Charitable trust saves 8.5% on their water bill

The requirement

CCS was approached by a registered charity that supports older people to live better lives by developing and operating mixed tenure retirement villages across the UK, which foster a sense of community.

The charity wanted to have a more streamlined approach and be able to demonstrate better value for money for the charity’s utility spend. They spend a significant amount on utilities each year, so any efforts to reduce costs are crucial for the organisation. 

The solution

The trust was able to benefit from the high level of expertise provided by CCS’s dedicated team of account managers who guided them through the water aggregation process – step by step – and helped them to choose the best solution based on their needs. 

Using aggregation, also known as collective buying, CCS was able to offer the trust highly competitive prices and favourable terms from the framework suppliers. It also enabled the trust to have all utility suppliers under similar contracts.

The result

The winning supplier was able to provide a 8.5% cashable saving. The invoicing process was streamlined and made easier with all invoices coming from one rather than multiple  utility suppliers.

The trust’s Business Efficiency Manager, commented:

Being part of this CCS framework affords us the opportunity to access highly competitive rates for our utilities which is a significant spend for our organisation. As well as the cost benefits it impacts our efficiency with savings in staff time/capacity, due to the procurement support available. We are happy with the service received from CCS and would recommend others consider joining the framework.

The Water, Wastewater and Ancillary Services 2 framework

Over 500 of our customers are already enjoying the benefits that our Water, Wastewater and Ancillary Services 2 framework has to offer. This includes retail savings of up to 10% and access to efficiency savings such as:

  • the cost and administrative resource of running your own procurement – typically about £45,000
  • water services which contribute towards carbon reduction and energy efficiency strategies
  • initiatives such as rainwater harvesting, automated meter reading (AMR), infrastructure installation, water footprint optimisation and leak detection to reduce water consumption
  • up to 14 suppliers, including SMEs, available to compete for your business demonstrating open and fair competition
  • proactive supplier management from a dedicated energy team for the life of the contract

Water, Wastewater and Ancillary Services 2 is split into 3 lots:

  • Lot 1: Water and Waste Water Services – for water supply
  • Lot 2: Ancillary Services – designed to help you better manage water usage
  • Lot 3: One Stop Shop – choose a single supplier for both water supply and consumption management

You can find a full list of all the commercial agreements we offer, alongside details of how we can help you build policy considerations into your procurement, in our interactive digital brochure.

Effective contract management in procurement

NB: This article was originally published on 17 February 2022. All information was correct at the time of writing, but may not be fully applicable following the introduction of the Procurement Act 2023.

Once you’ve chosen a supplier, effective contract management is a vital step in the process to make sure what’s promised gets delivered.

Contract management is simply too important to be ignored. Without ongoing diligence a contract can ‘leak’ value through issues like missed deadlines, compliance failures and inefficiency. 

It can be easy to blame suppliers for problematic or failed contracts, but if your organisation doesn’t manage performance then you’re relying on good luck that things will go well. 

Effective contract management involves the proactive monitoring of all activities necessary to ensure your goods or services are provided in accordance with your contractual arrangement. 

Here’s our introductory guide to getting it right. For more in-depth advice please refer to the government’s contract management professional standards. 

Contract lifecycle management

Once you’ve chosen a supplier for your requirement, it’s time to think about effective contract management. 

This can be grouped into 3 general areas: mobilisation, service provision, and supplier relationship management. 

Mobilisation 

Mobilisation happens after you’ve selected your supplier, but before the contract goes live. You should set aside appropriate time to gather together all the information you need to run the contract and make sure that the right plans are in place. 

A mobilisation plan can be a useful tool at this stage, particularly for high-value or more complex procurements, and should contain: 

  • a summary of expectations
  • details of all tasks to be completed and timescales
  • roles and responsibilities of both parties
  • arrangements for any contractual “due diligence”, including monitoring performance and any ongoing assurance of supplier capability, such as their financial standing 

People and skills 

Check that all your stakeholders are familiar with and can access the latest live version of the contract. It should be understood by all those who will be involved in its day to day management, including the identification of a designated contract manager. If the contract manager was not part of the sourcing exercise, a handover is essential to ensure continuity.

The contract manager must understand the scope of the contract, the pricing mechanism, the service levels/deadlines, monitoring periods and governance processes. They should always apply best practice and legal principles. 

If the contract is long-term or complex and you have the resources, you might need a contract management team. Choose individuals with a range of relevant legal, financial and technical skills. 

Service provision

Relationship management

You may be committed to working with a supplier for some time. The success of your contract relies on good communication between both parties based on mutual respect and trust. Regular review meetings are important to avoid drift.

It’s important to keep the relationship open and constructive, identifying and resolving issues early. Make sure you take the right steps to escalate matters with the supplier if you need to.

For major or long-term contracts it may be worth putting in place a partnership agreement that represents ‘good practice’ principles for all contracts.

Performance management and dispute resolution

Both parties want your relationship to be successful. By managing performance proactively throughout the contract period, at regular intervals, you’ll ensure that this focus is retained and things stay on track. 

Contractual disputes may arise; for instance, from the supply of defective goods or failure to meet deadlines. Contracts are usually only terminated mid-way through in extreme circumstances such as the discovery of fraud. The goal of performance management should always be to try to avoid termination and resolve any dispute by following the correct resolution process.

Change control and risk management

Accept that changes, such as minor variations in scope or amendments to timescales, will happen during the term of your contract and plan for it. Review the contract regularly and allow changes as required, as long as both parties agree to these in writing.  

A flexible approach to your contract, through which you can negotiate continuous improvements, can help you achieve greater ongoing efficiencies.

Risk management includes all the activities required to identify, control and manage risks that might have an impact on the contract being performed effectively. These could include:

  • changes of key personnel
  • factors affecting supplier costs
  • changes to legislation
  • extraordinary events beyond the supplier’s control which disrupt service delivery, such as the Covid-19 pandemic

Make sure you check your organisation’s policies and processes on risk management and incorporate them into your contract management. 

Contract expiry and transition

Your contract should have been written to include clear expectations and strategies for exit and transition. Before your contract ends you should start planning for:

  • a debrief meeting with the supplier, agreeing any final reports you need from them
  • the final payment or the return of any unspent funds 
  • control of client records – how should any sensitive data / records be handled, ensuring that security is maintained and there is full compliance with GDPR 
  • a review of the supplier’s performance and the service agreement
  • the steps you might need to take to ensure a straightforward transition to a new provider or contract

Be aware that if your existing supplier has lost the contract to a competitor there may be a risk of performance decline if you haven’t established a good relationship. Extra vigilance may be required at this point.

Record keeping

Finally, be sure to keep full and accurate records throughout the contract management process to ensure good governance, transparency and accountability – including recording what terms didn’t work well and how this will be improved within the next contract. For further advice on retention of contract records see The National Archive. 

Good record keeping means that you can demonstrate that you’re delivering efficient and effective services to your stakeholders. 

Find out more

Download our latest digital brochure for the latest information on our agreements and how we can help you add power to your procurement.

More: You can now find all of our Procurement Essentials articles – including our guide to framework agreements and why you should use them – on our website. 

New live supplier carbon reduction plan training

In June of 2021, Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 06/21 was released by Cabinet Office, creating more policy supplier interactions, meetings, panel discussions, and internal conversations than any other PPN released before. 

PPN 06/21 asks that suppliers confirm their commitment to achieving net zero by 2050, calling on them to produce a carbon reduction plan (CRP). Any supplier wishing to bid for government contracts over £5 million will need to create and submit their CRP. 

At CCS, we realise how critical it is to comply with the new PPN and have embraced it for our relevant commercial agreements. 

Since September 2021, the PPN has applied to all new agreements within the scope that have gone out to tender. In response, suppliers have already started to produce and publish their CRPs. However, when we drilled into questions from these procurements and feedback from supplier engagements across all CCS agreements, we quickly realised many suppliers had questions about creating a CRP, regardless of size.

Although we helped many suppliers who contacted us directly, we wanted to offer additional support. To this end, we began collecting ideas to develop supplier training that applied to any size supplier.

New supplier CRP training addresses concerns and challenges

In December, we ran our first interactive supplier CRP training event, which was an immediate sell-out. The initial training session offered suppliers an engaging and interactive forum where participants can ask questions specific to their CRP needs. Its success and popularity spurred us to schedule additional sessions that run weekly on Thursdays at 11 am.

Book now to attend a live CRP training session

The CRP training sessions’ primary objective is to help break down the process of creating a CRP, looking at the critical components required using a pragmatic approach that keeps suppliers informed. 

“Everything that I needed covering was covered. Andrew [Smith] took the time to respond to everyone’s individual questions.”

The weekly live sessions are filling up quickly. Please register to attend to receive assistance and clarity in creating your CRP. Although the training sessions are not mandatory, they offer you a high-level overview of creating a CRP. 

Our supplier training events are attended by a good mix of small to medium (SME) to large organisations, with a 50/50 split. The demographic demonstrates that numerous questions exist across the board. As long as the training is needed, we will keep the sessions running to help as many suppliers as possible.

Suppliers can book an event by following this link.

Supplier CRP questions answered

Suppliers are not limited to one event. If anyone needs more help, they can book into another session, asking additional questions as they move through the CRP development process. By design, the training enables suppliers to engage with the presenter. In this way, every session is an interactive discussion, not a lecture. Questions can be asked at any time, not just at the end. 

We use the same format to maintain consistency in responding to the many questions during each session, ensuring no one misses out. The live sessions will continue to run until June. After that, if session demand continues to be high, we will consider extending them beyond.

What suppliers say about our CRP training 

Suppliers are rallying around the training, providing feedback and excellent ratings. Here’s what they are saying:

Let’s not forget that this isn’t just another PPN that needs to be followed; it’s an opportunity for all of us to work towards the same goal of achieving net zero by 2050. Book into one of our CRP supplier training sessions now.

Machine translation helps ACRO Criminal Records Office save £6,000 in 3 months

In this case study we explain how our Language Services framework helped ACRO Criminal Records Office put in place a machine translation solution that has improved efficiency and saved £6,000 in 3 months.

The requirement

ACRO Criminal Records Office is a national police unit working to keep communities safe. Managing the UK Central Authority for the Exchange of Criminal Records, ACRO exchanges conviction information with EU member states. Many of these documents can be used as evidence in court – at times in extremely serious cases. 

They need criminal conviction information translated so they can map the offence(s) to the equivalent in English law. Some reports can be more than 100 pages and contain important details that need to be efficiently and accurately extracted. 

An incorrect translation could result in a case being thrown out of court. This means ACRO needed a translation solution that would help them improve efficiency and reduce costs, without impacting on quality. 

The solution: machine translation

Using our Language Services framework, ACRO appointed the language service provider, thebigword, to implement a WordSynk translation solution as it met their requirements to improve efficiency, accuracy and quality. 

In addition, they are using thebigword’s Voyager technology which enables reports to be scanned and the relevant pages identified. This ensures that only the necessary pages are sent to thebigword for translation, narrowing down the scope of the project, speeding up the delivery time and reducing costs.

The results

Since October 2020, ACRO has submitted 1,796 projects (999,480 words) and realised savings of around £6,000. About 65% of projects submitted are now being processed using the machine translation service, and the number of pages needing translation is down by 64%.

Lisa Stevens, Senior Manager – International at ACRO, commented: 

The solutions provided by thebigword are extremely welcome. They allow us to use our time efficiently and, importantly, we have been able to redirect the money we have saved on translation costs to our community safety and public protection services.

We take our responsibility towards criminal records information services seriously. 

We have quality control measures in place for our processes, including translation, and we work closely with thebigword to ensure the solutions work to deliver an effective and mutually beneficial service.

Add power to your procurement with CCS

To find out more about the innovative solutions available through our Language Services framework:

Visit our framework web page

Call us on 0345 410 2222

Email info@crowncommercial.gov.uk

Fill in our online form

You can also find a full list of all the commercial agreements we offer, alongside details of how we can help you build policy considerations into your procurement, in our interactive digital brochure.

Changes to our agreements in January

Welcome to our monthly framework update to help you with your procurement planning. We will publish it online each month and also share it in our newsletters and on our social media channels.

The update provides a brief summary of what has been awarded, extended or expired during the previous month. It also outlines what is due to expire in the next 3 months.

You can also get an overview of all of our live frameworks in our interactive digital brochure.

Agreements awarded in January  

  • There were no agreements awarded in January

Agreements extended in January

Agreements that expired in January 

Agreements due to expire in the next 3 months

Further information

If you need further details about any of these agreements please get in touch.

You can also find out what new procurements we are working on by exploring our upcoming deals page.

If you don’t currently receive our monthly customer newsletter why not also subscribe to receive these updates and more directly to your inbox? Just fill in this short form.

Transforming digital service delivery for better citizen engagement

The digital transformation journey can be a complex one for local authorities. The demands of multiple citizen needs, accessibility issues, legacy IT systems, and additional cost pressures on finances only add to what is already a considerable challenge. This is why we’ve produced a guide to take some of the pressure off and help you plan your digital transformation journey.

The digital agenda

The COVID-19 pandemic has driven an accelerated focus on the digital agenda across local government. Colleagues have had to maintain and manage service delivery in a different way for their citizens and communities. All of which has been achieved remarkably well across the sector despite the significant challenges presented. Local authorities had to work at pace to transition their workforce to remote working by using all the tools available to maintain services, particularly for the most vulnerable communities they serve. 

Continuing to transform public service delivery through digital tools and solutions will create a more effective and efficient citizen experience whilst also accounting for the specific needs of the individual in terms of how they want to engage with services.

As a result of market innovation and development, there has been enormous progress made in the range of technologies and digital tools and approaches available to both citizens and organisations. From working with our  customers in local government, we know the sector has been at the forefront of exploring opportunities to deliver citizen services in a better way and to save money for the taxpayer.    

The long term impact of COVID-19 and the transition to more hybrid ways of working only lead to a greater level of focus on change and a drive to more digital approaches to service delivery, with interoperability at the core. 

How we can help

Our digital transformation guide for local government is built around the Central Digital and Data Office’s technology code of practice. It’s designed to help you navigate your way through our comprehensive range of technology-centred commercial solutions in order to outline and deliver your own local transformation plans. The guide is also endorsed by the Local Digital Collaboration Unit, part of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. 

Download the guide today and view our web page to find out more.

If you need any help or support to access the commercial solutions mentioned in the guide or advice from our category experts, please complete our online form with as much detail as possible and we will be in touch.

CCS fleet in the news

Take a look at the articles

Find out more

Sign up to our Fleet newsletter where our experts share the latest fleet news and insights.

If you need any further information on the above please feel free to contact our fleet experts.

Suppliers get their questions answered on new Carbon Reduction Plans

On 5 June 2021 Cabinet Office published Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 06/21 ‘Taking account of carbon reduction plans in the procurement of major government contracts’. The PPN applies to all central government departments, their executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies in England. 

The PPN details how greenhouse gas emissions and suppliers’ Carbon Reduction Policy will need to be reported when procuring goods, services, and/or works with an anticipated contract value above £5 million per annum.

The events were a success with a lot of attendees, loads of great questions and, more interestingly, no negative reactions. It became apparent that UK suppliers have embraced the spirit of this PPN and that they are ready for the reporting. 

The main points that they raised were that they were not sure how or when it was going to be done, or even what was going to be asked from them. A number of questions were raised in order to ascertain the correct information that was needed or how to obtain that information.

The seven events were recorded and are available at the links below along with answers to the questions received.

Question and answer documents

PPN 06/21 Links

PPN 06/21 – Taking Account of Carbon Reduction Plans in the procurement of major government contracts

Guidance on adopting and applying PPN 06/21: Selection criteria

Technical standard for completion of Carbon Reduction Plans

PPN 0621: Frequently Asked Questions

Spend recovery for UK universities

The financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic has been felt all across the public sector, but some universities have been particularly hard hit. With reduced numbers of international students enrolling in September 2020, as well as lost revenue from accommodation, and disruption to research work, universities are facing a challenging academic year ahead.

We have helped many universities to win back lost revenue through our Spend Analysis & Recovery Services solution, now available under lots 15-19 of our Debt Resolution Services (RM6226) framework. Through reviews of accounts payable and utilities spending our framework suppliers have in some cases been able to recover an average of £60,000 for our higher education sector customers. More savings can also be leveraged by reviewing telecoms and temporary staff spending. 

Spend recovery through CCS has never been easier:

  • suppliers conduct their audits on a strict no-win-no-fee basis, meaning that there are no charges at all to pay until you receive the financial benefit of the audit
  • work is conducted remotely and all data analysis and recovery activity is conducted exclusively by the supplier
  • suppliers are sensitive to the uncertainties of the current financial climate and the scope of reviews can be tailored to exclude suppliers that may be struggling financially

All you have to do is provide suppliers with the base data needed for the review – it’s that simple.

For more information about what our Spend Analysis & Recovery Services solution can offer you, visit our web page or email to get in touch with our category team.

The Department for Work and Pensions tackles increasing unemployment using construction framework

The requirement

As unemployment in the UK reached a 5 year high as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, figures showed that unemployment rates would continue to rise; particularly after the furlough scheme had ended. With this in mind, it was evident that people across the UK needed support with retraining and accessing benefits such as universal credit and getting back to work. The DWP was therefore given the task, of expanding its face-to-face job centre offer to handle this demand and help tackle this expected unemployment crisis.  

The solution

As we approached the end of the furlough scheme and the planned lifting of lock-down, the DWP needed a rapid procurement response. Working in collaboration with our construction category team, the DWP created a Rapid Estates Expansion Programme, as the project spanned across 130 sites and therefore required deep framework capability.

To source an appropriate framework which could offer a rapid awards process, the DWP used our Construction Works and Associated Services (CWAS) framework. This framework helps the entire public sector to deliver a wide range of major and minor building and civil engineering projects of all values for the public sector. 

CWAS has a UK wide capability, which enabled the DWP to source everything they needed under one framework. They had up to 38 principal contractors available via the CWAS framework, demonstrating the necessary capacity for a programme of this scale. CWAS was able to provide all aspects of fit-out for the job centres, including lighting, fixtures and fittings, desks and chairs. 

The DWP ensured they incorporated social value into their procurement using themes from the Procurement Policy Note PPN 6/20. They focused on suppliers who recruited the unemployed as well as those who used apprenticeships and resilience in the supply chain. They also included metrics for suppliers to report on things like the number of new startups, small and medium sized enterprises, voluntary community and social enterprises and mutuals. They phrased the questions, so that as well as some concrete outcomes in line with some specific metrics, they didn’t stifle innovation. It also gave suppliers the opportunity to provide some really good suggestions that could also be put into practice. 

The results

There were a number of key success points which demonstrated the value of the Rapid Expansion Estates Programme. 

Firstly, soft-market engagement directly informed the commercial approach along with the client’s understanding of supplier scheduling capability, supply chain capacity at tier 2 (mid tier contractors who play a major role in the construction industry) and tier 3 (contractors for smaller or medium sized projects). This was accelerated by the use of pre-drafted documents which we supported DWP with.

In addition, the CWAS framework coverage and lotting structure reduced the overall procurement costs for the DWP. This was due to the standardisation of the contractor appointment process, standardisation of commercial documents and a single point of contact which we offered for additional support and guidance. 

The wide choice of call-off contracts also facilitated the use of the NEC4 Term Service Contract which helped drive contracting efficiency, using fixed schedules of rates with pre-established overhead, profit and people costs. There were also shared learnings from across the rapid, early-delivered parts of the programme which helped to feed forward into upcoming works. 

This programme also helped to reduce a number of risks, including:

  • the framework helped mitigate the risk of delay as suppliers had already been vetted on things like capability, health and safety, and insurance, which helped saved DWP a lot of time
  • pre-established rapid appointment criteria emphasised quality and reduced commercial friction
  • standardised boilerplate clauses and dealing with common public procurement amendments reduced time spent on contractual review for both client and contractors
  • we collaborated extensively with DWP via “critical friend” review of commercial documents, smoothing the tender process

Claire Thomas, Senior Category Manager at the DWP said:

We have worked closely with CCS on the delivery of our Rapid Estates Expansion Programme. The team has worked with us very collaboratively, prioritising the timely procurement of contractors for these vital works.

Let us bring power to your procurement

Our Construction Works and Associated Services framework provides a wide range of major and minor building and civil engineering projects.  

To find out how we can help you make smart buying decisions for your construction needs: