RM6397 Clinical and Non Clinical Temporary and Permanent Staff

RM6397 tender: clinical and non-clinical staffing framework

The Government Commercial Agency (GCA), working with the NHS Workforce Alliance, has opened the RM6397 Clinical and Non Clinical Temporary and Permanent Staff tender. The procurement will establish a national staffing framework for NHS bodies and wider UK public-sector organisations.

The 48-month RM6397 framework spans temporary, fixed-term and permanent recruitment across clinical and non-clinical disciplines. It also includes neutral vendor and master vendor managed services, creating distinct bidding routes for staffing suppliers and managed service providers.

What is the RM6397 staffing framework?

RM6397 is intended to provide public-sector buyers with access to compliant workforce suppliers across a broad range of roles. The framework is scheduled to start on 18 February 2027 and will run for 48 months.

Suppliers may tender for one or more of the 12 lots. The tender documents do not set a limit on the suppliers that can be appointed to each lot, although every bidder must pass the requirements and achieve the minimum score applicable to its selected lots. A framework place does not guarantee business. International recruitment is outside the scope of RM6397.

RM6397 lots and recruitment scope

The RM6397 tender is divided into the following clinical staffing, non-clinical staffing, permanent recruitment and managed service lots:

• Lot 1: Nursing and Midwifery
• Lot 2: Medical Staffing
• Lot 3: Allied Health Professionals, Health Science Services and Emergency Services
• Lot 4: Social Care Staffing
• Lot 5: Administrative and Corporate Roles
• Lot 6: IT Professionals and Digital Workers
• Lot 7: Legal
• Lot 8: Scientific, Technical and Clinical Coding
• Lot 9: Estates, Facilities Management and Ancillary Staff
• Lot 10: Permanent Recruitment
• Lot 11: MSP Neutral Vendor
• Lot 12: MSP Master Vendor

Lots 1 to 9 cover temporary staffing by workforce category. Lot 10 covers permanent and fixed-term recruitment. Lots 11 and 12 cover managed service provision through neutral vendor and master vendor models.

Key RM6397 bidder requirements

The qualification route depends on the lots selected. Material participation and pass/fail requirements include:

1. Financial standing: Lots 1 to 10 use an initial Dun & Bradstreet Failure Score assessment with a minimum threshold of 30. GCA may request a Bronze Financial Viability Risk Assessment where the score is 29 or below. Lots 11 and 12 require a Gold Financial Viability Risk Assessment to be submitted with the tender.
2. Previous supply: bidders must evidence the lot-specific minimum supply within one consecutive 12-month period during the three years before publication. Lots 11 and 12 require 175,000 hours, including at least 50,000 hours through one contract supported by a customer-signed Certificate of Past Performance. Additional clinical evidence applies to Lot 12 where relevant.
3. Insurance: bidders must hold, or commit to hold before framework award, £10 million employers’ liability, £10 million public liability and £5 million professional indemnity cover.
4. Cyber Essentials: certification, or an accepted independently verified equivalent, must be in place by framework award.
5. NHS Employment Check Standards learning: a responsible compliance lead must complete all six eIntegrity modules and assessments, achieve 100% in each assessment and upload the completion certificate with the tender.
6. Carbon Reduction Plan: this is required for Lots 11 and 12, together with the associated supporting information where applicable.

How the RM6397 bids differ by lot

The submission model is significantly lighter for Lots 1 to 10 than for the managed service lots. For Lots 1 to 10, quality is largely assessed through confirmation questions covering mandatory service, social value and lot-specific requirements. The main workload sits in qualification, compliance, previous-supply evidence, supporting documents, commercial schedules and submission completeness.

Lots 11 and 12 require substantive written responses: up to 6,000 characters for Social Value, 8,000 characters for Implementation and 8,000 characters for Supply Chain Management. Bidders also face the Gold financial assessment, Carbon Reduction Plan and enhanced previous-supply evidence requirements. The stated minimum final score is 70 for Lots 1 to 10 and 50 for Lots 11 and 12.

RM6397 tender timeline

• Tender published: 7 August 2026
• Clarification deadline: 2 September 2026 at 15:00 UK time
• GCA clarification responses: 11 September 2026
• Tender submission deadline: 21 September 2026 at 15:00 UK time
• Assessment summaries and award notice: 8 February 2027
• Standstill ends: midnight at the end of 17 February 2027
• Framework award and start: 18 February 2027
  

💬How TLC Bid Works can support

We provide flexible support models tailored to your internal capability and preferred level of involvement, including:

• • Full end-to-end outsourced bid management across both phases of the procurement, covering strategy, response drafting, compliance management, submission and post-tender clarification support
• • Independent bid review and assurance services, where we review bidder-prepared submissions for compliance against tender requirements, identify gaps and risks, and provide structured recommendations to maximise evaluation scores

If you are planning to bid and require bid support, please get in touch.