DAP C- Vasectomy Services for North East Essex

The Provide Vasectomy contract was transferred into the management of Essex ICB when it became a statutory body on 1st April 2026 having been transferred over from SNEE ICB. The current contract ends on 31/10/2026. The commissioner is currently undertaking a review of vasectomy services across Essex to align services from 1/4/2027. This gives a 5-month gap from the end of the contract to the new financial year. Due to this and the transfer over from SNEE ICB it is not feasible to undertake a full procurement for this amount of time.

Maintaining current contractual arrangements is therefore necessary to safeguard service stability and patient access whilst the commissioning review concludes.

The commissioner is not aware of any alternative provider capable of mobilising and delivering the service safely and effectively within the available timeframe. Undertaking a competitive process for a five-month interim arrangement would be unlikely to deliver additional benefits to patients or the wider system and could jeopardise continuity of care.

The relevant authority determined that Direct Award Process C applies because Provide Enterprises is the existing provider, the existing contract is due to end, the proposed contracting arrangements are not changing considerably, and the provider is satisfying the existing contract and is likely to satisfy the proposed contract to a sufficient standard.