Purpose

To seek approval to direct
award a contract for a Pre-Paid Card Solution

Decision

Decision(s):
 

(1)

the contents of the report be noted;
 

(2)

use of the Eastern Shires Purchasing
Organisation (ESPO) to undertake a Direct Award contract for the
provision of Pre-Paid Cards to EML Payments Ltd be
approved.  The contract will be for an
initial three-year period, with the option to extend for a further
two years, via two separate twelve-month extensions, subject to
satisfactory performance of the contractor and demonstration of
value for money of the successful supplier/s and the required
budget being available; and
 

(3)

decisions with regards to awarding future
extensions of the contract be delegated to the Executive Director
Adult Social Care, Health and Wellbeing / Cheshire & Merseyside
ICB Place Director, in consultation with the Director of
Children’s Services and the Cabinet Members for Adult Social
Care and Children’s Schools & Families.

 
Reason(s) for the
Decision(s):
 
Pre-Paid Cards operate in a similar way to
normal ‘credit’ and ‘debit’ cards except
that funds are preloaded onto the cards by the Local Authority and
then spent by the card holder as recorded in their Social Work
assessment. As they do not incorporate a credit facility the cards
cannot become overdrawn and are not linked to a bank account. Funds
can be loaded onto the cards by the Local Authority. As all
transactions are recorded automatically it is possible to track
when uploads and subsequent spend take place and monitor how the
funds are spent.
 
The current system in place is predominately
utilised to support the management of Adult Social Care Direct
Payment accounts.   The Care Act
Statutory Guidance 2014 states that Direct Payments, along with
Personal Budgets and personalised care planning provide a platform
with which to deliver a modern care and support system. In order
for Direct Payments to have the maximum impact, the processes
involved in administering and monitoring the payment should
incorporate the minimal elements to allow Local Authorities to
fulfil their statutory responsibilities.  The Care Act Statutory Guidance 2014 identifies
that Pre-Paid Cards can be a mechanism that is used to allow Direct
Payments without the need for a separate bank account and to also
ease the financial management of payments.
 
The cards are also utilised by other Council
departments, those being Children’s Social Care and
Education, which includes Home to School Transport where this
method has provided a successful solution for many parents to
purchase personalised transport arrangements for eligible
children.
 
The current contract to provide a pre-paid
card solution is with EML Payments Ltd and was awarded via the
utilisation of the NEPO Pre-paid Cards Framework 1st March
2021.
 
The contract with EML Ltd Payments has been
extended until 28th February 2025 (under permitted extension
periods), however it cannot be subject to any further extensions
beyond this date, resulting in a procurement exercise being
required to secure an ongoing Pre-Paid Card Solution to commence
1st March 2025.
 
Alternative Options
Considered and Rejected:
 
Cease with the use of a Pre-Paid
Card Solution – this option was considered and rejected
as having in place a Pre-Paid Card solution ensures that the
Council has in place a system which supports the timely management
of Direct Payment accounts and supports the effective recovery of
surpluses from accounts and a more robust mechanism to monitor
accounts. It also gives individuals an effective and less
burdensome system to manage their accounts and meet their
obligations. 
 
Undertake a full procurement
exercise via The CHEST (North West Local Authority Procurement
Portal) - This was rejected due to the
limited number of providers in the market place and that the
primary suppliers are named on a compliant framework hosted via
ESPO framework which can be accessed by the Council.
 
Undertake a mini competition using
the ESPO framework - This was rejected following an assessment
and options appraisal of the risks, benefits
and associated costs incurred with
the potential change of supplier.