Private practice setup · step 7 of 7
NHS contracts and Patient Choice
A private clinic that only takes self-pay and insured patients is leaving the largest buyer in the country out of its pipeline. NHS-funded work through Patient Choice and ICB contracts is where a new practice builds volume, and it is a procurement problem rather than a clinical one.
What this involves
- Patient Choice accreditation and the evidence it requires, so patients can elect to be treated by you with NHS funding.
- ICB and NHS tender bids in the specialties where independent capacity is actively being commissioned.
- The Provider Selection Regime, which governs how NHS healthcare services are awarded and which determines whether an opportunity is competed at all.
- The governance, clinical audit and outcome evidence NHS commissioners expect from an independent provider, built once and maintained rather than assembled per bid.
The mistake that costs the most
Waiting until the clinic is open and quiet. Accreditation and bidding both have lead times, and the point at which you notice you need NHS volume is months after the point at which you should have started. This workstream should begin during the build, not after opening.
Why this workstream matters
This is what turns a practice setup into a business with a pipeline, and it is why the relationship continues past opening day. It is also the part almost no adviser doing practice setup can actually deliver, because it is a public procurement discipline rather than a healthcare admin one.
Common questions
Can a new private clinic take NHS-funded patients?
Yes, through routes including Patient Choice, which allows patients to elect where they are treated using NHS funding, and through contracts commissioned by Integrated Care Boards. Both require accreditation or a successful tender, and both have lead times, so they should be started during the build rather than after opening.
What is the Provider Selection Regime and does it apply to us?
It is the framework governing how NHS healthcare services are awarded, and it determines whether a given opportunity is openly competed, directly awarded or awarded following a most-suitable-provider process. It matters to an independent provider because it decides whether there is a competition to enter at all, and where incumbency can be challenged.
Is NHS work worth it commercially for a private clinic?
It depends on your specialty, your cost base and your capacity. NHS tariff work is lower margin than self-pay but it fills lists predictably, which matters enormously in the first two years when utilisation rather than price is the constraint. The honest answer for some specialties is no, and that is a calculation worth doing properly before pursuing accreditation.
Reviewed 22 August 2026. Nothing on this page is legal, tax or financial advice, and regulatory requirements change. We work alongside your solicitor and accountant rather than in place of them.
The rest of the programme
These overlap heavily. Running them in sequence rather than in parallel is what adds months to an opening date.
See the full practice setup overview, or our CQC and Ofsted registration support and Provider Selection Regime guide.
Where are you up to?
A director replies, and the first conversation is about sequencing rather than fees.
NHS contracts and Patient Choice
What is your specialty, do you have premises or partners in mind, and what stage are you at?