Decision details

1.    Approves that appendix 1 is not for publication on the basis that it contains information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information) as set out in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

2.    For the procurement of merchant services, it is recommended that the Council runs a mini competition within the Crown Framework RM6118 Lot 1. The contract would be for 3 years from 2022 with the option to extend for a further 1 years. The estimated value of the contract would be Circa £500k per annum (This being what the Council pays today, however the total amount will be dependent on volume and transactions travelling through this merchant service).

Merchant Acquiring Services are a critical part of income collection and existing contract arrangements have now come to an end such that re-procurement is required.

There are only a small number of large-scale providers in this market. A framework approach allows the Council to take advantage of increased purchasing power while offering an efficient and compliant route to procurement in a complex area.  Initial work has identified that Crown Framework RM6118 Lot 1 provides an appropriate and robust framework in terms of the Council’s specification in this area.  As such this option is recommended. The framework has three established providers, and it is further recommended that a mini competition be undertaken within this framework.

Direct/Full procurement – Not recommended

In contrast to the option above, it is unlikely that the Council will be able to maximise its purchasing power in this market with a stand-alone procurement.  This is also a complex area, and the process would be resource intensive. As such this option is not recommended.