TenderSignal is the UK's most complete source of live healthcare and medical tenders.
We aggregate clinical, diagnostic and medical-equipment procurement from 145+ portals — NHS Shared Business Services, NHS Supply Chain, Atamis, every NHS trust portal, integrated care boards (ICBs), local authority public health teams, ambulance services, and the devolved health bodies (NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, HSC Northern Ireland). Buyers also include MOD medical services, prison healthcare and private hospital groups.
Whether you're a small medical-device manufacturer, a domiciliary care provider, a clinical SaaS startup, or a national pharmaceutical wholesaler, TenderSignal surfaces relevant NHS and wider healthcare opportunities. Sub-sectors span diagnostics, consumables, capital equipment, clinical services, mental health, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy and medtech.
NHS contracts typically re-tender on 3–5 year cycles. Pro users get expiring-contract alerts and pipeline intelligence — letting you engage with category teams 6–12 months before procurement opens.
What's covered
NHS England spends over £30bn annually on goods and services, channelled through NHS Supply Chain, NHS Shared Business Services, Crown Commercial Service health frameworks, and trust-level direct purchasing. The Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 govern clinical-service procurement, while non-clinical buys follow the Procurement Act 2023.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) now commission most local healthcare, replacing CCGs. Key national frameworks include NHS SBS Workforce Alliance, the Edenred frameworks, Health Trust Europe (HTE) and NOE CPC. NHS Scotland uses National Procurement; Wales uses NWSSP; Northern Ireland uses BSO PaLS.
Notable programmes driving demand include the Elective Recovery Plan, Community Diagnostic Centres, NHS 10-Year Workforce Plan, Mental Health Investment Standard, and the Federated Data Platform rollout.
NHS procurement uses PQQ/SQ stages assessing financial standing, clinical governance, information governance (DSP Toolkit) and CQC registration where relevant. ITT scoring typically weights quality 60% (including clinical outcomes, social value, sustainability) and price 40%.
Framework accreditation is the dominant route. NHS Supply Chain Towers cover most clinical consumables; NHS SBS frameworks handle workforce, FM and digital. For clinical services, CQC registration is mandatory and clinical governance evidence is heavily scrutinised. ISO 13485 is essential for medical devices; MHRA registration for any regulated product.
Common pitfalls: under-evidenced clinical outcomes, weak NHS Net Zero submissions (mandatory since 2024), poor information governance answers, and unrealistic implementation timelines. Strong bids show NHS reference sites, MHRA/CE-UKCA evidence, named clinical leads, and clear alignment with NHS Long Term Plan priorities.
TenderSignal lets you filter by ICB area, NHS trust, or local authority public health team. Set your geographic preferences during onboarding to see only the healthcare opportunities relevant to your delivery footprint.
NHS contracts range from £20k local consumables call-offs to multi-hundred-million national framework awards. Typical trust-level service contracts sit at £500k–£5m over 3 years; national NHS Supply Chain category awards can exceed £100m.
For most consumables and workforce categories, yes — NHS Supply Chain, NHS SBS and HTE frameworks handle the bulk of spend. For clinical services, direct ITTs via Atamis and trust portals remain common, particularly for novel pathways.
TenderSignal ingests around 250–500 healthcare opportunities per week across NHS, social care and devolved health bodies. Volume is steady year-round with spikes after framework refreshes and at financial year-end.
For clinical services: CQC registration, clinical governance evidence, DSP Toolkit compliance and indemnity. For medical devices: MHRA registration, ISO 13485, UKCA/CE marking. Most buyers also require ISO 9001, 14001 and NHS Net Zero supplier roadmap evidence.
Yes — particularly in mental health, community services, medtech innovation, and AI-assisted diagnostics. NHS England's SME action plan and the Procurement Act 2023's lotting requirements have widened SME access, though clinical-safety bars remain high.
Under the Procurement Act 2023, NHS goods and services above £213,477 must be advertised on Find a Tender. Clinical services follow the Provider Selection Regime, with thresholds and processes set by the PSR rather than the Procurement Act.
The PSR (in force from January 2024) governs how NHS commissioners award contracts for healthcare services. It offers three routes — direct award, most suitable provider, and competitive process — depending on context. Non-clinical NHS buys still follow the Procurement Act.
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