RESOLVED that Cabinet –

1.       notes the further extensive work undertaken on the procurement process, both by officers and external consultants following the revisions to the Core Specification Principles adopted in May 2025 and the subsequent decision, to approve the detail of the service specification and other related documentation associated with the Invitation to Submit Final Tenders stage of the waste contract procurement;

2.       thanks the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee and notes their recommendations following the meeting on 4 November 2025, as set out in this report, which will be considered as part of the work associated with the implementation of the contract and revised service going forward;

3.       acknowledges that the tender received from Veolia ES (UK) Ltd (company registration number 02481991) has been fully evaluated and meets the requirements of the final service specification that in turn is based on the revised Core Specification Principles;

4.       agrees to award the contract to Veolia ES (UK) Ltd commencing on 1 April 2026:

(i)       for an initial term of three years (with the option to extend for up to two years);

(ii)     at a total gross cost over the initial three-year term of £7.796m over and above existing budgetary provision as set out in Table 1 of this report;

(iii)    that associated Government grant funding of £0.437m as set out within the finance section of this report be allocated towards the cost highlighted in (4)(ii) above;

(iv)    that the necessary further budget adjustments set out within Table 3 of this report be agreed to meet the net overall additional three-year contract costs;

(v)     that any unspent money from the previously agreed sum of £0.400m that was set aside to support the overall procurement process be applied as a further contingency sum to support the implementation of the new contract;

(vi)    that, subject to (4)(i) to (4)(v) above, agrees a delegation to the Corporate Director (Finance & ICT), in consultation with the Corporate Director (Operations & Delivery), the Portfolio Holder for Corporate Finance & Governance and the Portfolio Holder for Environment & ICT to make the necessary changes to the budget to reflect the implementation of the new contract; and

(vii)  notes the next steps and key procurement target dates set out within this report and acknowledges that the Portfolio Holder for Environment & ICT and the Corporate Director (Operations & Delivery) will prepare an implementation and communications plan as part of the smooth transition and roll out of the new service, ensuring that residents are aware of the new requirements.