Decision details

Request for a waiver of Contract Standing Order (CSO) (requirement to tender) under CSO 10.01.1 and award the contract to The Lost Block Collective to provide a Youth Lead Media Project as part of delivery programme for the Estate Regeneration Fund Phase 3 (ERF) for the amount of £20,000

Approval to award a contract to The Lost Blocks Collective to deliver a youth-led media project in Broadwater Farm Estate as part of the Estate Regeneration Fund delivery contract for the amount of £20,000 between September 2021 to September 2022.

The Lost Blocks Collective are a grassroots organisation working directly on the Broadwater Farm Estate, the Socio-Economic Regeneration team leading this commission will be able to hit its target for building social capital, community capacity and youth engagement which has been severely impacted by Covid.

Option 1: Do nothing
The community will not be engaged and other mechanisms to increase social capital, community ownership and youth interventions will need to be considered. Doing nothing could also result in the loss of funding; an extension to the Fund up until 2023 is underway, there will be no further opportunity for any additional extensions if programmes are not commissioned.

Option 2: Go out to competitive tender.
The Lost Block Collective are offering a specialist service as a group of young people from Broadwater Farm with a specialism in media development offering a peer-to-peer programme that seeks to build community capacity and social capital, while offering training and development opportunity for local people. Building trust amongst the community of Broadwater Farm specifically in a time where Covid-19 has had a huge impact on mental health and wellbeing alongside the additional impact of ongoing engagement surround the improvement plans for Broadwater Farm, it is imperative that we commission providers that build trust and capacity amongst the community of Broadwater Farm. It is felt that going to competitive tender would unnecessarily lengthen the process at a time when the council should act quickly to promote and deliver projects that enhance community capacity, social capital and wellbeing.