Section one: Contracting authority
one.1) Name and addresses
The Corporate Officer of the House of Commons and the Corporate Officer of the House of Lords
London
SW1A OAA
Contact
Paul Younger
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
UKI32 - Westminster
Internet address(es)
Main address
https://in-tendhost.co.uk/parliamentuk/aspx/Home
Buyer's address
https://in-tendhost.co.uk/parliamentuk/aspx/Home
one.3) Communication
Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority
one.5) Main activity
General public services
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
GSV2667 - ICGS Helpline Procurement
Reference number
GSV2667
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 72253000 - Helpdesk and support services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
This is a Prior Information Notice, please express your interest if you intend to tender for this opportunity. Suppliers who express their interest in this forthcoming requirement will be informed when the Pre Qualification Questionnaire / Tender Document is available.Please contact Paul Younger (youngerpb@parliament.uk) to express your interest for this opportunity no later than 12 noon on Monday 25th March 2024.
two.1.5) Estimated total value
Value excluding VAT: £480,000
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.2) Description
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKI32 - Westminster
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
The Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) was established in 2018 as Parliament’s independent mechanism for investigating complaints of bullying, harassment, and sexual misconduct. It is open to all current and former members of the parliamentary community as well as visitors to the parliamentary estate in Westminster. For context, the ICGS service currently supports circa 10,000 staff including MPs, Peers and their staff as well as administrative staff across the House of Lords and House of Commons. This figure does not include visitors to the estate or contractors. An external supplier has been delivering a remote independent helpline to support those seeking advice on bullying and harassment and sexual misconduct issues since July 2020 and this notice invites organisations to express their interest in being considered for the new procurement competition. Those who express an interest will be requested to sign a non-disclosure agreement in order to be invited to a presentation to find out more about the contract. The Authority plans to publish the Contract Notice on Find a Tender in April 2024.Following consultation with stakeholders on the effectiveness of the current helpline in late 2023/early 2024 it has been decided to adopt a hybrid approach for the new contract which is currently being expanded on and will be detailed in the service specification. Stakeholders were asked to give their preference on 3 options as follows: i) a helpline which maintains total external independence, but with updated requirements on quality assurance and information sharing ii) moving all services in-house to be delivered by parliamentary staff iii) a hybrid model with some services being delivered externally and others being delivered collaboratively by an external supplier and in-house staff. There remains a strong desire for an externally delivered helpline acknowledging that it is a challenge for any external supplier to develop strong knowledge of the operational side of parliament. As a result of the consultation, the decision has been made to pursue option iii) a hybrid approach.The successful supplier will be expected to deliver bespoke services to support the ICGS including a dedicated helpline service with both telephone and email options for callers inquiring about bullying and harassment and sexual misconduct, as well as offering emotional support, where required. The service must take formal complaints from service users and forward them to the ICGS team for investigation. Additional personal support provided by Independent Sexual Violence Advocates (ISVA) must be available for any service user experiencing sexual misconduct. The service will be required from Monday to Friday 9.00am-6.00pm, excluding Bank Holidays, with an out of hours answerphone service with an expected response to calls which will be detailed in the specification.The contract will be for an initial term of two years with two optional one year extensions (2+1+1 maximum term of four years) and the projected cumulative expenditure is circa £480,000 assuming a contract of four years is taken up. Please contact Paul Younger (youngerpb@parliament.uk) to express your interest for this opportunity no later than 12noon on Monday 25th March 2024.
two.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice
7 March 2024
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No