GLD Vacancies

Croydon becomes latest to set up framework agreement in £10m tender

The London Borough of Croydon has launched a £10m tender for a legal services framework agreement.

The tender, the deadline for returning pre-qualification questionnaires for which was 11 June, sought “suitably experienced firms of solicitors” for four packages of legal services:

  • Commercial work: PFI, PPP, major developments, all local government law matters, contracts and commercial matters, and associated general advice
  • Civil and criminal litigation (including employment) and associated advice and support
  • Routine conveyancing and civil debts and associated general advice and support
  • Housing and property: housing litigation and advice, general property matters and associated general advice and support.

Each lot is expected to have panels of up to six firms, except for the routine conveyancing panel which will have up to four.

The council reserved the right to make the agreement available to other local authorities, police authorities, fire authorities and NHS trusts. The tender notice also warned that TUPE may apply.

The contract is expected to start on 1 April 2011 and last for 48 months. There is also scope for the contract to be extended by a further 24 months to 1 April 2017.

The estimated value of £10m is for called-off services in the initial four years.

Croydon’s tender is the latest in a series of procurements of legal services, following on from tenders involving all councils in Oxfordshire, a consortium of councils in outer London and Kent, the North West Legal Consortium and the EM Lawshare group.