Decision details

Report of the Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care seeking approval to proceed with a collaborative approach to procurement of accommodation and support services for young people aged over 16 years.

(i)  To approve the recommendation to proceed with the collaborative procurement of post 16 semi-independent accommodation and support. 

(ii)  To delegate authority to the Director of Quality and Integration, following consultation with the Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care, the Chief Executive and the Council’s Chief Financial Officer, up to and including entering into contracts following award for the development and delivery of these services.

1.  There is a requirement to commission accommodation and support services to comply with procurement rules to avoid having to spot purchase provision over and above current HRS contracts.

2.  The proposed collaborative approach will enable the Council to access a wider range of providers who are able to deliver a range of accommodation and support options for young people whilst providing good value for money.

3.  The following options have been explored:

Option 1 - continue to spot purchase provision.  This requires no up-front effort and/or market development to expand the range of possible housing support solutions to young people.  It may be possible to negotiate better value on a case by case basis.  However, the risks of this approach are:

•  spot purchasing is not-compliant with procurement regulations or the Council’s own CPRs,

•  relies on informal provider relationships,

•  it does not fix the price paid for accommodation so this may be inflated by the provider without notice or warning,

•  it provides low levels of quality assurance around standards, and

•  there is little scope to influence the provision that we want for these young people from existing or potential new providers.

4.  Option 2 – Procure a Southampton City Council specific solution: This approach would provide a formalised relationship with one or more provider(s), addressing the risks associated with Option 1.  However, the Council's demand for this type of provision is limited and, as such, the limited purchasing power the Council would have  on its own in the market, may not be able to generate sufficient interest/response to a tender or leverage best value, especially compared to a collaborative procurement involving several neighbouring authorities.