHS requirements.

The service aims to:

• Improve contraceptive access for women and people of reproductive age.
• Reduce health inequalities by expanding service availability in primary care settings.
• Improve outcomes through earlier intervention, choice, and continuity of care.
• Strengthen collaborative working across primary care, public health, community services, and voluntary sector partners.

Estimated Contract Value:

The authority anticipates the contract value will exceed the £2m threshold that triggers a UK1 Pipeline Notice requirement under the Procurement Act 2023.

Planned Procurement Approach:

A competitive procurement procedure is expected to be undertaken, in line with the Provider Selection Regime (PSR) and related regulations.

Market Considerations:

Publication of this pipeline notice is intended to:

• Provide early visibility to potential providers, including SMEs and VCSE organisations, supporting market readiness and capacity planning.
• Stimulate early engagement regarding innovative delivery models, workforce capacity, digital tools, and collaborative pathways.
• Support a competitive and diverse supply market for primary care‑led contraceptive services.

Estimated Procurement Timeline:

• Tender Notice publication: Within the next reporting period, in accordance with UK1 requirements (18‑month visibility window).
• Service Commencement: To be confirmed as part of the subsequent tender documentation.
• Contract Length: Expected to be a multi‑year arrangement to support service stability and provider investment.

Additional Context:

This procurement forms part of the authority’s wider public health and primary care commissioning intentions. Similar to other published primary care opportunities—such as the NHS England Primary Care Support Services pipeline notice—services will focus on high‑quality, accessible delivery and robust administrative/clinical governance.