Clarifications: DDaT Capability
Questions and Clarifications
Below is a list of the 18 questions and clarifications relating to this opportunity.
1. Dear Sirs, you have stated that there is an incumbent supplier. In the interests of transparency, can you advise who the incumbent is?
The incumbent supplier is Mastek UK Limited. The contract award notice and redacted contract can be viewed via https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a1f9431d-93e5-4d11-9a8a-17ac54a1b139
Last Updated : 13/09/2023
2. Please confirm that on 19/09/2023 16:00 we need to submit via Bravosolution?
Yes, please submit via Bravosolution as standard. Following shortlisting, the next stage (2) of the procurement will take place on the NHSBSA’s e-tendering solution (Health Family Portal). Suppliers should register to use the Health Family Portal at https://atamis-1928.my.site.com/s/Welcome should they be shortlisted for the second stage.
Last Updated : 13/09/2023
3. The Authority has stipulated offshore day caps. Please can the Authority confirm whether there is an equivale cap for on-shore roles?
The capped day rates will apply to the contract. Suppliers may propose whether the delivery is onshore and/or offshore however they must be within the cap stated. Rates will be requested from shortlisted suppliers and evaluated at stage 2 of the procurement.
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4. We would like to be added to the tender. Alternatively if you could share the C reference number on the portal for us to express our interest.
Responses to Stage 1 must be submitted via the Bravo Portal. Following the evaluation of stage 1 responses, only shortlisted suppliers will be invited to submit a tender response and they will receive the invitation from the Health Family Portal.
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5. Suppliers who are shortlisted and then wish to submit proposals must register on the NHSBSA’s e-tendering solution which can be found at https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome.
This applies to Stage 2 of the Tender. Suppliers are asked to Register at this stage to ensure there is no delay in inviting them to submit a tender response as part of stage 2.
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6. 1. Can you confirm the character/word limit per question for the response 2. would you like consolidated response document i.e. all responses in a single template 3. we do not provide offshore resource - would this exclude us from the procurement 4. are you expecting offshore resource only as we would say there are benefits from using onshore resource only
1. This is detailed in each question on the portal and there is a 750 character limit per question for stage 1 responses. 2. Each question needs to be answered individually in the space provided on the portal. 3. We are looking for a solution that meets the terms of the contract which can be delivered within the rate cap. 4. As per 3 above.
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7. Will the process prevent organisations that do not offshore from being successful - i.e. are you looking for a partner with an offshore capability?
We are looking for a solution that can be delivered within the rate cap and that meets the requirements and terms of the contract.
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8. Within question 6 it mentions "providing remote delivery resource capability" - are you referring to individuals working remotely from client sites in the UK or remotely off-shore.
Remotely offsite and this may include UK based and/or offshore where the requirements and contract terms can be met.
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9. Question 2 , can you please clarify what is meant by platform, can you give us some examples?
Platform refers to the cloud platform and associated tooling mentioned earlier in the question. So, in this case it is asking for evidence of your platform engineers (devops) working on AWS platform to deliver services with our toolset. i.e. AWS with Terraform, including S3, RDS (Postgres/DynamoDB), API Gateway, Lambda, ECS/Docker
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10. 1. Can you please advise on the expectations on transitioning from the incumbent supplier? Would a phased approach to standing up the approx 80 people be acceptable? 2. Who is the incumbent supplier and how does this capability partnership relate to other NHSBSA capability partnerships (e.g. NHS Jobs, Expanding Digital Capacity, Technology Partner, Technical Delivery Partner, Architecture Delivery Partner, etc.)? 3. Can you please clarify your expectations on supplier's response to the nice-to-have questions within the 750 character limit? Each of these questions has numerous components that will not be possible to address in detail in 750 characters. 4. Please could you provide some background the business context for the products and systems that the resources will be deployed against? 5. Will the supplier teams be deployed as squads associated with a product or service, or is the approach to use this as a resource pool to supplement existing teams?
1. We would like you to explain your preferred approach and how it meets your client(‘s) expectations/needs and for example manages delivery risk. 2. The incumbent supplier for this resource is Mastek UK Limited. The contract can be found at https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a1f9431d-93e5-4d11-9a8a-17ac54a1b139 3. The limit is set by the system. We would like you to use your judgement in providing an answer within the word limit. 4. The NHSBSA provides many services to the NHS, focussing on three core areas: Citizen Services, Workforce Services and Primary Care. You may find our strategy a good place to read up about us: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/2023-04/Strategy%202023-26%20%28V2%29%2004.2023.pdf Our website also lists the services that we provide: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/ Not all of our services will fall under this contract, notably Data Services, ESR and NHS Pensions. 5. The contract is to supply capability to deliver for outcome(s) based statements of work, with the skills outlined in the bid. Work will align to service areas, such as ‘Help with Health Costs’, ‘Overseas Healthcare Services’, ‘NHS Jobs’ and others. Statements of Work could require working alongside other skilled works of the same profession or entirely provided by the winning supplier. I.e. mixed or supplier. In all cases, User Centred Design (UCD) capability will be provided by the NHSBSA or their chosen supplier for that capability.
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11. . Essential Q2 asks for evidence of using NHSBSA toolset. Only suppliers who have previously worked in NHSBSA would have this experience. Would the Buyer accept other equivalent toolsets? I.e. GDS, NHS etc? 2. Essential Q5 please clarify if the question is referring to the managed service delivering the digital services? 3. Would the Buyer multiple examples demonstrating knowledge and experience for each question, or focussing on one specific detailed example? 4. Essentials Q9, Q11 & Q12 - how will NHSBSA evaluate the answers to these questions? Are they pass/fail questions? 5. Is this work inside or outside of IR35, or a mix?
1. For information suppliers are not required to have previously worked for the NHSBSA. The previous question lists the core languages, technologies and techniques. These are then referenced in Q2 as the ‘NHSBSA toolset’. Experience of working with these industry standard tools are an essential requirement. By “GDS, NHS, etc”, we assume you are referring to the GDS and NHS Design Systems. Although desirable, knowledge of these is not essential. 2. We are unable to provide a do not understand this query. 3. The supplier should use their judgement in providing answers that best illustrate their capabilities. 4. Q9 is evaluated as Pass/Fail. YES = we are not subject to investigations/charges. Yes = Pass. A score of 4 will be assigned and the weighting applied. Q10 is evaluated as Pass/Fail. Answers A-E = Pass. Where A-E are not met = Fail. A score of 4 will be assigned to a PASS and the weighting applied at Stage 2. Q11 is evaluated as Pass/Fail. Answers A-E = Pass. Where A-E are not met = Fail. A score of 4 will be assigned to a PASS and the weighting applied at Stage 2. 5. Work would be deemed Inside of IR35 unless formally assessed otherwise by NHSBSA based upon the nature of engagement to deliver the Buyer requirements, the proposed Supplier solution and individual Status Determination assessments provided by the Supplier. IR35 would only be relevant where the Supplier solution includes team members that are taxed as a UK resident.
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12. For below question - Demonstrate your knowledge and experience (within the last 7 years) in delivering digital services compliant to UK tax rules and regulations including IR35 Could you please confirm if the question is to support the supplier experience in delivering projects including of inside IR35?
The question is to ensure that there is evidence of understanding and adherence to compliance requirements relating to UK tax rules. There exists a significant financial and reputational risk to NHSBSA if a Supplier incorrectly allocates solutions that are Inside of IR35, when the requirement and solution are actually Outside of IR35.
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13. (a) The procurement documents show that there is an incumbent provider, that has a contract for these services and that expires in 2024. which company is the incumbent please? (b) what is the scope of their contract? (c) how long have they been working for the NHS BSA? (d) Given that the incumbent has a significant advantage, are they permitted to bid for this latest procurement competition? (e) Please can you confirm that the NHSBSA toolset described in question 2 are the technologies listed in question 1? (f) Are you (NHS BSA) only looking for a yes/no answer for question 1, with more detailed case studies in question 2? (g) To understand how NHS BSA are managing current work and the expectations for this new contract, what percentage of the work has been offshore to date? (h) To understand how NHS BSA are managing current work and the expectations for this new contract, what percentage of the work is expected to be offshore? (i) Is there an onshore rate card cap?
(a) The incumbent supplier is Mastek UK Limited. (b) The contract award notice and redacted contract can be viewed via https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a1f9431d-93e5-4d11-9a8a-17ac54a1b139 (c) Mastek UK Limited has delivered the following contracts for the NHSBSA https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/970c7650-150a-4549-b772-88ab2a41435f and DOS2 ‘18_02_02 Transformation Partner 2’ £6m 23/04/2018-22/10/20 (d) All suppliers on DOS are permitted to bid for this opportunity. The incumbent has not been precluded. (e) Yes, the NHSBSA toolset are listed in Q1 as core languages, technologies and techniques (f) Yes, Q1 is a yes/no (pass/fail), Yes = Pass. Q2 requires more detail to expand on the supplier’s experience and capability. (g) The NHSBSA has several contracts which support the delivery of digital outcomes. These include both on and offshore delivery. The current contract for expanding digital capability is 100% offshore. This contract can be delivered through an onshore or offshore model as long as it within the rate cap. (h) Please see response to point ‘g’. (i) The cap applies to the contract for the roles stated. The delivery solution must be within the contract cap.
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14. (a) Could you please confirm if the incumbent supplier is subject to an ethical wall agreement for this procurement. (b) What proportion of the roles can be provided from offshore
(a) The supplier has not been required to enter into an ethical walls agreement for this procurement exercise. As the requirement is not for project specific work, and is for DDaT support, the incumbent does not have a competitive advantage. The NHSBSA has shared information to all bidders that the incumbent has been party too and the evaluation criteria tests the suppliers capability against industry standards and GDS principles. https://nhsbsa.github.io/nhsbsa-digital-playbook/ (b) The supplier is required to present its solution in line with the requirements.
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15. 1 Please confirm the incumbent suppliers who are currently delivering the services within the scope of this engagement? 2 Which jurisdictions would you consider in relation to offshore teams being used to deliver some of the work? What percentage of work do you see as appropriate to be delivered nearshore/offshore resources based on the current delivery model? 3 The budget stated is £19.5m - kindly confirm if this covers the initial 2 year contractual period only, or does it also cover the additional 1 year extension period? 4 As Q1 is a pass-fail question, is this a Yes / No answer, or would like us to provide an example of where we have used the core languages, technologies and techniques listed.
(1) The incumbent supplier is Mastek UK Limited. The contract award notice and redacted contract can be viewed via https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a1f9431d-93e5-4d11-9a8a-17ac54a1b139 (2) Any offshore solution must be in line with the requitrements. We cannot allow this for countries where this would breach UK law e.g. relating to trade sanctions; e.g. Russia, Iran, North Korea etc. (3) The budget stated is an estimated contract value and services will be called off during the term of the contract. There is no minimum committed spend. The estimated value of £19.5m is for the initial 2-year term and the 12-month extension. Total 3 years. (4) Q1 is a pass/fail, but Q2 is a follow up covering the same languages/tools/techniques where additional detail should be provided.
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16. Please advise who is the incumbent vendor here and is the incumbent partner allowed to participate in this ITT. Also, Is the 750 character count inclusive or exclusive of spaces?
The incumbent supplier is Mastek UK Limited. Suppliers are requested to provide an individual response against each question. Each response should not exceed 750 characters in length. The system will show the characters remaining. The NHSBSA has the discretion to exclude any supplier who exceeds this limit, or to evaluate only the first 750 characters of their response.
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17. Are there are other rate caps that apply to onshore or near shore? 2. Are nearshore rates capped same as offshore rates?
The cap applies to the contract. The delivery solution must be within the contract cap.
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18. 1. Can we include images and diagrams as a part of our response? 2. What is the preferred format for the response to Stage 1? Will a word document work? 3. “Please can you confirm that you have the skillset in these core languages, technologies and techniques as a minimum. This will be treated as a pass / fail question” - Do we need to respond in ‘yes/No’ format? Do you expect any descriptive response? 4. "Demonstrate your knowledge and experience (with in the last 7 years) where you have delivered services using the NHSBSA toolset in development, testing and platform." - Can you please confirm the NHSBSA toolset is as described in question 1 of Essential Skills? Is anything else covered under the NHSBSA toolset?
1. The system does not permit images/diagrams to be submitted at stage 1 2. Stage 1 response has to be completed within the portal as per the guidance. 3. Q1 is a pass/fail, but Q2 is a follow up covering the same languages/tools/techniques where additional detail should be provided. 4. Q1 is a pass/fail, but Q2 is a follow up covering the same languages/tools/techniques where additional detail should be provided. The NHSBSA DDaT Playbook lists more tools and techniques that the supplier may find helpful to understand how we expect them to work. The question only relates to the items listed in Q1, which the NHSBSA considers as essential capabilities. https://nhsbsa.github.io/nhsbsa-digital-playbook/
Last Updated : 13/09/2023