Decision details

The Head of Programme Management is recommended to waive CSO 8.03 in accordance with CSO 10.01.1 (b) and 10.01.2 (d) (iii), to award a contract to Ardent Management Limited to the value of £10,000, for the reasons set out in the body of this report.

The Love Lane Leaseholder Offer, agreed by Cabinet in July 2021, commits that leaseholders on the Love Lane Estate can appoint a qualified surveyor to act on their behalf through negotiations on the sale of their property to the Council, with the Council paying for all reasonable costs.

The leaseholder of 63 Whitehall Street chose Ardent Management Limited as their qualified surveyor to provide professional representation in the negotiations for the sale of their property. The fees required to complete this case are anticipated to go above the existing contract value, due to the complexity of the case. As such, it is proposed that a new contract is awarded to cover the remaining costs and a contingency. The costs have been agreed as reasonable by the Council and reviewed by its independent surveyor.

The costs related to this contract will be reimbursed by Lendlease, the Council’s development partner for High Road West, in accordance with the Compulsory Purchase Order Indemnity Agreement (CPOIA) agreed between the two parties.

The Council could choose to not award a new contract to Ardent Management Limited, which would mean that it would not have a mechanism to pay the costs of the leaseholder’s chosen property surveyor required for this case. This option has been rejected for several reasons, primarily that it would contravene the principles of the Leaseholder Offer and the statutory Compensation Code.