--- title: "Implementation of a Covid secure scheme for businesses in Hertfordshire" ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5.json" source: "Contracts Finder" current_stage: "Award" buyer: "HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL" published: "2021-06-02" --- # Implementation of a Covid secure scheme for businesses in Hertfordshire Buyer: HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL Current stage: Award OCID: ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5.json) ## Summary The Hertfordshire County Council has awarded a contract titled "Implementation of a Covid secure scheme for businesses in Hertfordshire" after recognising the extreme urgency of ensuring business compliance with COVID-19 safety guidelines. This procurement falls under the health and safety consultancy services category, with the award value amounting to £2,300,000, which includes an initial pilot valued at £213,000. The contract period is set from April 12, 2021, to April 11, 2022, with the procurement method classified as a negotiated procedure without prior publication due to unforeseen circumstances surrounding the pandemic. The award notice was published on June 2, 2021. This tender offers significant growth opportunities for businesses such as environmental health consultancies, especially those familiar with health and safety standards and the implementation of accreditation schemes. The contract’s initial focus will be on a pilot scheme in Broxbourne, aiming to enhance compliance and consumer confidence in various sectors, including supermarkets and hospitality. Companies that possess the capacity to deliver rapid accreditation and consistent auditing services will be particularly well-suited to compete for this contract as it expands across Hertfordshire. ## Notice This Award Notice is being published to inform of an award of a contract. Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) is relying on regulation 32(2)(c) of the Public Contract Regulations 2015 in making this award without prior publication. Regulation 32(2)(c) permits such an award: "insofar as is strictly necessary where, for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limits for the open or restricted procedures or competitive procedures with negotiation cannot be complied with.' The extreme urgency relates to the need to ensure businesses are accredited now and as they re-open. If HCC fails to take steps to urgently ensure high levels of compliance, there is a real risk that transmissions will rise and put the county at risk of further local restrictions causing significant damage to the local economy and risking further negative impacts on residents. The need to procure this service was unforeseeable given the fast moving nature of the COVID-19 response. A tender process would delay the implementation to a point when most businesses will already be opening. In respect of the requirement in Regulation 32(4) that the circumstances invoked to justify extreme urgency must not be attributable to the contracting authority, HCC considers that the urgency is due to the need to respond to public health risks and the timetable in the Government's reopening roadmap, neither of which are within the control of HCC. A business accreditation scheme known as 'Safe To Trade' is currently offered by Shield Safety Group Ltd, an environmental health consultancy company with the capacity and staff to quickly roll out their scheme in any given area. Shield Safety Group Ltd would operate and deliver this scheme on the Council's behalf thereby relieving the local authority of large scale inspection burdens whilst at the same time maintaining confidence in standards and helping to reduce transmission of Covid 19 by achieving greater compliance with set guidelines. If evaluation of the pilot proves successful, the scheme will be rolled out across Hertfordshire in an expeditious way. In expanding the scheme county-wide as quickly as possible during the Government's roadmap it will be important to maintain a consistent high-quality auditing process, public communications and joint branding approach that will be established before and during the pilot phase. Furthermore, to ensure the scheme will be effective county-wide, it is essential to provide continuity to businesses and consumers by maintaining the working processes with the one provider partnered with during the initial pilot and not risk confusing businesses and consumers with the inevitable changes in auditing and communications that would result. For these reasons the provider which carries out the pilot also needs to carry out the county-wide scheme. Please refer to 'Section 5 - Additional Text' for further information. Additional information: Hertfordshire Trading Standards have been urgently requested by the Hertfordshire Health Protection Board to implement a Covid secure business accreditation scheme that seeks to impact on transmission rates of Covid 19 in supermarkets, grocers, hospitality and other non-essential retail businesses. The scheme will ensure businesses are adhering to a consistent set of Covid 19 prevention standards and aims to improve consumer confidence in those businesses. This project implements a pilot 'Covid secure' accreditation scheme in retail shops, hospitality and other non-essential businesses in Hertfordshire in Broxbourne. There is evidence to suggest that transmission in supermarkets and food retail remains a problem and with the Government's roadmap to re-opening other hospitality and retail businesses from Spring 2021, there is an urgent need to ensure that businesses already open are compliant to a consistent set of standards and that for those due to re-open that they too are compliant and that consumers will have the confidence to use them when permitted. This would be achieved by registration, auditing and inspection of member businesses. The arrangement would initially be for a pilot to be conducted in Broxbourne and if evaluation proves successful to continue to roll out the scheme across Hertfordshire. The contract end date stated above includes the provision to roll out the scheme across Hertfordshire. If the pilot is unsuccessful then the contract will be terminated by HCC. The length of the contract is expected to be relatively short particularly if transmission rates fall and mitigation measures required by businesses reduce later in the year. The arrangement is therefore restricted to what is absolutely necessary. The value of the initial pilot is PS213,000. The total awarded value is for the total contract value, should the scheme be rolled out to the whole of the County of Hertfordshire. Please refer to 'Section 3 - Description' for further details ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Contracts Finder | | Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/b5532907-61e3-47e1-a4d0-97ddf2555074 | | Notice type | Award Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Limited | | Procurement method details | Negotiated procedure without prior publication (above threshold) | | Tender suitability | SME, VCSE | | Awardee scale | SME | | All stages | Award | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 2 Jun 2021 | | Submission deadline | 23 Mar 2021 | | Future notice date | Not specified | | Award date | 29 Mar 2021 | | Contract period | 11 Apr 2021 - 11 Apr 2022 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £2,300,000 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | £2,300,000 | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Complete | | Lots status | Not specified | | Awards status | Active | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL | | Locality | HERTFORD | | Post town | Stevenage | | Postcode | SG13 8DQ | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLH East (England) | | ITL 2 | TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | | ITL 3 | TLH26 North and East Hertfordshire | | Local authority | East Hertfordshire | | Electoral ward | Hertford Castle | | Westminster constituency | Hertford and Stortford | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## Supplier | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Number of suppliers | 1 | | Supplier names | SHIELD SAFETY GROUP | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services ### Codes - 71317210 - Health and safety consultancy services ## Release History - 2 Jun 2021 at 15:36 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/b5532907-61e3-47e1-a4d0-97ddf2555074 ## Documents - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/b5532907-61e3-47e1-a4d0-97ddf2555074 2nd June 2021 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder ## Provenance This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-889567f5-d6b7-447b-a20f-7f28543e79e5.json.