Autism Diagnostic Assessment Service

Thames Valley Integrated Care Board (TV ICB) is establishing an accreditation for suitably qualified providers to deliver Autism Diagnostic Assessment Services.

This accreditation is conducted in accordance with Direct Award Process B of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 (PSR). For the avoidance of doubt, this process does not constitute a competitive procurement procedure. Providers will not be ranked or compared, and there is no limit on the number of providers that may be accredited. Applications will be assessed against published criteria to determine whether providers can demonstrate the capability and capacity to deliver the service requirements.

The accreditation will operate under two Lots:

Lot 1 - Adult Autism Diagnostic Assessment Services (18+)

Lot 2 - Children and Young People Autism Diagnostic Assessment Services (ages 6-18)

Providers may apply for one or both Lots. Where applying for more than one Lot, providers must submit a separate application for each Lot. Each application will be assessed independently.

The Commissioner is commencing an initial accreditation process with a defined application window, as set out in the procurement documents. This initial process is intended to establish an initial cohort of accredited providers.

Following the completion of the initial accreditation process, the Commissioner will maintain an open accreditation arrangement. In accordance with the Provider Selection Regime and NHS Right to Choose requirements, providers may request accreditation at any time. Applications submitted outside the initial application window will not be considered as part of the initial evaluation cohort but may be assessed subsequently at the Commissioner's discretion.

Successful providers will enter into an NHS Standard Contract. Accreditation onto the provider list does not guarantee referrals, and activity will be determined by clinical appropriateness, patient choice, provider performance and available capacity.

This accreditation does not represent a commitment by the Commissioner to purchase a specified volume of services, and as such the estimated contract value is recorded as £0.

This accreditation process is being carried out by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of the Commissioner.