Occupational Health Services & Employee Assistance Programme - Pre Market Engagement

The London Borough of Hackney is embarking on a pre-market engagement exercise to inform the future provision of its Occupational Health Service (OHS) and Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for health services. We are seeking input from leading providers in the market as we shape our requirements and procurement strategy.

The OHS and EAP are critical operational support services—integral to the Council’s sickness absence management, employee wellbeing, and the proactive reduction of workplace ill-health. As our current contract concludes on 31 December 2026 (with no further extension planned), we are commencing the procurement process early to ensure seamless transition and continuity of service from 1 November 2026.

We are looking to appoint a single supplier to deliver a comprehensive range of OHS and EAP support, including (but not limited to):
Pre-employment health screening
Referrals to occupational health professionals
Statutory declarations for ill-health retirement
Assessment, short-term counselling, and referral services for employees and their immediate family
Benefits designed to support staff wellbeing and personal challenges impacting workplace performance

If you are an experienced provider with innovative solutions to enhance employee health and wellbeing, we invite you to participate in this soft market testing exercise. This is an informal engagement to help us understand market capabilities and best practice prior to formal procurement.

Interested organisations should complete the attached pre-market engagement questionnaire and submit via the ProContract eTendering Portal by the published closing date.

Please note: This exercise does not constitute a call for competition and does not commit the Council to any procurement process at this stage.

If the council does decide to run a tender, potential bidders will not be disadvantaged by responding or not responding to this soft market testing. The results of this exercise will help inform the business case and procurement strategy.