Guidance on Contracts Transition

1. Guidance on Contracts Transition Stage 2 - Stabilisation Gateway 17648

2. Contracts transition stocktake reporting • The stocktake phase ‘Data Capture Tool’ provided commissioners with a number of reports • To support the on-going transition process at a local and national level, PCT Clusters will be required to submit, to the Department, a consolidated version of the “Contracts Volumes Summary Report” by PCT Cluster (see slide 3) • The guidance issued in November 2011 accompanying the Data Capture Tool set out the methodology to consolidate individual PCT contract volume reports • The PCT Cluster Contracts Volumes Report should be forwarded to contractstransition@dh.gsi.gov.uk by 07 June 2012 • PCT Clusters should also include the additional information identified in the ‘Notes’ on slide 3 • PCT Cluster will be submitting three consolidated files and these should be identified in the file name as follows:‘NHS XXX PCT - Contracts Volumes – {Primary Care/Specialised Services/Other}’ Gateway 17648

3. Contract Volumes Summary Report • Notes: • The consolidated Contracts Volumes Summary Report should be copied into a new Excel spread sheet with additional lines of information added below the copied spread sheet. The additional information required is as follows: • Enhanced Services agreements should be separately identified as a total value • Grant agreements not included in the categories above should be identified separately as a total value • Specialised services not identified above should be identified separately as a total value • Partnership agreements with local authorities not identified above should be identified separately as a total value • The document should be saved as {NHS XXX PCT -Contracts Volumes – {Primary Care/Specialised Services/Other}’} and sent to contractstransition@dh.gsi.gov.uk by 07 June 2012 Gateway 17648

4. Stabilisation - core principles The core principles that underpin the contract transition process are: • Appropriate arrangements to be in place between PCT and CCG / NHSCB commissioners to ensure continuity of clinical care for patients and service users during the transition • Consistent and objective approach • Openness and transparency • Management action in the stabilisation phase should be proportionate to the risks identified • The responsibility of the PCT as current contracting authority is to prepare their contracts for the smooth transfer to the future contracting authority on 1 April 2013 • Full engagement by the future contracting authorities during the 2013/14 contracting round, which commences from October 2012, is essential to ensure the smooth transfer of contracting arrangements Gateway 17648

5. Stabilisation – key activities (1) The key stabilisation activities are: • Keep the contracts information on the data capture tool up to date to reflect the contracts held by contracting authorities, including any new contracts and changes to existing ones. Where contract values are not known the PCT should use an indicative value • Regularly monitor (suggested quarterly) of any significant discrepancy between the financial reconciliation and the data capture tool totals. Where the discrepancy is significant, a more in depth review of data capture may be required • Develop a high level Contracts Transition Engagement Plan to support the provider community to understand the contract transition process. The engagement plan may include milestones for engagement with providers across the portfolio of services. SHA Clusters may wish to use the plan as an assurance tool • Identify key risks, and mitigating actions, across each type of contract. • Develop a Stabilisation Action Plan either across contract type or at a specific contract level, detailing mitigating action to be taken to address the key risks. Ensure there are clear priorities for action, prioritised according to the level of risk Gateway 17648

6. Stabilisation – key activities (2) • The form of the Stabilisation Action Plan should be determined locally in conjunction with the SHA Cluster contracts transition leads • Complete the identified actions by end September 2012 • Continue to build on the Tacit Knowledge Tool information as the key repository of knowledge for the future commissioners identified to take over the contract • Where agreements do not exist in writing or cannot be located commissioners may wish to consider formalising the existing arrangements in a written form. However commissioners should be mindful of the potential procurement risk or challenge as this will be viewed as a new contract even if the documentation formalises an existing arrangement • PCTs may wish to consider an appropriate archive process for contracts that expire prior to 31 March 2012 as there may be on-going liabilities and terms that survive expiry or termination Gateway 17648

7. Specialised Services – specific activities The key consideration for Specialised Services are: • Implementation of plans for the transfer of the National Highly Specialised Services contracts, currently hosted by London SHA, and the High Secure contracts to the NHS CB • Following the publication of the ‘Prescribed’ Specialised Services list, complete the identification and disaggregation of specialised services and the non-specialised services • The SCG clusters will wish to monitor progress of the plans put in place by PCTs for the transfer and disaggregation of contracts and disaggregation of specialised and non specialised services Gateway 17648

8. Primary Care – specific activities • PCTs will need to undertake specific activities across all primary care areas, general medical services, dentistry and eye care and pharmaceutical services • PCC has produced a series of documents which will help primary care transition leads navigate and embed these priorities. They can be accessed via • http://www.pcc.nhs.uk/supporting-contract-stabilisation • Reference guide to primary care amendments contract audit, transition and stabilisation • Top tips for managing PMS contracts • GMS contract support template • Changes to APMS Directions from 2004 to April 2012 • Top tips for the stabilisation and transition of primary care contracts • General Ophthalmic Services (GOS) standard contract information sheets • Top tips for managing eye care contracts • Top tips for dental contract management • Two further documents – GDS standard contract information sheet and a top tips for managing community pharmacy will also be uploaded on to the web site above shortly Gateway 17648

9. Primary Care – Enhanced Services • Discussions are taking place on the future “contracting home” for primary care Enhanced Services. Irrespective of where they eventually sit, PCTs need to ensure they have accurate and robust data in place that identifies each Enhanced Service to allow for the smooth transfer of the agreement • PCTs may wish to start to identify all the relevant data which could include: • Name, address and contact details of contractor • Type of service being commissioned • Length of contract • Review dates • Termination date • Value of contract • Enhanced service contract value • By end September 2012 PCTs should be able to provide a detailed list of all Enhanced Services agreements they hold. This information will be required as part of the arrangements to transfer the agreements to the new contracting authority Gateway 17648

10. By the end of September 2012 PCTs should be able to provide a list of contracts (Primary Care, Specialised Services, Other contracts) that have an expiry date beyond 31 March 2013. This information will be used to support the arrangements for the transfer of contracts. The form the list of information needed should take will be notified to PCTs in the near future Outputs from Stabilisation phase – preparation for Shift • The future responsible organisation(s) will need to be identified against each contract. Some PCTs have already decided to identify separate Data Capture Tool listings of contracts for each of their CCGs • The information that the PCTs may wish to identify includes: • The name of the current commissioner(s) • The name of the provider organisation • The identified future commissioner(s) which will commission services from the provider. Further clarification on commissioner responsibility will be available in due course • Further guidance will be issued in the autumn to support PCTs with the ‘shift’ phase of the contracts transition project Gateway 17648