FOI release

SIA Human Resources (HR) and Payroll software - requested update

Updated 9 October 2023

1. Request

Further to the original Enterprise Application request, the contracts below have expired. Please provide the current status.

• Payroll - Liberata
• HR - Access Group

The information I’m requesting is listed below. If all the information besides the contract dates are the same, I am happy to just receive an update on the contract dates.

1. Name of supplier: Can you please provide me with the software provider for each contract?
2. The brand of the software: Can you please provide me with the actual name of the software. Please do not provide me with the supplier name again please provide me with the actual software name.
3. Description of the contract: Can you please provide me with detailed information about this contract and please state if upgrade, maintenance and support is included. Please also list the software modules included in these contracts.
4. Number of users/licences: What is the total number of user/licenses for this contract?
5. Annual spend: What is the annual average spend for each contract?
6. Contract duration: What is the duration of the contract? Please include any available extensions within the contract.
7. Contract start date: What is the start date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract (DD-MM-YY or MM-YY).
8. Contract expiry: What is the expiry date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract (DD-MM-YY or MM-YY).
9. Contract review date: What is the review date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract. If this cannot be provide please provide me estimates of when the contract is likely to be reviewed (DD-MM-YY or MM-YY).
10. Contact details: I require the full contact details of the person within the organisation responsible for this particular software contract (name, job title, email, contact number).

2. Response

2.1 Name of Supplier

Liberata UK Limited

2.2 The brand of the software

We contract with Liberata Ltd for the Fully Managed Payroll Service. However, specific brand name information is exempt from disclosure under 43(2) of Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is commercially sensitive. Section 43(2) of the FOIA relates to information that would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person (including the public authority holding it). In deciding whether the release of this information would or would likely, prejudice someone’s commercial interests, I have applied the prejudice test.

Applicable interests

The disclosure of the use of specifications or brands of supplier must not be used to create obstacles to competition or derogate from a lawful public procurement exercise. As regards the performance or functional requirements of goods, the technical specifications must be set out precisely and clearly. However, a technical specification must not refer to a ‘specific make’, patent, trademark (or brand) where the effect of that is to prejudice certain potential bidders or products.

Therefore, if the SIA publishes what brand or supplier we use, this may affect or prejudice potential bidders or products from fairly competing.

Nature of prejudice

In respect of brand, as a public body, we do not specify the brand of supplier in our requirements when going out to market. We must be as fair and open as possible to all suppliers. The Public Contract Regulations 2015, SI 2015/102, regulation 42 permits contracting authorities to set out technical specifications with which bids for public contracts must comply. However, such specifications should not be a disguised means of protectionism or favouritism.

The SIA has also considered the public interest test when applying this exemption. We acknowledge there is a public interest in allowing the public access to our documents in respect of this subject matter because it allows for the SIA as a public body to remain open and transparent, contributing to public confidence in us as a regulator. However, the SIA considers that withholding the information outweighs the public interest in disclosure in this case. This is because the SIA would not be able to maintain a competitive negotiating position when a tendering process is live for a particular contract, and therefore the disclosure of the information would likely prejudice the commercial interests of the SIA for the reasons stated in the above test. In addition to this, the SIA must comply with the Public Contract Regulations to ensure that ‘specific make’ is not disclosed where it could prejudice certain potential bidders or products.

2.3 Description of the contract

Fully Managed Payroll Services

2.4 Number of users/licences

Approximately 345

2.5 Annual spend

£23k

2.6 Contract duration

2 years, with an optional 2 years extension

2.7 Contract start date

April 2023

2.8 Contract expiry

March 2025

2.9 Contract review date

2025

2.10 Contact details

Senior Procurement & Commercial Business Partner: sia.procurement@sia.gov.uk

3. Correction

I write further to your email dated 17 August 2023, requesting an internal review of the response received to the FOI request that you submitted.

You requested details of the brand name of Liberata and the response received was that an exemption was being applied to this information on the basis that it is commercially sensitive information.

I confirm that I have spoken to the Senior Commercial Lead about this matter and we have considered the response provided carefully. Having looked at the Fully Managed Payroll Service in detail, it is clear that it is contracted out to Liberata and the exemption which was applied is incorrect as Liberata have not used a brand name for the product itself.

In the circumstances, I am satisfied that the information you were provided with was inaccurate and a correction will be made to the published response.

[Reference: FOI 0437]