The Council has entered into a term maintenance contract for housing repairs and similar works with Rapid Response Limited. The contract was commenced on 01 April 2021 including a three-year initial period and two two-year consecutive options. The contract is currently near the end-point of the first two-year option period, having been extended in 2024.
As a social landlord we are subject to legal requirements to complete repair works of all kinds in a compliant, courteous and timely way. Satisfaction with repairs and compliance with target times are measured performance indicators that are reported annually to government and the regulator.
Regardless of these external factors, the Council has always been committed to providing good quality housing and is committed to tenant and leaseholder safety. Therefore it is important we have a long-term agreement with a suitable company with a sound record in service standards and delivery.
The Council entered into the term maintenance contract for housing repairs and similar works with Rapid Response Limited following a full open tendering process compliant with EU rules and the subsequent requirements of the Procurement Act 2023. Assessment for the award included cost and non-financial and social criteria. The tender and evaluation process carried out by Rand Associates on behalf of TDC.
The contract was commenced on 01 April 2021 including a three-year initial period and two two-year consecutive options. The contract is near the end-point of the first two-year option period, having been extended in 2024.
The contract has been ongoing for nearly five years. Although work outside of the HRA was allowed for at for the time of tender capacity issues have not allowed the commissioning of other works.
Officers have been working with Rapid Response Limited over the course of the contract to address communication, quality and response issues. To resolve matters officers have put in place revised information handling processes. Rate prices have been increased
and Rapid Response Limited have recruited additional sub contractors and put in place an improvement plan. Service and quality standards have been hard to achieve in the past but there are early signs that the revised processes on each side are delivering improvement.
The contract is a term maintenance form and facilitates the placing of orders for works at the defined rates as the need arises. If the Council wished to procure work elsewhere then it could do so through its procurement rules.
Accordingly, together with both Essex Procurement Partnership, we are of the view that the contract extension proposed has been compliantly competitively tendered and that extending the contract as provided for is consistent with the most advantageous tender and other requirements of the Procurement Act 2023.