Specialist Paediatric Speech & Language Therapy in Halton

Location

Halton place

Description

Specialist Paediatric Speech and Language Therapy Service in Halton. The service will be delivered to all children up to their 19th birthday (26th birthday with a statement of special educational needs) who are resident in Halton and registered with a local GP or those not registered with a GP but resident in the borough, e.g. traveller families. Undertake assessment of need, including provision of specialist speech and language advice to Section G as part of the development of EHCPs and annual reviews, in line with prescribed timeframes.

Total Quantity or Scope

NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB - Halton Place have awarded a 6 month contract to the current provider of this service on the ground of urgency to deliver specialist paediatric speech and language therapy services in Halton Place (to note - this service was previously contracted via a Local Authority led arrangement). This urgent award is considered as the only feasible option utilising a known provider, whilst a new provider is able to mobilise the new service being transferred to them under a longer term contract. The contract commenced on 10th November 2025 and will expire no later than 10th May 2026. The contract value is £248,609.

Award Detail

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 85100000 - Health services

Indicators

• Award on basis of price.

Legal Justification

This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) contract award notice on the grounds of Urgency. The awarding of this contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award.

Other Information

This contract has been awarded under the urgent circumstances provision of the Provider Selection Regime (PSR). This contract has been awarded under the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award. On the 4th November 2025, Andrea McGee, ICB Interim Director of Finance approved this decision and no conflicts of interest were declared. The existing CYP SLT contract expired on 29th October 2025 and the new service provider was not in a position to transfer and mobile the service by that date. The ICB has a statutory responsibility for ensuring the provision of specialist SALT services for its registered population. For many, an inability to access this service will impact on their development, for some this could be significant and cause long-term harm. For CYP with dysphagia, no service has significant potential to result in significant harm. Therefore, the ICB agreed to enter into a short-term contract with the outgoing provider to ensure ongoing provision whilst the required due diligence and transfer preparations are concluded by the new provider.