Decision details

21/00093 - Representation, Rights and Advocacy (RRA) Services - procurement of a new service

Decision Maker: Cabinet Member for Integrated Children's Services

Decision status: Recommendations Approved

Is Key decision?: Yes

Is subject to call in?: Yes

Purpose:

Proposed Decision: To commission a service that offers Representation, Rights and Advocacy (RRA) services provision across the county

 

Background:

 

·   Kent County Council (KCC) has a comprehensive Representation, Rights and Advocacy (RRA) Service delivered by The Young Lives Foundation.

 

·   The contract commenced on the 1 April 2015 was for a period of three years. The contract had an annual value of £250,300. The original contract had no capacity to be extended and a Single Source Justification was entered into and will end 31 March 2022.

 

·   In 2020/2021, an additional service to the Independent Visitor element was included as a Leaving Care Mentoring Service at £8,500.

 

·   The contract performed well and performance targets were consistently met by the provider.

 

·   The Local Authority has a Statutory obligation to provide the elements included in this service.

 

Options and Risks

        

Option

Advantages

Risks

1. Do nothing: The contract ends and KCC do not meet their statutory obligations.

 

·         Annual saving of £258,800

·  KCC fail in their statutory obligations.

·  In order to meet the statutory obligations, for example the requirement to provide an Appropriate Adult, frontline KCC staff would need to attend police custody suites.

·      Young people who use these services will be left without support at a time when they are at their most vulnerable.

2. Create a new service In-House: KCC to deliver countywide via new Team.

 

·None

·      The nature of this service has to be delivered by a third party and therefore cannot be delivered in-house

 

3. Externally commission a new service as a single contract with five lots.

·       Ability to work with partners to develop a new provision

·       The use of volunteers has been instrumental to the delivery of this service. Providers are skilled in manging a volunteer workforce that also works to reduce some costings

·       Robust contract management will be in place to monitor performance.

·       Potentially enable a consortium approach from providers to best match skill set with need

 

·      A procurement process will be required.

·      Longer timescale for implementation.

·      TUPE implications

·      Potential gap in service provision as a new service mobilises

·      Prevents providers only applying for those elements (Lots) which are core business.

 

4. Externally commission five separate services

·       Would enable smaller providers to bid for a specific area that they would consider ‘core business’

·      Very small individual services that may not be attractive to tender for from the market

·      Risks having no bidders for any one of the ‘lots’

·      Disproportionate contract management costs for both the provider and Local Authority.

·      A potential for five different providers to be in place which may create a disjoin between service provision.

·      Protracted procurement exercise for little gain.

 

Based on the options appraisal Option 3 Externally commission a new service as a single contract with five lots is the recommended option

 

Decision:

As Cabinet Member for Integrated Children’s Services, I agree to:

 

A) Commence formal procurement activity to tender for a service, award a contract and develop robust contract management for oversight of the contract performance.

 

and

 

B) Delegate authority for the Corporate Director Children, Young People and Education in consultation with the Cabinet Member to award a contract following a competitive tender process and implement the Decision.

Publication date: 06/12/2021

Date of decision: 06/12/2021

Effective from: 14/12/2021

Accompanying Documents: