Decision

RESOLVED that

1. consent be granted to Surrey County Council to award the contract for the recommended contact centre telephony solution, subject to completion of the procurement process and having received confirmation of the final commercial, legal and governance position;
2. authority be delegated to Surrey County Council’s Executive Director of Resources, in consultation with the East Surrey Portfolio Holder for Finance and Resources, to take all actions and make all decisions necessary to give effect to this consent, provided the evaluated tender price is within 5% of the indicative total contract value set out in the report.  Should the evaluated tender price exceed this tolerance, or materially changes the financial or risk position, further approval be sought before contract award;
3. the preferred Vesting Day approach of a controlled telephony routing solution that directs callers to the correct East Surrey Council or West Surrey Council service based upon the service the customer requires and, where required, the customer’s location, be approved;
4. it be noted that Surrey County Council will procure the contract ahead of Vesting Day, with the contract expected to transfer under Section 16 on 1 April 2027, and that confirmation was still required on whether the procurement would result in one joint contract or separate East and West contract arrangements;
5. the proposed post-Vesting Day commitment for the new authorities be approved, noting that the solution is intended as an interim requirement while East Surrey Council and West Surrey Council determine and implement their long-term customer target operating models, rationalise legacy contact centre arrangements and confirm their future telephony platform requirements; and
6. the implementation costs to 31 March 2027 will be met through the Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation Implementation Fund, with ongoing annual running costs transferring to East and West Surrey Councils after Vesting Day.  Until exact cost splits were confirmed through procurement and final commercial agreement, costs had been assumed on an indicative planning basis of 47% East Surrey and 53% West Surrey, managed through the appropriate governance and budget arrangements, and included in the inter-authority agreement where relevant.