Guidance

Crown Commercial Service customer update: December 2015/January 2016

Updated 15 January 2016

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/crown-commercial-service-update-december-2015january-2016/crown-commercial-service-customer-update-december-2015january-2016

1. Procurement policy notes

1.1 New procurement thresholds for 2016

Procurement policy note 18/15 outlines the new threshold levels that apply in the procurement regulations from 1 January 2016.

1.2 Standard EU forms and notices

Procurement policy note 17/15 advises that new standard forms and notices for procurements under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 came into force on 3 December 2015.

1.3 Procuring steel in major projects

A practical guide on how to incorporate social issues in major projects with a significant steel component has been published to support procurement policy note 16/15. It provides guidance on how to address social issues at the key stages of the procurement lifecycle.

Looking for a particular procurement policy note? View the collection of all procurement policy notes

2. eLearning: how to spot bid-rigging

We have worked with the Competition and Markets Authority to create a new eLearning package to help public procurers spot and prevent bid-rigging.

The eLearning module, which will take no more than 40 minutes to complete, will help procurers root out attempts to win contracts through anti-competitive conduct. The module covers:

  • why bid-rigging is harmful
  • what kinds of activities and patterns of behaviour to watch out for
  • what can be done to mitigate risks
  • where to get help if you suspect a case

The course is available through the CCS Learning Hub.

To request access to the hub please email training@crowncommercial.gov.uk.

3. New subcontracting provisions

Guidance has been published to explain the rules on implementing the subcontracting provisions in the new procurement directive. The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 provide additional obligations and flexibilities to enable further transparency of the working practices of the subcontracting chain. There are also new obligations to meet the government’s policy on prompt payment of invoices.

4. Contracts Finder

Historically, suppliers have frequently found it difficult to find public sector business opportunities as they have been advertised in a number of different places.

Contracts Finder was developed in response as a one stop portal for all public sector contracts. Since last spring it has been a requirement for all public sector contracts above £10,000 for central government and £25,000 for the wider public sector to be advertised on Contracts Finder.

However, some suppliers have told the Mystery Shopper scheme that not all organisations, in particular councils, are using the site. We have investigated this claim and found that 86% of English councils have used Contracts Finder at least once since its re-launch last spring, and there were sound reasons where councils had not. Where technical problems have been found between procurement portals and Contracts Finder, we are working to resolve these issues.

So, please remember to advertise all your contract opportunities on Contracts Finder. If you need help using Contract Finder please email our service support team at ContractsFinder@crowncommercial.gov.uk

5. eAuctions

Our eAuction programme can help you make significant savings when buying common goods and services. Recent savings have included:

  • Over £500,000 on a range of technology products for Gloucestershire County Council, which enabled the council to re-invest in technology to improve the customer experience for residents
  • £2.2 million for the NHS on text messaging services - this equated to a 21% saving against the prices charged under the previous contract
  • 39% price reduction for the purchase of passenger and commercial vehicles

The programme is open to all public sector organisations, including local authorities, police forces and NHS trusts, and upcoming eAuctions include IT hardware and vehicles.

You can find out more on our new eAuction web page or email eauctions@crowncommercial.gov.uk

6. Technology webinars

6.1 Licensing webinars

The next Licensing Hour webinar will take place on 10 February at 2.30pm and be repeated on 12 February at 10.30am. Each session will last about an hour and topics will include a general update from the team, Office 365 E5 and Microsoft licensing training.

If you would like to join us register for the session of your choice using the links below:

6.2 G-Cloud webinar

We run regular webinars for customers interested in learning more about G-Cloud, the Digital Marketplace and the buying process.

The next webinar will be on 17 February at 10.30am. It will last about an hour and include a presentation and Q&A session.

It will be of interest to anyone looking to buy commodity based, pay-as-you-go cloud services. Please email cloud_digital@crowncommercial.gov.uk to book a place.

7. Technology aggregation opportunities

Our national further competitions are designed to aggregate the common technology requirements of customers into a single competition, so you can benefit from achieving better prices and suppliers benefit from responding to a single competition, using one set of terms and conditions.

7.1 Mobile voice and data services

Our next mobile voice and data services competition will include (but not be limited to) voice, messaging, data and equipment credits for devices. We’re currently collating customer interest with a view to award in September 2016.

If you are interested in getting involved or would like to find out more email technologyaggregation@crowncommercial.gov.uk quoting NFC47.

7.2 Fixed voice and IP telephony services

Our next fixed voice and Internet Protocol (IP) telephony services competition, under Network Services (RM1045), will include (but not be limited to) calls and lines. We’re currently collating customer interest with a view to award in March 2016.

The competition will include options for conventional like-for-like replacement of existing telephony services and the replacement of ISDN lines with SIP Trunks. SIP trunks are a well-established voice-over-IP technology that can help you make significant savings on line charges. For example, a recent pilot procurement for a local authority customer saved them 63.5% on fixed voice costs overall.

We are also exploring integrated IP-based telephony solutions via managed and/or hosted services, embracing smartphones, tablets and PC clients, as well as desktop phones.

If you are interested in getting involved or would like to find out more email technologyaggregation@crowncommercial.gov.uk quoting NFC33 for conventional telephony and NFC50 for IP telephony.

8. Environmental and Sustainability Services customer events

We are developing a new Environmental and Sustainability Services (RM3770) agreement and will be holding regular customer meetings to gain input into the structure of the proposed agreement. The following events are scheduled (please note these dates are provisional and are subject to change):

  • Liverpool, 20 January from 10.30am to 12.30pm at the Capital Building, Liverpool, L3 9PP
  • London, 4 February from 10am to 12 noon and from 2pm to 4pm at Aviation House, 125 Kingsway, London, WC2B 6NH
  • Online webinar, 8 February from 10am to 12 noon

If you would like to attend one of these sessions please email your name, organisation, preferred location (and time where applicable) and details of any specific topics you would like to discuss to environmentalservices@crowncommercial.gov.uk

These meetings will give potential customers the opportunity to provide feedback on the different lot structure options and draft documentation including the scope/specification. Customers are also invited to discuss examples of best practice in developing and managing call-off contracts.

We will also be holding customer one to one meetings on 17 February from 9am to 2pm and on 25 February between 9am and 12 noon and 12.30pm and 4.30pm in Liverpool with each meeting starting and ending on the hour. If you are interested in arranging a meeting with us please email environmentalservices@crowncommercial.gov.uk

9. New agreements

The following new agreements are now available for customers to use:

Employee Services (RM3704) has also recently awarded and will be available from March 2016.

As well as being able to view full details of all live agreements in the find an agreement directory you can also download a summary list of all the available CCS agreements. This list is updated monthly to ensure you have access to the latest information.

10. New contract notices

The following contract notice has recently been published:

You can view details of all ongoing or planned procurements on our procurement pipeline

11. Agreements expiring shortly

  • Financial Analysis Services (RM1559) will expire on 31 March and will not be renewed. If you are interested in using these services please ensure you put a call-off contract in place before the agreement expires.

  • Civil Service Learning (RM1568) will expire on 20 February. It will be replaced by a new Learning & Development agreement which recently awarded and will be managed by Civil Service Learning.

  • Insurance Services (RM958) is due to expire on 25 February. It will be replaced by a new agreement (RM3731) which is due to award in February.

12. Agreement extensions

13. Expired agreements

  • Payroll, Human Resources (HR) and Finance Services (RM887) expired on 1 December 2015.

  • Bookings Services for Meetings & Events across Central Government (RM1555) expired on 31 December 2015. It has been replaced by Crown Travel and Venue Services (RM3735).

  • Central Government Travel Management Services (RM918, lot 2) expired on 20 December 2015. It has been replaced by Crown Travel and Venue Services (RM3735).

14. Sign up for email alerts

You can sign up for immediate, daily or weekly email alerts which will tell you what we have added or updated on the GOV.UK website. It is a great way to stay up to date with the latest news and information from CCS. Sign up for email alerts and provide your email address and select the frequency you wish to receive updates.

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If you need further information about anything in this update please do not hesitate to contact our helpdesk by email info@crowncommercial.gov.uk or calling 0345 410 2222. You can also follow us on Twitter and connect with us on LinkedIn

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