The Commercial NHS: Navigating the Procurement Act and the Evergreen Framework

The rules of NHS purchasing have fundamentally changed, and getting them wrong isn't just a compliance risk — it's a direct threat to delivery timelines and taxpayer value. This panel brings together policy, practitioner, and legal expertise to demystify the updated Procurement Act regulations and show what "good" looks like when navigating NHS Supply Chain and regional procurement hubs in practice.

• What's actually changed under the Procurement Act — and where the biggest compliance traps lie
• How NHS Supply Chain frameworks are evolving to keep pace with new legal requirements
• Practical lessons from a major Trust's procurement team on managing the transition without disrupting supply
• Legal red flags every commercial lead needs to watch for when running or bidding into a tender

Clarity, compliance, and confidence are what this session is built around. Join us to explore how NHS commercial teams can turn regulatory upheaval into an opportunity for smarter, more resilient purchasing.

Social value in NHS procurement has too often meant ticking a box for a 10% score weighting. This panel challenges that mindset, asking what it really takes to measure the community health outcomes, local employment impact, and health equity gains that social value was designed to deliver — and how commercial teams can hold suppliers meaningfully accountable for them.

• Why checklist compliance falls short of the Procurement Act's ambitions for social value
• How Trusts are building measurement frameworks that track real community outcomes, not just promises
• The VCSE perspective: what genuine partnership with the voluntary sector looks like in practice
• How major suppliers are adapting their bids to deliver — and prove — measurable local impact

Impact, accountability, and honesty define this discussion. Join us to explore how NHS procurement can move past box-ticking and start delivering social value that communities can actually feel.

The NHS supply chain has long been dominated by large, established providers — leaving nimble, innovative SMEs locked out by governance hurdles they simply don't have the resources to clear. This panel explores how the system can open its doors wider, bringing together innovation, commercial, and founder perspectives to chart a path for smaller HealthTech players to compete and win.

• Why governance and compliance burdens disproportionately shut out small and local suppliers
• What Health Innovation Networks are doing to bridge the gap between promising startups and NHS buyers
• An ICB's view on balancing risk appetite with the drive for greater supplier diversity
• A founder's first-hand account of what it actually takes to win — and deliver — an NHS-approved contract

Innovation, access, and opportunity sit at the core of this conversation. Join us to explore how the NHS can build a supply chain that reflects the full breadth of talent ready to serve it.

Net-zero ambitions are now written into how the NHS buys everything from surgical equipment to pharmaceuticals — but weighing carbon footprint against patient safety and tight budgets is no simple calculation. This panel brings together finance, sustainability, and supply chain leaders to work through how the Evergreen Framework can hold suppliers to genuine environmental standards without compromising care or overspending.

• How the Evergreen Framework's carbon metrics are reshaping supplier evaluation criteria
• Where finance and sustainability priorities align — and where they create hard trade-offs
• What global manufacturers are doing to decarbonise supply chains at NHS scale
• Practical guidance for Trusts balancing net-zero commitments against restricted budgets

Sustainability, discipline, and pragmatism run through this entire session. Join us to explore how NHS procurement can lead on climate action without ever losing sight of patient care or fiscal responsibility.