HCC - The Provision of Contract Arrangements for Agency Staff

This is an Award Notice.

Hertfordshire County Council have awarded a contract for the provision of contract arrangements for agency staff.

To supply Hertfordshire County Council with social care professionals that are appropriately skilled and qualified to meet the demands of the organisation, whilst complying with safeguarding and legislative requirements. The services are urgently required at the point that they are commissioned and can be supplied only by this economic operator as competition was absent for technical reasons.

Providing a reliable source of social care agency staff in particularly difficult to recruit locations, would improve consistency for service users and permanent staff.

The contract with the provider will end on the same date as the existing corporate contract, March 2025. Therefore, ensuring that the services provided by the supplier will form part of the specification for the new procurement post March 2025.

Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) is relying on Regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) of the Public Contract Regulations 2015 in making this award without prior publication. Regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) states:

32(1) In the specific cases and circumstances laid down in this regulation, contracting authorities award public contracts by a negotiated procedure without prior publication.

32(2) The negotiated procedure without prior publication may be used for public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts in any of the following cases:

• (b) where the works, supplies or services can be supplied only by a particular economic operator for any of the following reasons:
• (ii) competition is absent for technical reasons

With permanent recruitment remaining a challenge in this area, Florence Staffing Limited are able to provide reliable, trained staff to ACS, in House Services, in particularly difficult to recruit locations. The staff work directly with vulnerable adults who require a continuity of service provision. Therefore, the provision of reliable support workers improves consistency for service users and permanent staff.