INVITATION TO TENDER TO SUPPORT ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE AND TRANSFER OF UNDERTAKINGS OF THE CHESHIRE AND WARRINGTON GROWTH HUB 1.1 BACKGROUND 1. The original funding provided by the Government to operate Growth Hubs runs out on 31 March, and, as a result the contract to run Cheshire and Warrington s Hub, currently held by Blue Orchid Enterprise Solutions Ltd, expires on the same date. 2. In mid-january, the Government confirmed that it would provide C&W with 287k in each of the next two years (the same level as in the previous two years) and indicated, informally, that it is quite likely that a further two years funding would be provided at a later date. This would allow the Growth Hub to operate until 2022. 3. Although the current hub has operated very successfully, C&W has decided, following a review undertaken by Mickledore, that it would like to change the way the Growth Hub is organised. At present, Blue Orchid provide a business advice portal on contract to the LEP, and some business advice services using funding from ERDF. Blue Orchid present these as a single service to businesses seeking assistance. 4. The LEP has decided that it would like to bring the business advice portal physically and legally inside the LEP with the objective of creating a well-known and trusted portal for business support, co-ordinating activity, making referrals and capturing local intelligence. It will therefore be necessary to disaggregate Blue Orchid s business advice portal from their other activities and transfer these into the LEP. It is important that this is achieved with no interruption in service to the business community. 5. Staff delivering the business advice portal service will, in future, be directly employed by the LEP and, even though they will be delivering a more restricted service than they have been offering in Blue Orchid, it is probable that many of them will nevertheless have TUPE rights. Their support infrastructure, including IT, CRM etc will also need to be transferred with them, or built afresh within the LEP. 6. The LEP is seeking support from a suitably qualified and experienced consultant or team to manage this transfer and to ensure that the Growth Hub is operating successfully inside the LEP no later than 30 September 2018.
7. If the consultant appointed to undertake this brief doesn t have access to it within their own firm, the LEP will arrange access to experts who can advise them on the operation of Growth Hubs. 1.2 Summary of Requirements The Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership has access to approximately 574,00 ( 287k PA over two years) from the department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and will seek to apply for additional European Regional Development Funding (ERDF) on a competitive basis. The ERDF will add value to the Growth Hub operation if secured, however, the emphasis will be on identifying and installing the expertise and systems required to run the Growth Hub within the LEP and securing a sustainable operation that can operate effectively within the available BEIS budget envelope. As well as managing the TUPE transfer, the consultants will therefore also need to organise and manage: The provision of phone and IT services (both hardware and software), and integrating them with existing LEP systems; - Transfer of data from Blue Orchid s CRM system (in which the LEP holds the IP) into a new CRM within the LEP; - Recruitment of new staff if too few staff opt to transfer from Blue orchid; - The physical move into the LEP s existing accommodation in Wyvern House; - Ensuring that, once established inside the LEP, the Growth hub has the right mix of skills and expertise; - Supporting the LEP with any changes it needs to make to its existing systems and processes, reflecting that the number of staff directly employed by the LEP will, after the transfer of the Growth Hub, have increased by around 50% in less than six months.
1.3 Specification The bid should detail activity over the TUPE transfer stages of the Growth Hub from April 2018 to end September 2018, with most activity taking place in the first few Months of the project and with all activity finalist by before the end of September 2018. Systems should also be proposed to minimise or avoid any disruption to business support services. The bid should identify what activities will be provided to support the transfer of the Growth Hub to the LEP and what staff resources and expertise will be allocated to deliver the requirements set out above. The bid should briefly identify the previous relevant experience of the personnel to be deployed. This should demonstrate experience in employment and skills at a senior level in Human Resources Management or equivalent. The bid should clearly detail the days and day rate that will apply (inclusive of expenses) for the named personnel. Bidders seeking to deliver to all the above requirements may need to put in place appropriate mechanisms to manage potential conflicts of interest (if applicable) and should be able to demonstrate that such arrangements will be put in place. Whilst the focus is on Human Resources we would also welcome bids from partnerships able to demonstrate capabilities across all required activities. 2.0 DELIVERY APPROACH The Appointed Consultants will be expected to: Engage and embed with the LEP Executive and work with the Growth Hub in delivering the specification and adhering to the proposed time table, performance management arrangements and manage transfer of: CRM systems and communication systems Website management Business continuity See: http://www.871candwep.co.uk/ http://candwgrowthhub.co.uk/
Day to day project management will be provided by Philip Cox. The successful consultant will be expected to attend regular (weekly) progress meetings during the commission and liaison via telephone and e-mail with officers and key stakeholders as necessary. Any clarifications to information contained in this document must be submitted by email no later than 30 March 2018. Any additional information provided will be made available to all potential Tenderers via the LEP website after this date www.871candwep.co.uk. Email: Philip.cox@871candwep.co.uk 2.1 Timescales The key dates for this procurement (Timetable) are currently anticipated to be as follows: Activity By Questions about ITT 23 March 2018 Invitation to Tender (ITT) Submission 26 March 2018 Proposals evaluated 28 March 2018 Bidders notified of contract award 30 March 2018 Contract to start 6 April 2018 Report on Approach Provided 20 April 2018 Interim Report on Results 3 September 2018 All dates are subject to change 3. RESPONDING TO THIS SPECIFICATION Tenders must address all the requirements and be in the format requested below. Tenders not in this format will not be considered. Tenderers are requested to provide core information in summary form with detail in appendices. The following must be supplied: 3.1 General
i. Organisation identity including name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, company registration number, VAT registration number and website address (if applicable). ii. Details of the main point of contact within the organisation for this tender. iii. Name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of any third parties involved in this tender. iv. Response to Schedule 1 v. Completed and signed Schedule 2 3.2 Pricing The cost associated with delivering the work programme. All prices must be fixed and firm, quoted in pounds sterling and exclusive of VAT. Tenderers should detail any ancillary costs and expenses included in the price. Note that the budget for this work will be around 25,000 for an expected commitment of 2 working days per week over the project period. It is however recognised that exact pricing will be difficult and therefore there will be an opportunity to review budgets when the project plan is submitted at the end of April. 3.3 Submission Instructions The LEP will only accept tender submissions made via e-mail to philip.cox@871candwep.co.uk. The deadline for submission of completed tenders is 17:00 26/03/18. The completed tender submission must be submitted by no later than the time and date specified above. Bidders are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last-minute problems. Failure to submit the tender submission as required will result in the relevant Bidder being excluded from any further participation in this procurement. Any tender submitted and or received after the time specified above will not be considered and the Bidder will be advised of this. Please note that submissions not received via the means identified in the ITT will not be accepted or considered. Bidders are welcome to also provide hard copies of their tender following submission of their bid in accordance with above. Any hard copies should be addressed as follows: Name: Philip Cox Address: CHESHIRE AND WARRINGTON LOCAL ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIP (LEP) WYVERN HOUSE THE DRUMBER WINSFORD CW7 1AH
4. TENDER RESPONSE SCHEDULE 1 Tenders must address all the requirements and be in the format requested below. Tenders not in this format will not be considered. Tenderers are requested to provide core information in summary form with detail in appendices. 4.1. The following must be supplied: General Organisation identity including name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, company registration number, VAT registration number and website address (if applicable). Details of the main point of contact within the organisation for this tender. Name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of any third parties involved in this tender. A list of all key personnel to be deployed on the project and details of their previous relevant experience. Details of recent experience of delivering similar commissions as set out in requirements together with details of at least one relevant referee. 4.2 Assessment of tenders Tenders will be assessed using the following weightings: Question Weighting Understanding of requirement 55 Experience of similar work 10 Proposed approach to this work 10 Proposed team 05 Pricing 20 4.3 Scoring Principles Criteria Score Failure to respond or irrelevant information provided which fails to 0 meet the requirement. Response is unsatisfactory partially meets the requirement(s) 2 Response is acceptable and meets the minimum requirement(s) 3 Response is good - better than merely acceptable. 4 Response is excellent, exceeds the requirement and gives added 5 value.
Evaluation Process Each tender will be scored in accordance with the scoring principles stated above. Clarifications maybe sought in writing from the suppliers and scores adjusted accordingly. Full or partial proposals that in the opinion of the LEP are unrealistically low or not reasonable sustainable (in terms of Quality or Price) may be rejected. The weighted scores within each sub-criteria will be added together to arrive at the total score for this piece of work with an emphasis on a thorough understanding of support and work required. 5 FORM OF SUBMISSION Bidders are required to email a copy of the submission no later than 17.00 on the 26 March 2018 to: philip.cox@871candwep.co.uk Submissions sent after this time may not be accepted. We reserve the right to cancel the tender process. No work is guaranteed to be awarded under the tender process and Cheshire and Warrington LEP is not responsible for any costs incurred as part of the bidding process. Queries about the Invitation to tender should be emailed to: philip.cox@871candwep.co.uk All questions received, along with answers given will be posted on the LEP website so that all bidders have the same information. 5.1 Confidentiality and Disclaimer This ITT is not an offer capable of acceptance but represents a definition of specific requirements and an invitation to submit a response addressing such requirements. Neither the issue of the ITT to you, your preparation and submission of a tender, or the subsequent receipt and evaluation of your tender by Cheshire and Warrington LEP commits Cheshire and Warrington LEP to award a contract to you or any other bidder, even if all requirements stated in the ITT are met. Cheshire and Warrington LEP is not responsible directly or indirectly for any costs incurred by your firm in responding to this ITT and participating in Cheshire and Warrington LEP s procurement process.
All firms shall keep strictly confidential all information contained in this ITT, and other information or documents made available to it by or on behalf of Cheshire and Warrington LEP in connection with this ITT. The firms shall not disclose, nor allow any such information to be disclosed. Submission of a formal response to this ITT will confirm your agreement to observe these confidentiality requirements. Contact by the firms with Cheshire and Warrington LEP during the bidding process should only be with the individuals named as the Cheshire and Warrington LEP tender contact. Respondents shall not offer or give any consideration of any kind to any employee or representative of Cheshire and Warrington LEP as an inducement or reward for doing, or refraining from doing, any act in relation to the obtaining or execution of this or any other contract with Cheshire and Warrington LEP. 5.2 Material Misrepresentation Cheshire and Warrington LEP shall reply on the information provided by the bidder in relation to its offer. In providing the services as specified in the Invitation to Tender documents the successful bidder/tenderer shall comply with the contents of its offer as failure in this respect may constitute a material breach of contract. 5.3 Collusive Bidding Collusive bidding is unaccepted by Cheshire and Warrington LEP. Any tenderer that is caught by Cheshire and Warrington LEP to be circumventing rules or the law during this tender process will automatically be disqualified from the tender process. This applies to any bidder who: a). Fixes or adjusts the amount of his bid by or in accordance with any agreement or arrangement with any other person, or b). Communicates to any person other than Cheshire and Warrington LEP the amount or approximate amount of his proposal (except where such disclosure is made in confidence to obtain quotations necessary for the preparation of the tender for instance) or, c). Enters into any agreement or arrangement with any other person* that he shall refrain from bidding or as to the amount of any bid to be submitted, or d). Offers or agrees to pay or give, or does pay or gives any sum of money, inducement or valuable consideration directly or indirectly to any person for doing or having done, or causing or having caused to be done in relation to any Offer or proposed Offer for the Services or any act or omission will be disqualified (without prejudice to any other
civil remedies available to Cheshire and Warrington LEP and without prejudice to any criminal liability which such conduct by a bidder may attract). NB Sub-contracting is permissible where the bidder believes that this will enhance their proposal, however this must be clearly stated. 5.4 Bribery Bribery means any offence under the Bribery Act 2010 or related Laws creating offences in relation to offering, promising or giving a bribe or requesting, agreeing to receive or receiving a bribe The Contractor agrees with the Client that this Contract will operate on the basis of zero tolerance being shown towards any Fraud and/or Bribery. The Contractor shall take all reasonable steps, in accordance with Good Industry Practice, to prevent Fraud and Bribery by Staff and the Contractor (including its shareholders, members, directors) in connection with the receipt of monies from the Client and with the operation of this Contract.
APPENDIX 1 Form of Tender Schedule 2 Declaration by Tenderer ITT Title: TO SUPPORT ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE AND TRANSFER OF UNDERTAKINGS OF THE CHESHIRE AND WARRINGTON GROWTH HUB 1. I, [insert name], certify that I am the person duly authorised to sign tenders for and on behalf of [insert company name], the tenderer, and having read the documents, offer to supply the goods, services or works: as set out in the letter of invitation to tender, the specification and accompanying tender documents, samples and/or drawings. under the terms and conditions indicated at the price (or prices) specified in the attached tender documentation. 2. It is agreed that any or other terms and conditions of contract or any caveats, assumptions, reservations or exclusions that may be printed on correspondence emanating from the tender, or any Contract resulting from this tender, shall not be applicable to this tender or agreement. 3. I certify that this is a bona fide tender and that I have not fixed or adjusted the amount of the tender by, or under, or in accordance with any agreement with any other person. I have not done, and undertake that I will not do at any time before the hour and date specified for the return of the tender, any of the following acts: Communicate to a person other than Cheshire and Warrington LEP, the amount or approximate amount of the proposed tender, except where the disclosure, in confidence, of the approximate amount of the tender was necessary to obtain insurance premium quotations required for the preparation of the tender Enter into an agreement or arrangement with any other person that he/she will refrain from tendering or to the amount of any tender to be submitted
Offer, or pay, or give, or agree to pay any sum of money or valuable consideration, directly or indirectly to any person for doing, or having done, or causing to be done in relation to any tender or proposed tender, for the said work, any act or thing of the sort described above. 4. I further certify that the principles described in paragraph 3 have been, or will be, brought to the attention of all subcontractors, suppliers and associated companies providing services or materials connected with the tender and any contract entered into with the subcontractors, suppliers or associated companies will be made on the basis of the compliance with the above principles by all parties. 5. I understand that Cheshire and Warrington LEP reserves the right, unless the tenderer stipulates to the contrary in the tender, to accept such portion thereof as Cheshire and Warrington LEP may decide. Cheshire and Warrington LEP is not bound to accept the lowest or any tender. 6. I have obeyed the rules regarding confidentiality of tenders and will continue to do so as long as they apply. 7. I can confirm that I accept that any breach of any of the conditions could lead to any tender being rejected or to the rescission of the Contract by Cheshire and Warrington LEP. Authorised Signatory Date Name in BLOCK LETTERS Job Title Telephone Number E-mail address Please ensure that the form is completed and signed before being returned with any other supporting documentation requested, by the due date and time. Use the checklist to ensure that you have submitted the relevant documents.
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