Property readies bids for £500m Crown Commercial Service mandate
The Cabinet Office is issuing a call for tenders on providing real estate services for its £500m Crown Commercial Service framework, used by central government and all UK public sector bodies.
The new estate management services agreement will replace the government’s existing estates professional services framework, which expires in August 2021. It is expected to be used by hundreds of regular customers including HMRC, the Government Property Agency and DWP, as well as local councils and devolved bodies across the UK.
The framework is split into seven lots, covering all aspects regarding the acquisition, leasing, occupation and disposal of property within the public sector as well as providing surveys and strategic advice.
The Cabinet Office is issuing a call for tenders on providing real estate services for its £500m Crown Commercial Service framework, used by central government and all UK public sector bodies.
The new estate management services agreement will replace the government’s existing estates professional services framework, which expires in August 2021. It is expected to be used by hundreds of regular customers including HMRC, the Government Property Agency and DWP, as well as local councils and devolved bodies across the UK.
The framework is split into seven lots, covering all aspects regarding the acquisition, leasing, occupation and disposal of property within the public sector as well as providing surveys and strategic advice.
Those lots are: surveying and strategic advice, worth a total £150m; total estate management, with contracts worth £100m collectively; estate (property) management, worth £75m; and agency and lease management, valued at an estimated £75m.
Firms will also bid for roles advising on valuations and compulsory purchase orders, with the lot totalling £30m; business rating services, valued at £10m; and integrated workplace management, which tallies £60m.
The previous framework mainly divided lots by regions. Its 33-strong roster of incumbents include 12 firms on its national advisory panel: Arcadis, Avison Young, BNP Paribas Real Estate, Capita, Carter Jonas, CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield, Gerald Eve, Kier, Lambert Smith Hampton, Montagu Evans and Sanderson Weatherall.
CCS said it hoped that structuring lots by services, rather than regions, will boost its attractiveness to all suppliers including SMEs.
The new framework has also adopted the simplified public sector contract process, including a short-form contract for direct awards, to reduce the administration burden for both suppliers and customers. Additionally, it will launch on CCS’s new digital platform.
The lot structure has been published in an OJEU contract notice, with a 12 February deadline. Contracts are expected to be awarded in late May, to start on 3 June.
The framework will run for three years, with the option to extend by another year at CCS’s discretion.
CCS said the £500m framework is “a significant area of spend” with “plenty of potential opportunities for suppliers of all sizes – especially as the public sector reviews the size and location of their estates given the impact of Covid-19 and to ensure that their estates remain attractive and safe places to work”.
It added that the agreement will support “government objectives to ‘level up’ regions” as well as the drive towards net carbon zero, including an emphasis on introducing new or smart technology and better space utilisation to support modern working patterns.
A webinar for prospective suppliers will be held by CCS on 16 December, to provide an overview of the framework as well as the tender timescales.
Separately, the government is also replacing its project management and full design team services framework with a £500m agreement, under the banner of construction professional services.
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