Purpose

The Council’s current arrangement with iHasco for the delivery of e-learning is due to end on 27 July 2026. A due diligence exercise has been undertaken to consider the Council’s current usage, the proposed cost of a new one-year agreement, and indicative comparator costs from alternative providers.
The assessment demonstrates that iHasco provides the most cost-effective option when considered against usage levels, course breadth, service continuity and the Council’s need to maintain access to mandatory and operational training. A reduced annual fee has also been negotiated, providing further assurance that the proposed new agreement represents value for money.
A new one-year agreement provides continuity of training provision while maintaining flexibility in the context of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). A longer agreement period was considered; however, this was not considered appropriate at this stage, as it would reduce the Council’s ability to review future learning and development requirements as part of wider LGR planning. The one-year agreement also preserves the option of exploring collaborative procurement arrangements with partner authorities in the future, should this be considered beneficial.

Decision

To enter into a new one-year agreement with iHasco to provide the continuity of this training provision using the existing e-learning platform.

Alternative options considered

The new one-year agreement represents a single, one-off payment to be made during 2026.
A one-year agreement has been selected in preference to a longer-term commitment because it secures continuity of training provision while retaining flexibility ahead of Local Government Reorganisation. This approach supports alignment with the Council’s wider learning and development arrangements, including the future review of provision across both e-learning platforms, before any longer-term procurement decisions are made.