My Department is procuring a new Local Area Employment Service over two distinct phases. Phase one of the process for procuring new employment services involved seven counties in the Midlands and North West currently without a Local Employment Service, contracts were signed last December and services are in the process of being mobilised.
Phase two of the process has now commenced, with the publication of the request for tender in December for seventeen lots covering 19 counties. The closing date for tenders is the 21st March providing additional time for organisations to work collaboratively together. Services for this phase will begin in July 2022.
The existing Local Employment Service contract model with annual contracts being awarded in a non competitive closed procurement manner conflicted with clear legal advice my Department received from the Chief State Solicitors Office and the Attorney General.
The costs model of the Local Area Employment Service is focused on client progression and prioritises payments early in the client's engagement, with an average of ninety per cent of fees payable once an agreed Personal Progression Plan has been finalised, usually early in the process. Additional fees are payable to the service provider when the client achieves employment sustained for 17 weeks. My Department has worked hard to ensure a system of advance payments is in place to aid with any cash-flow issues, particularly for the community and voluntary sector.The specific select and award criteria of the request for tenders are comprehensive and detailed and published on e-Tenders in the usual manner. The key feature is the emphasis on tenderers demonstrating their ability to provide a quality service, with strong community linkages and social value with eighty per cent of marks now available for these areas.
