NHS England has issued a bid for 10 contractors to join a new framework to deliver £37bn worth of hospital developments across the country.

A Contract Notice was published on Wednesday following a review of the New Hospital Programme (NHP), which reported last month that the previous government’s pledge to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 was ‘behind schedule’, ‘unfunded’ and, therefore, ‘undeliverable’.

Instead, Labour leaders have proposed a new, ‘credible’ timeline for delivery, but admitted it will take more than a decade to achieve.

The Contract Notice seeks 10 contractors who will join a framework to deliver the agreed projects under three waves, beginning this year and running until 2039 and beyond.

The New Hospital Programme – Hospital 2.0 Alliance (H2A) Framework is a procurement channel for major capital works for hospital build, refurbishment, and ancillary works required by NHS England (NHSE), including the detailed design, construction, commissioning, and handback of major hospital schemes as part of the NHP.

The notice states: “NHSE is seeking expressions of interest from suppliers with suitable major project experience, capacity, and the capability to deliver complex hospital build and refurbishment construction works.

“Subject to the terms of the accompanying Procurement Documents, NHSE intends to award up to 10 places on the framework agreement, but reserves its rights to award fewer places, or to 11 places in certain prescribed scenarios (as defined in the Procurement Documents).

“The successful tenderers will provide expertise and experience in construction and integration works on major complex, life-critical programmes to allow NHP to develop a more-standardised approach to design and delivery, unlock efficiencies, and accelerate delivery in one of the biggest hospital building programmes in a generation.”

The estimated value of the framework is £37bn, it adds, and it will run for an initial six years, but be extended by another six with approval from the Government.

NHSE said in the NHP is ‘urgent’ and that call-offs for the first schemes ‘are intended to be made swiftly’ so that ‘all the contractors on the framework agreement are mobilised as soon as possible’.

It adds that the contracting authority for individual projects may be transferred to NHS trusts

And it said it plans to create a model call-off contract for works procured through the framework via a competition dialogue with tenderers. It then expects bidders to sign up to the terms of the model call-off contract.

Contractors on the framework will be awarded call-off contracts via collaborative allocation, mini-competition, or direct awards, with NHSE saying collaborative allocation will be the default where the model call-off contract is considered appropriate.