Issue - meetings

Report of the Chief Officer for Communities, Public Health, Environment and Prosperity on the Devon Youth Service invitation to tender and authority to award a contract, attached.

An Impact Assessment is also attached for the attention of Members at this meeting.

(Councillors Connett, Dewhirst, Hannaford, Hodgson and Whitton attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).

The Cabinet considered the Report of the Chief Officer for Communities, Public Health, Environment and Prosperity on the Devon Youth Service invitation to tender and authority to award a contract, circulated prior to the meeting in accordance with regulation 7(4) of the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012.

The Report highlighted that the Council’s contract with DYS Space Ltd for youth services was due to expire on 31 January 2020, after a three-year period. The current contract had been awarded following a tender process restricted to mutuals. Representations were made at a ‘market warming’ event with potential bidders on 15th May 2019 to extend the current contract by two months in order to allow more time for smaller providers to explore banding together in order to bid. DYS Space was willing to continue to provide the service until 31 March 2020 so there was a fixed deadline of 1 April 2020 to conclude the retender.

Currently, DYS Space had nine buildings in its portfolio with eight Youth and Community Centres (Barnstaple, Bideford, Exeter, Exmouth, Newton Abbot, Okehampton, Tiverton, and Totnes) which were bases for open access youth work as well as being used as a base for targeted and outreach youth work. There was also a building in Dawlish to support its work with young people in mainstream schools who were at risk of permanent exclusion.

The Report outlined that young people faced increasingly complex challenges (for example, county lines, knife crime and sexual exploitation) but also that Government was considering new requirements for Local Authorities in terms of an offer that would contain both a universal and targeted element. 

The Report proposed there was not fundamental change to the current model of youth service provision and listed a number of key components that any new provision should contain, highlighted in the final recommendation below. The successful provider(s) would be required to continue to operate out of the existing eight youth hubs (although this would be continuously reviewed against the needs of young people) and the Dawlish facility continued to be available. It was also expected there would be a (temporary) presence in Cranbook and Sherford until a permanent facility could be built and handed over to town councils.

The Report outlined the procurement timeline, highlighting the timetable was tight and did not allow for a ‘root and branch’ review of youth services. It was proposed this commenced when a provider was confirmed to inform the future development of the service. The Children’s Scrutiny Committee had indicated its willingness to work with commissioners on such a review.

A budget of £1.788m had been identified to support the tender and current intentions were to award the contract on a rising fixed-fee[1]. It was also recommended the Council awarded a 5-year contract (on a 3 + 2 basis).

The Report and proposal had been  ...  view the full minutes text for item 359