---
title: "Assisting the Independent Assessor"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL"
published: "2017-10-11"
---

# Assisting the Independent Assessor

Buyer: DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22

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## Summary

The procurement process titled "Assisting the Independent Assessor" was conducted by the Defra Network eTendering Portal, based in London, England. This contract falls within the legal services industry category and entails a total value of £25,000, with a contract period running from 29 November 2016 to 30 March 2018. The tender process was initiated in the context of addressing maladministration findings against Defra by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, which has led to an ongoing assessment of business and personal losses claimed by an affected farmer. The procurement method used was classified as 'Other,' with the tender period concluding on 31 October 2016.

This tender offers significant opportunities for legal firms, particularly those with specialisations in advisory and representation services, as well as forensic accounting. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and voluntary, community, and social enterprises (VCSEs) are encouraged to participate, given the suitability criteria of the procurement process. Firms that are experienced in handling governmental compliance issues or are proficient in working with public sector organisations may find this tender especially relevant for growth and collaboration with a significant governmental body.

## Notice

Devon farmer, Mr xxx, alleges that he suffered losses as a result of relying on incorrect information placed on an online portal provided by Defra which meant he was too late to apply for a derogation for 2011 from the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2008 (as amended). He complained to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) who in their report, found maladministration against Defra for the original mistake made on the online portal (for which Defra had already apologised) and a further maladministration for the delay in dealing with Mr xxx's complaint. The PHSO was however unable to assess the extent of Mr xxx business or personal losses but made a number of recommendations which Defra addressed through the implementation of an Action Plan (agreed with PHSO). The Plan was approved by the then Permanent Secretary in December 2014. It included the appointment of an Independent Assessor (IA) (barrister) to identify the extent of any losses incurred by Mr xxx's businesses as well as an assessment of his personal losses which relate to injury, distress and loss of amenity as a result of the maladministration. The IA would also consider whether Mr xxxx took steps to mitigate his losses. It has taken some time for those acting for Mr xxxx to provide submissions to the IA. Their claim against Defra for business losses currently stands at some PS8.5m. xxxxx of xxxx Chambers was appointed in November 2015 as the Independent Assessor and approval was given in December 2016 for xxxx(junior counsel) to assist him in the production of his report due to the length of time it had taken for Mr xxxx to provide additional material and Mr xxxx's court commitments. The Attorney General's Office gave approval to appoint xxxx at C panel rates (PS80/hour). The IA circulated a draft of his report in May. Mr xxxx's representatives have just submitted extensive comments on the report which will need to be considered by the IA with support from xxxx. The value of her contract is therefore increased to PS25k to reflect this additional, complex work and the length is extended to 31 March 2018. We have financial provision in 2017/18 to pay for these costs. The appointment of the IA was authorised by the Permanent Secretary as a fundamental part of the Action Plan. Additional information: Please note that Defra procurement uses e-tendering, provided by Bravosolutions. In order to access the Bravo system you will need to be registered. Could I therefore request that you register on the Bravo portal for Defra. If you're already registered on the Bravo portal please check that your registration includes Defra, as you have to specify us in order to correctly receive the tender documents. If you have any problems with the registration process, please contact the Bravo helpline on 0800 368 4850 or alternatively email them at help@bravosolution.co.uk. The link you require for new registration/amendments to registrations is - https://defra.bravosolution.co.uk

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7504fc89-a082-4b03-97a7-96e57669629f |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Other - |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 11 Oct 2017 |
| Submission deadline | 31 Oct 2016 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 19 Dec 2016 |
| Contract period | 29 Nov 2016 - 30 Mar 2018 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £25,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £40,000 |
| 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 | DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1P 3JR |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | St James's |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | HANNAH CURTAIN |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

### Codes

- 79100000 - Legal services
- 79110000 - Legal advisory and representation services

## Release History

- 11 Oct 2017 at 11:17 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7504fc89-a082-4b03-97a7-96e57669629f
- 24 May 2017 at 10:09 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/f0ac6ff9-cde4-4965-8ab8-6179f9b32de2

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7504fc89-a082-4b03-97a7-96e57669629f
  11th October 2017 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/f0ac6ff9-cde4-4965-8ab8-6179f9b32de2
  24th May 2017 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## Notice URLs

- https://defra.bravosolution.co.uk

## 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-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c2bae477-e30e-4994-9a7e-a195f1cd5b22.json.