Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Environment and Resident Experience. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Resident Services &Tackling Inequality.

The contract extension and variation of the Nuisance Vehicle contract with NSL Limited.

The Cabinet Member for Cabinet Member for Resident Services & Tackling Inequality introduced the report which sought approval to extend and vary the Council’s existing Nuisance Vehicle Contract with Marston (Holdings) Limited (MHL). This was allowed under the contract and in accordance with the Council's Contract Standing Order (CSO) 10.02.1(b), which permits variations and extensions for contracts with a value of £500,000 and above. The proposed extension would last for two years until 30 November 2025 and be for a further value of £2,264,399.56.

The Cabinet Member outlined that there was a critical need to provide this service on safety grounds to enable the removal of vehicles that were abandoned, inappropriately parked or causing problems on the public highway or in housing estates. It was noted that the borough did not currently have a site to provide a car pound and the market for this provision was not wide enough to allow a full tender process to be completed. The proposed provider had a historically consistent delivery of quality service, which aligned with the Council's expectations.

In response to questions from Cllr Cawley- Harrison, the following information was noted:

-       The options of building car pound and having a full tender process were considered and these options were significantly more costly at this stage. This view had also been reached from considering how other Councils had taken similar decisions forward and the costs involved.

-       With regards to service key performance indicators for this provision and how this would be managed, this was commercially sensitive information and was included in the exempt report.

-       It was clarified that the value of the contract should read £2,264,399.56 and too many commas had been included in the main report.

Further to considering the exempt information at item 23,

RESOLVED

1. To approve the extension of the existing Nuisance Vehicle Contract with Marston (Holdings) Limited, in accordance with the Council's Contract Standing Order 10.02.1(b) (which allows for an extension of a contract with a value of £500,000 and above), for two years;

2. To approve the upward variation in the annual contract value for each extension year from the £1,091,390.21 provided for in the original contract to an annual extension year value of £1,132,199.78 resulting in a total contract value of £2,264,399.56 over the proposed two-year extension period; and, 

3. To approve the variations to the terms of the contract specification, particularly the performance indicators, as referred to in the exempt Part B of this report to provide for more robust performance indicators to improve the contract's operational efficiency.

Reasons for decision

The proposals are being made to maintain service continuity concerning a critical component of the Council's parking enforcement operations. The proposals will also ensure strategic alignment with the Council's transport policies and government guidance. Consistent parking enforcement operations ensure public safety, control the demand for parking, promote more sustainable methods of travel and meet residents' and business aspirations for ease of parking.

Additionally, this contract is critical to ensuring the delivery of the Council’s  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15