- Description
- The Authority reserves the right to modify the contract in specific circumstances, including (but not limited to) modifications relating to Local Government Reform, and modifications to include additional funding from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board.
With respect to Local Government Reforms:
Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) is the process in which the structure and responsibilities of local authorities are reconfigured. The Government has set out plans to move away from the current two-tier system of district and county councils in England, which is relevant to Cambridgeshire County Council, the five district councils in the county (Cambridge City Council, East Cambridgeshire District Council, Fenland District Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council), and Peterborough City Council as a neighbouring unitary council. Therefore, from 1 April 2028, the current seven councils in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough will be replaced and no longer exist. Rather than dealing with separate county, city and district councils, residents will access all services through a unitary council(s). At this stage, no decisions have been made on how many unitary councils will cover the county and which geographical areas they will cover. Throughout the LGR process, the Authority's focus will remain on delivering essential services across Peterborough.
Potential changes may occur during the term of the contract, and although the contract is likely to transfer to any new unitary authorities by statutory instrument or by agreement on LGR, the contract may need to be amended to reflect the new geographical, financial and contract scope. Therefore, to ensure the contract may adapt upon implementation of LGR and modify to reflect the implications of LGR, we state within this procurement documentation of the intention to rely on Section 74(1)(a) and Schedule 8(1) of the Procurement Act 2023 to permit modification of the of the contract (if modification is considered necessary), to reflect new geographical, financial and contract scope accordingly. Please note we cannot precisely confirm any modification, if any, to the geographical, financial and contract scope at this stage, and any proposed modification, if agreed, shall not be implemented until 1 April 2028 at the earliest. Any contract modification shall be in accordance with clause 28 of the contract.
With respect to modifications to include additional funding from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board:
Throughout the term of this contract, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board may choose to contribute to the Council's provision of this service, which shall increase the contract's annual value and require modification to its scope, albeit the modification shall not change the overall nature of the contract. For example, investment from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board could better enable groups to operate a place for peer support and as a first port of call for information, advice and guidance on mental health. In such circumstances, the Council shall rely on Section 74(1)(a) and Schedule 8, paragraph 1 of the Procurement Act 2023 to accommodate the increase in Contract value in line with the funding amounts given by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board, for the provision of additional services that are deemed to be in-scope of Appendix 1 - Service Specification.