Brighton & Hove City Council
Procurement Advisory Board
2.00pm 17 October 2022
MINUTES
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Present: Councillor Osborne (Chair), Yates (Opposition Spokesperson), Evans and Druitt
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1 Substitutes and apologies
1.1 Councillor Mears sent apologies.
2 Minutes
2.1 The minutes of the meeting on 5 September 2022 were agreed as a correct record.
3 New Homes for Neighbourhoods Rotherfield Crescent – Procurement of Contractor
3.1 The Regeneration Project Manager, Sarah Potter, introduced the report starting on page 9 of the Agenda.
3.2 Cllr Yates was advised that:
· The funding for the scheme comes from various sources, including 40% Right to Buy receipts, therefore, it breaks even at 37.5% of the Living Wage rents in line with our rent policy.
3.3 Cllr Druitt was informed that:
· In terms of social value, we need to consider our quality waiting profile to assess how the potential changes would affect it.
· A minimum of 10% will be included for contractors in terms of their contributions to creatively delivering our social value commitments and standards around sustainable materials, which will be included in our sustainability question and program of works.
· The key aspect of this type of project is to design the specification and standards to ensure the maximum level of sustainability and so the evaluation criteria can be utilised to measure the suppliers carbon footprint.
3.4 Cllr Osborne was advised that:
· In terms of the timescale, if approved at the Housing Committee on 16 November, work would commence on the mini competition, with a preferred bidder estimated to be identified within approximately six months.
· Our Major Capital Projects framework will be used to undertake an initial consultation to ascertain if there’s enough interest from those providers.
· If there is a lack of interest, then other frameworks can be considered and from there a Prior Information Notice can be used to get expressions of interest from the open market.
3.5 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board to provide recommendations to Housing Committee on 16 November and Policy & Resources Committee on 1 December 2022 on the following:
i. That Committee agrees the recommendation to Policy & Resources Committee to approve the increase in the Design Competition budget allowance of £0.580m to deliver the Rotherfield Crescent scheme for three, three-bedroom homes, based on the Pre-Tender Estimate £1.172m.
ii. That Housing Committee delegates authority to the Executive Director for Housing, Neighbourhoods and Communities to procure and award a contract for the construction via an existing Framework or other compliant route.
4 Procurement of Managing Agent for the Brighton & Hove Warm Homes Programme
4.1 The Sustainability & Energy Manager, Miles Davidson, introduced the report starting on page 17 of the Agenda.
4.2 Cllr Osborne noted that he welcomed the Programme and no further comments or questions were raised.
4.3 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board notes the recommendations agreed at Housing Committee on 28 September as outlined below:
i. Delegate authority to the Executive Director for Housing Neighbourhoods and Communities to procure and award a contract for a Managing Agent to deliver the Brighton & Hove Warmer Homes Programme.
ii. Delegate authority to the Executive Director for Housing, Neighbourhoods and Communities to further develop the details of the Brighton & Hove Warmer Homes Programme including the eligibility criteria, mix of measures and level of financial support outlined below in paragraphs 3.5 to 3.8.
iii. Note the timetable for the commencement of a Brighton & Hove Warmer Homes Programme (outlined in para 3.1).
iv. Note the outcome of the assessment of options for the delivery of a Brighton & Hove Warmer Homes Programme and accept the Delivery Model Assessment recommending a Managing Agent led model.
5 Eastergate Road Former Garage Site Redevelopment
5.1 The Estate Regeneration Project Manager, Paul Dalton, introduced the report starting on page 25 of the Agenda.
5.2 Cllr Yates was advised that:
· In terms of the successful progression of the Redevelopment, the work undertaken by the Project Manager so far suggests a good chance of the project being delivered, and upon procuring a contractor the planning approved designs will be revisited to consider complications.
· If an agreement cannot be reached with YMCA, further discussions can be initiated with other registered social housing providers.
5.3 Cllr Druitt was informed that:
· With a modular supplier there is more price certainty as they tend to have a product, however, the cost of works to that point is less certain.
· If a reasonable cost cannot be agreed with a provider under the preferred framework, then a restricted tender exercise will commence.
· Work is currently being done to consider options for potential contractors via the optimum route, however, if the Redevelopment receives approval at the P&R Committee on 1 December and a suitable contractor has not been identified at that time then considerations will take place to decide when to pursue the restricted tender exercise instead.
· The Strategic Construction Partnership is a less viable route as the construction partner, Cost Consultant and architects appointed under the partnership don’t have the required expertise or skillset to complete this project.
5.4 Cllr Osborne was advised that:
· If YMCA can’t take the Redevelopment on then we can consider other registered social housing providers or look in-house, therefore, there are multiple viable options for the management of the scheme.
5.5 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board to provide recommendations to Housing Committee and Policy & Resources Committee on the following:
i. That Housing Committee Delegates authority to the Executive Director, Housing Neighbourhoods & Communities to take all steps necessary to procure and award contract(s) for construction works at the former garage site, Eastergate Road by following the process described in 12.4, or 12.3.
ii. That Policy & Resources Committee allocate budget to allow for construction works at the former garage site, Eastergate Road.
6 Bus & Taxi shelters Advertising Concession
6.1 The Senior Project Manager, Owen McElroy, introduced the report starting on page 33 of the Agenda.
6.2 Cllr Evans was informed that:
· The requirement to ban high salt, sugar and fat advertising can be built into the specifications and to the contract to ensure no such adverts are displayed in the shelters.
6.3 Cllr Osborne added that restricting advertising of high carbon activities would also be desirable.
6.4 Cllr Druitt was advised that:
· In moving from paper-based advertising to digital there has been a carbon saving, though the saving has not been completely offset by the energy output of the digital panels. However, both potential bidders are likely to offer to install lower power units as part of their tender.
· We currently utilise “voidage” to advertise campaigns, though sometimes there is more availability than we’ve got demand for and so colleagues from various departments are invited to submit additional campaigns.
6.5 Cllr Osborne was informed that:
· There is a big drive to reduce energy costs including the use of solar lights instead of mains lighting combined with Living Roofs and active replacement of incandescent bulbs in bus shelters with LED bulbs.
· The superhub shelters are designed to be future proof technology and will have the facility for interactive technology and other features including USB charging, air cleaning and filtering.
6.6 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board to provide recommendations to Policy & Resources Committee on the following:
i. That officers prepare a report to Policy & Resources Committee to update members & request approval to tender for a new contract via an open tender procedure.
ii. The contract term should be at least 8 years with an option to extend for a further period up to 24 months.
iii. Officers should also seek a waiver to extend the current contract term with the incumbent by 12 months, with an option to extend for a further 6 months while the procurement process is carried out.
iv. The tender specification should focus on maximising income from the contract and using some of that income to reinvest in the shelter stock in accordance with an Asset Management Plan rather than require bidders to submit and adhere to an investment plan in advance.
v. The scope for increasing the number of digital media panels on advertising bus shelters be reconsidered and managed in the light of recent experience and market conditions.
vi. Notes the value of the free advertising, or “voidage” that has been provided by the previous contract and the benefit that has brought to Council campaigns including e.g. post Brexit EU citizenship applications, fostering and Road Safety.
7 Provision, installation and maintenance of CCTV Traffic Enforcement Cameras and associated enforcement support system
7.1 The Transport Control Centre Manager, Julie Saxby, introduced the report starting on page 39 of the Agenda.
7.2 Cllr Yates was advised that:
· We are looking to increase powers around moving traffic offences such as yellow box junctions, banned left/ right turns, etc. and so the new contract will allow the enforcement of those new contraventions.
· Warning notices are issued to drivers to allow for a warning period.
7.3 Cllr Druitt was informed that:
· A three-year contract with the option to extend up to two years gives us more flexibility, so if the contract is not performing there are more controls and mechanisms in place.
· The other consideration is technology and the speed of technological advancements, therefore, if we opt for a longer-term contract there is a risk that opportunities could be missed that might be presented if we had a shorter contract.
7.4 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board to provide recommendations to the relevant Committee on the procurement and award of a three (3) year Services Contract for the Provision, installation, and maintenance of CCTV Traffic Enforcement Cameras and associated enforcement support system with the option (exercisable by the council) to extend the contract for period(s) up to a total maximum of two (2) years.
The estimated total contract value is £3m - £4m (excluding VAT). Once the best value for money option is known (see sections 3 and 7) the estimated contract value will be updated accordingly.
8 Repairs and Maintenance - Kitchens and Bathrooms
8.1 The Head of Housing Repairs & Maintenance, Grant Ritchie, introduced the report starting on page 3 of Addendum 1.
8.2 No comments or questions were raised.
8.3 RESOLVED:
The Procurement Advisory Board to provide recommendations to Housing Committee on the following:
i. The procurement and award of a single provider contract for the provision of works to deliver kitchens and bathrooms in tenanted housing.
9 Forward Plan
9.1 The Head of Procurement, Clifford Youngman, introduced the forward plan starting on page 47 of the Agenda.
9.2 Cllr Druitt noted that some of the comments were outdated and requested these were updated.
9.3 RESOLVED: Agreed that the forward plan be noted.
10 Waivers
10.1 The Head of Procurement, Clifford Youngman, introduced the waiver starting on page 71 of the Agenda.
10.2 Cllr Osborne was advised that:
· It is a specialist piece of equipment that is very difficult to get hold of currently, therefore, once a supplier was identified we moved quickly on this waiver to secure the purchase.
· Only one chipper is required presently due to the small size of the team.
10.3 RESOLVED: Agreed that the waiver be noted.
11 Any Other Business
There was no discussion.
12 To Note Dates of Future Meetings of the Members' Procurement Advisory Board
The date of the next meeting is 21 November 2022.
The meeting concluded at 3.50pm