Scape launches tender for £1 billion consultancy frameworks
Scape Group, a public sector organisation that operates a £12 billion buying capacity for the public sector in the UK, has launched two large consultancy frameworks. The two frameworks spans consulting services across built environment, infrastructure and asset management consultancy and have a combined contract value of over £1 billion.
With an aim of bringing together the strongest teams from the public and private sectors to manage key change programmes, Scape Group is a public sector organisation, dedicated to creating on-going efficiency and social value via the built environment. At any given time, Scape operates around 1,800 public sector projects, and subsequently has a heightened need to regularly tap advisory talent. Be it for strategic, planning and policy, or implementation focused purposes in Scape’s project and change management efforts, it has a constant need to source consultants for assistance.
To streamline the hiring of external consulting firms, Scape has launched two specialist frameworks for procuring consultants. Frameworks are often used by the UK Government to shortlist preferred suppliers, and enables them to lower the cost of hiring private companies, as it in turn reduces the cost of the bidding process which firms later look to recuperate. At the same time, they offer a means of standardising how the Government works with firms and make sure that suppliers pass quality control.
Scape Group’s new National Consultancy frameworks, which will replace the current Built Environment Consultancy Services (BECS) framework, will widen Scape Group’s consulting remit, with one framework covering England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and one solely serve Scotland. The framework will be accessible to any public sector organisation looking to obtain external expertise, and will offer the broadest range of professional services available in the market, with an upper value of £1 billion.
The three lots for England, Wales and Northern Ireland will total a value of 700 million, of which built environment consulting will take half. Civil engineering and infrastructure will take £250 million, while asset management consists of £100 million of the contracts. Scotland sees the same proportions, but with a smaller total of £300 million. The frameworks will be directly awarded, with each lot led by an industry-leading player supported by an extensive local supply chain, whose expertise will drive forward public sector projects at pace.
Mark Robinson, Scape Group chief executive, comments, “The public sector is operating in a much tougher economic environment and is being pushed to deliver more with fewer resources… The appointed delivery partner(s) will work closely with local supply chain networks to facilitate access to local companies and to maximise local spend. To date, the BECS framework has engaged with over 335 SMEs through its extensive supply chain. We expect the new frameworks to expand on this success with our broadened range of services.”
Preferred bidders are set to be announced in Summer 2020. The new frameworks will allow the successful delivery partners a full mobilisation period to establish methods, processes and time to train their teams, ready to engage with clients and take project enquiries as the current BECS framework moves towards expiry in October 2020. Led by Perfect Circle, the consortium comprising Pick Everard, Gleeds and AECOM, has been commercially successful, and it is projected to reach its value of £350 million.
