Dynamic Purchasing System for the provision of apprenticeship training

Warrington Borough Council (the Council) is a public sector organisation with a pay bill of over £3 million per annum. Therefore the Council is liable to pay the apprenticeship levy. The levy is charged at a rate of 0.5% of our annual pay bill and we are subject to the public sector apprenticeship target of 2.3%. We are expected to achieve a minimum of 2.3% apprenticeship starts each year.

The obligations and opportunities created by the introduction of the levy from April 2017 have prompted the Council to review its approach to workforce development. It is our intention to use the levy funds to continue to support new apprentices starting employment within the Council. We are intending to have a more strategic approach when developing our existing workforce through apprenticeship standards.

The Council is establishing a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) in accordance with the Public Contract Regulations 2015, Regulations 74 -76 (Light Touch).

The Council invites applications from organisations that have the relevant experience and ability to demonstrate sufficient capacity for an apprenticeship provision.

The DPS length is 10 years.