Growth Hub establishment and development services

Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership (the "LEP") is seeking a supplier to provide services to establish and develop a Business Growth Hub and work with other entities to ensure that there is a co-ordinated approach to business support within Cheshire and Warrington.

In order to enhance prospects and economic growth within local areas, the Government has been supporting a series of Growth Hubs across the country to make it easier for businesses to start and grow by ensuring business support is simpler, more co-ordinated and easier to access by business. Growth Hubs are locally-led partnerships which cooperate to provide coordinated business, innovation and trade support within a Local Enterprise Partnership area and make it simpler for businesses to access the support they need.

Growth Hubs should bring together all of the local bodies involved in supporting businesses and work with national bodies such as UK Trade and Investment ("UKTI"), Innovate UK, Growth Accelerator and Manufacturing Advisory Service to ensure that national and local business support works together in the most streamlined and effective way possible, putting the business customer at the centre of the system. Specifically, a Growth Hub must raise awareness of national and local business support, provide a single point of access for businesses and provide a diagnostic and signposting service to make sure that all businesses, regardless of their size or sector, are aware of what ...Cheshire and Warrington area.

The initial term of the contract is from contract award until 31 March 2016 and has an approximate value of [GBP300,000], as secured from BIS. The contract may, at the LEP's discretion, be extended beyond 31 March 2016 by up to three further periods of one year in the event that further funding is secured for the continued development of the Growth Hub. If further funding is secured (from BIS or other public sources, including the European Commission), the contractual value is expected to rise to [GBP2.1 million]. Bidders should note that at the contract award date, only funding from BIS is confirmed. If the LEP receives funding from other public sources and exercises its right to extend the contract, the supplier would be required to comply with the terms and conditions attached to this grant funding, which could amend the service delivery model, outputs, targets, audit and evidentiary requirements and the value of the contract.

In awarding the contract, the LEP will exercise its right under Regulation 56(3) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 to examine tenders before verifying the absence of grounds for exclusion and the fulfilment of the selection criteria.

The LEP has decided not to sub-divide this contract into lots due to the nature of the services being procured and the need to establish, through the establishment and development of the Growth Hub, a sole point of contact for business support in Cheshire and Warrington.