Purpose

The appointment of the required additional services are necessary to progress the project through to delivery, including achieving defrayment in line with the MOU.
- To carry out a Heritage Impact Assessment from Leigh Alston to support the Scheduled Monument Consent Application
The inclusion of a Heritage Impact Assessment has been specifically requested by Historic England as part of the Scheduled Monument Consent application. With our Scheduled Monument Consent approval, TDC can then apply for our bat licence, and undertake subsequent mitigation works, before the hibernation season starts in September, as has been advised by the project ecologist.
The report has been confirmed as a requirement for the Scheduled Monument Consent application by Historic England as confirmed in advice received from Adam Single (Inspector of Ancient Monuments Essex and Herts) in June 2026. Urgent submission of the application is essential to achieve the above timescales and secure the Bat Mitigation License, without which would cause a knock-on effect to the project within the construction phase having both programmatic and financial implications.
Therefore, this procurement of the additional report is in line with Section 2 of the Constitution which sub-section 2.1 states: c) The matter is one of urgency as determined by the appropriate Corporate Director/Head of Department following consultation with the responsible Portfolio Holder or the Leader of the Council.
(e) Where the work is of a specialist nature and the Corporate Director/Head of Department can demonstrate that it is not possible to obtain more than one quotation or tender.
Given Leigh’s existing knowledge of the site and the information already gathered in previous reports, he would be able to expedite the preparation and completion of the report in line with our timeframes.

Decision

To direct award appointment for a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) by Architectural Historian, Leigh Alston - £1,000.00 for the Ten_11 Martello Tower E project, as part of the Community Regeneration Partnership.
Leigh Alston was specifically requested by Historic England for this because of his expert knowledge on Martello Towers and his previous published work on them.
The above appointment is made under exemption to the Procurement Procedure Rules for reasons of urgency and specialist work required, as these reports are required urgently to enable submission of consents applications, as advised by Historic England, which are required to secure a Bat Mitigation License before the next hibernation season commences in September, as has been advised by the project ecologist.

Alternative options considered

The appointment duration concludes before the timescales of Local Government Reorganisation.
The wider project will include works to provide improved amenities to residents of and visitors to the district and deliver improvements to the condition of existing public realm and open spaces owned by the Council, with a view to improving condition and managing the ongoing maintenance burden of such sites.