Highways Services Strategic Delivery Partner (SDP4)

Location

Bradford

Description

The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council has awarded a contract for the provision of Highways Services Strategic Delivery Partner (SDP4) services. The contract was awarded via a direct award under the Crown Commercial Service RM6165 Construction Professional Services Framework (Lot 1). The services provide strategic, technical and professional support to the Council's highways service, supporting programme development, governance, assurance and delivery, and ensuring continuity of service.

Total Quantity or Scope

The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council has awarded a contract for the provision of Highways Services Strategic Delivery Partner (SDP4) services. The services comprise the provision of strategic, technical and professional consultancy support to the Council's highways and transport functions, including programme and project management, commercial and contractual support, governance and assurance, business case development, and specialist engineering and advisory services. The contract supports the Council's delivery of its highways capital and operational programmes and ensures continuity of service, resilience of delivery capability and compliance with relevant assurance and funding requirements. The contract was awarded via a direct award under the Crown Commercial Service RM6165 Construction Professional Services Framework (Lot 1).

Award Detail

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 71310000 - Consultative engineering and construction services
• 71300000 - Engineering services

Indicators

• Award on basis of price.

Legal Justification

The contract was awarded by direct award under the Crown Commercial Service RM6165 Construction Professional Services Framework (Lot 1), in accordance with the framework's call‑off procedures. The Council required continuity of specialist highways and transport delivery capability to support the delivery of major, externally funded transport programmes. The existing Strategic Delivery Partner contract had reached its maximum permissible value and could not be further extended. The Council's original intention was to undertake a competitive procurement using the replacement CCS framework. However, delays to the availability of the new framework, combined with the impending closure of the existing RM6165 framework to new procurements, meant that it was not possible to complete a compliant competitive process within the available timescales. Without the award of a time‑limited contract, the Council would have experienced an immediate loss of critical delivery capacity, placing live programmes at significant risk and exposing the Council to potential delay, funding clawback and non‑compliance with funder governance requirements. The direct award of a 12‑month contract to the incumbent supplier under RM6165 was therefore the only lawful, practical and proportionate option available to maintain continuity of service while a future competitive procurement is prepared. The award was approved in accordance with the Council's governance and financial regulations.

Other Information

This contract was awarded by direct award under the Crown Commercial Service RM6165 Construction Professional Services Framework (Lot 1) in accordance with the framework rules.