Yorkshire and the Humber choose Maxxima as Master Vendor for the Provision of Temporary Agency Staff

Public Sector recruitment specialists, Maxxima, have been awarded a major new contract to supply temporary Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) and Health Science Service (HSS) staff to NHS organisations throughout the Yorkshire and the Humber region.

The contract will run until April 2009 with a possible yearís extension thereafter and means that, for the first time, NHS organisations in the region have one point of contact for all temporary recruitment across 27 different professions.

The Maxxima Collaborative is comprised of two specialist suppliers, Labmed Recruitment supplying all AHP and HSS professions and Piers Meadows Recruitment specialising in Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy. The partnership was created in December 2006 in order to provide the NHS with a robust Vendor Managed Solution able to provide large scale cost savings whilst still retaining the expert knowledge and attention to detail associated with more specialist agencies in the market.

The contract is the result of a six month long project undertaken by the Yorkshire and The Humber Commercial Procurement Collaborative as part of which a formal selection process involving YHCPC Strategic Procurement Liaison Managers - Dino Tsagris and John Burton, the NHS PaSA Category Team and senior AHP and HSS representatives, was carried out.

John Burton - Strategic Procurement Liaison Manager said ìOne of the biggest problems we faced was that there were so many different agencies being used and every one of them was charging a different rate. By appointing a Master Vendor, we simplify the whole process and ensure that one company has total responsibility for candidate screening and recruitment.î

There are also likely to be substantial cost savings as a result of Maxximaís appointment, with the Master Vendor exercising far greater control of temporary staffing expenditure whilst working with the Trusts involved to reduce their dependency on locum cover in the long term.
Maxxima Contracts Manager Neil Webb is justifiably proud of his companyís achievement; ìWeíve worked hard over the past few months to build a Master Vendor model which provides the NHS with the most efficient service possible. The partnership between Labmed and Piers Meadows dovetails perfectly as it allows both companies to focus on their strengths without any cross-over. The client can therefore rest assured that they are always being looked after by specialists in their profession.î

The contract, which comes into effect from Monday 26th February 2007, will operate under the terms of the current NHS PASA National Framework agreement. For more information please contact Neil Webb, Maxxima Contract Manager on 07900 956136 or by email at nw@maxxima-group.co.uk.