North of England Commissioning Support (NECS) and NHS England, Lancashire and Greater Manchester are running one-to-one support sessions for providers in anticipation of the Central and East Lancashire Diabetic Eye Screening Programme (DESP) procurement.

These sessions are to support potential bidders in relation to tender compliance and technical requirements.

Please note that all information as part of the session will be recorded and documented, and will be shared with other potential bidders as part of the Invitation to Tender (ITT), unless commercially sensitive.

A draft service specification has been shared as part of this process as an opportunity for providers to feedback prior to the ITT.

Technical response questions used within the NHS England, Cumbria and the North East DESP procurement have also been provided to give potential bidders an example of questions that may be asked as part of the ITT.

The one-to-one sessions will take place on the 19th November 2015 from 9am to 5pm at Preston Business Centre, Watling Street Road, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 8DY.

Each potential bidder will be allocated 45 minutes to ask any questions as part of the session or provide feedback on the documents shared as part of this process.

Please note, feedback can also be shared via the feedback forms provided and returned via the In-tend website which is being used to manage this process.

To attend a one-to-one session please register on the electronic tendering portal, which can be found at https://in-tendhost.co.uk/necs.

Please note that it is free to register on the portal, which can be accessed at any time of day as long as you have a working internet connection.

If you require further assistance, a help guide can be found on the portal by clicking on the tab marked “Guidance for Suppliers”.

Alternatively, (should potential providers have any queries) a dedicated helpdesk is available and can be contacted on 0844 2728810 Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm or email: support@in-tend.co.uk.

Potential bidders are required to complete Document 1 – Request to Attend One-to-One Session and return via the In-Tend website.

Please Note: Potential bidders will be offered sessions on a first come first served basis and the first bidder to respond will be offered the earliest available slot, therefore the first bidder to respond will be offered a 9:00 am slot.

If more requests to attend a one-to-one session are received than slots available then an additional day for potential bidders to attend will be arranged.

Potential bidders are required to complete and return Document 1 otherwise they will not be able to attend a one-to-one session.

Potential bidders must complete and return Document 1 no later than 12 noon on Monday 9th November 2015 to be eligible to attend a one-to-one session, any requests received after this time may not be accepted.