Decision

RESOLVED: Cabinet;

a)    Agreed to proceed with the procurement of a Case Management System for Education Services in WNC, at an estimated contract cost, including licences, hosting, and annual fees, of up to £300k per annum for up to seven years (totalling £2.1m).

b)    Agreed to an additional estimated one-off funding of £950k to implement the Case Management System for Education Services, over a period of two years.

c)    Delegated authority to the Executive Director of People Services, in liaison with the Executive Director of Finance and the Cabinet Member for Children, Families, Education and Skills, to take forward these recommendations to procure and implement the Case Management System and to utilise the most appropriate funding source for the implementation costs.

REASONS RESOLVED:

1. Procuring and implementing a new Case Management System will ensure The Council is able to meets the statutory obligations for delivering Children’s Education Services with a system that is fit for purpose and reflects the needs of the Council and families across West Northamptonshire.
2. The proposal will enable the Council to conduct a procurement exercise, in compliance with procurement and contract procedure rules, and implement a Case Management that is available on the market from a supplier that has proven experience and knowledge of the Education Services delivered by local authorities.
3. The redesign of the system will support the services wider programme of transformation enabling efficiencies to be generated alongside more effective use of data.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

·         Option 1: Do Nothing – Not recommended. This option would see the service undertaking no activity in relation of procurement of a replacement system for Education Services. Scope for improvements and efficiencies would be minimal. At the end of the current Capita contracting period (March 2026) there would be an option to extend the existing system contract for a minimum term of 3 years, this is a significant risk to the Council as this option could result in legal challenges from other suppliers.

·         Option 2: Conduct a procurement exercise for the Education Service Case Management System and implement a new solution – Recommended. This option requires a competitive procurement process to be undertaken for the WNC Education Services Case Management System. The process would look at the current marketplace for these systems and then go through a process to ensure a solution that meets the requirements of DTI, and the service is found. The redesign and implementation would provide the opportunity to optimise the use of a system within the Services and to embed a new system ownership culture. This solution is supported by both Legal and Procurement.

·         Option 3: Use of an existing system – Not Recommended This Option explores the use of systems within WNC to meet the needs of Education Services. There are no other systems currently in use in the Council that meets the requirements of Education Services.