Modification notice
Modification of a contract/concession during its term
Section I: Contracting
entity
I.1) Name and addresses
Department for Education
Sanctuary Buildings, 20, Great Smith Street
London
UK
E-mail: Ceri.DIXON@education.gov.uk
NUTS: UK
Internet address(es)
Main address: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-education
Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title
Local Authority Childcare Sufficiency Support Contract
Reference number: con_19123
II.1.2) Main CPV code
80110000
II.1.3) Type of contract
Services
II.2) Description
II.2.1) Title
Local Authority Childcare Sufficiency Support Contract
II.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UK
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
This contract is for the provision of expert professional services (including peer support) to support local authorities (LAs) in fulfilling their statutory sufficiency duties. The support will be delivered in the Financial Years 2022-25 and will relate to supporting the delivery of sufficient childcare and early education places across local areas to meet parental demand for the early years entitlements and to ensure that there are sufficient places for children aged 0-14 (or up to 18 for disabled children) to enable parents to work or participate in education or training for employment.
The contractor will offer support to LAs in restoring or improving childcare sufficiency in their local areas through a mixed package of tailored support to diagnose sufficiency issues and assist LAs in implementing and embedding sustainable improvements. This will be delivered by:
1. Providing reactive support and challenge to LAs identified as failing (or at imminent risk of failing) in their duty to secure sufficient childcare for parents to work or participate in education or training, and for children eligible for the early education entitlements.
2. Providing proactive preventative and improvement support and challenge to LAs to facilitate the maintenance or improvement of local childcare sufficiency.
3. Where appropriate, administering discrete projeejct funding to support LAs to implement recommendations made during the reactive or proactive support activity at 1 and 2 above where available finances are evidencable as a barrier to achieving the desired outcome.
4. Providing an overarching project management function to enable 1, 2 and 3 above. This will include organisation of contract management activity including reporting and engaging with DfE, and evaluating support activity and funding outcomes.
II.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement, dynamic purchasing system or concession
End:
31/03/2024
II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds:
No
Section IV: Procedure
IV.2) Administrative information
IV.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure
Notice number in the OJ S:
2023/S 000-006612
Section V: Award of contract/concession
Contract No: con_19123
Title: Local Authority Childcare Sufficiency Support Contract
V.2 Award of contract/concession
V.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract/concession
07/03/2023
V.2.2) Information about tenders
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators:
No
V.2.3) Name and address of the contractor/concessionaire
Hempsall Consultancies Limited
Phoenix Square, Studio 2 15 Morledge Street
Leicester
LE1 1TA
UK
NUTS: UK
The contractor/concessionaire is an SME:
Yes
V.2.4) Information on value of the contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)
Total value of the contract/lot:
/concession: 825 000.00
GBP
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.4) Procedures for review
VI.4.1) Review body
National Audit Office
London
UK
VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice
06/11/2023
Section VII: Modifications to the contract/concession
VII.1) Description of the procurement after the modifications
VII.1.1) Main CPV code
80110000
VII.1.2) Additional CPV code(s)
VII.1.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UK
VII.1.4) Description of the procurement
The Supplier shall deliver a comprehensive and coherent package of delivery support (including challenge, where necessary) to LAs in fulfilling their sufficiency duties and to ensure that there is enough childcare across local areas to enable all young children to access high-quality early years provision, to meet the demand for childcare from parents of school-aged children (see Schedule 2 (Specification) for a full definition of LA sufficiency duties), and to deliver the expanded early years entitlements from April 2024. This will include peer support where appropriate and regional or national events by the Supplier to facilitate the sharing of expertise and best practice between LAs.
To achieve this, the Supplier will:
A. Provide reactive advice, support and challenge to LAs identified as failing (or at imminent risk of failing) in their duty to secure sufficient childcare for working parents and children eligible for the early education entitlements, or LAs identified as needing support in their planning to deliver the expanded early years entitlements.
B. Provide events, materials, advice, support and challenge to LAs to facilitate the maintenance, planning for or improvement of local childcare sufficiency, including the expanded early years entitlements (for the entitlements or for other childcare where this directly supports parents to work or participate in education or training).
C. Where appropriate, provide additional financial support to LAs to implement recommendations made during support activity, where available finances are evidencable as a barrier to achieving the desired outcome and where this activity forms part of a support package agreed before 6th November 2023.
D. Provide an overarching project management function to enable and report on the 3 elements above.
VII.1.5) Duration of the contract, framework agreement, dynamic purchasing system or concession
End:
31/03/2024
VII.1.6) Information on value of the contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)
Total value of the procurement: 825 000.00 GBP
The contract/concession has been awarded to a group of economic operators:
No
VII.1.7) Name and address of the contractor/concessionaire
Hempsall Consultancies Limited
Phoenix Square, Studio 2 15 Morledge Street
Leicester
LE1 1TA
UK
NUTS: UK
The contractor/concessionaire is an SME:
Yes
VII.2) Information about modifications
VII.2.1) Description of the modifications
This contract commenced in February 2023 and supports local authorities (LAs) at risk of not meeting their existing childcare sufficiency duty. Because this contract commenced before the expansion of the EY entitlements announced at Spring Budget 2023, the EY childcare expansion has been out of scope. This variation brings this expansion into scope for support from the supplier, to meet the needs of the sector and to better enable them to prepare for the childcare expansion.
VII.2.2) Reasons for modification
Need for additional works, services or supplies by the original contractor/concessionaire
Description of the economic or technical reasons and the inconvenience or duplication of cost preventing a change of contractor:
It is not possible to change contractor on the short timescales involved - this contract is being modified in the short term. It will also end early, due to announcements made at the Spring Budget 2023.
A procurement is underway for a replacement contract.
VII.2.3) Increase in price
Updated total contract value before the modifications (taking into account possible earlier contract modifications and price adaptions and, in the case of Directive 2014/23/EU, average inflation in the Member State concerned)
Value excluding VAT: 825 000.00 Currency: GBP
Total contract value after the modifications
Value excluding VAT: 825 000.00 Currency: GBP