Decision

The Director of Neighbourhood Services
approves the award of a contract for Weed Control for the period 1
April 2026 to 1 November 2027 to Arborforce Group Limited at a cost
of up to £177,342.05 per year for the purpose of supplying
weed control services on the public highway areas within the 22
Wards of Wirral.

Reasons for the decision

The Council requires weed control (the
service) on the public highway areas within the 22 Wards of Wirral
to protect this infrastructure from the damage that weeds may
cause.

The Services were commissioned using the open tender procedure
which was carried out in accordance with Council’s Contract
Procedure Rules and the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
This procurement exercise involved publishing this opportunity on
The Chest, in total 4 bids were received. The bids received were
scored based on:
• Quality – 30%
• Social Value – 10%
• Price – 60%

The award of the contract to Arborforce Group Limited is within the
approved budget and in accordance with the Most Economically
Advantageous Tender criteria.

The financial value of this contract is £177,342.05 per year
and the contract will commence from April 2026.

Appendix 1 sets out the details of the tenders received.

The information in Appendix 1 is commercially sensitive and is
restricted by virtue of Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of
the Local Government Act 1972 as it is ‘Information relating
to the financial or business affairs of any particular person
(including the authority holding the information).’

Alternative options considered

Weed Control is required in order to protect
public highway infrastructure from the damage that weeds may
cause.

While there are other approaches that may be used to weed control
such as mechanical removal, steam treatment, and manual removal all
these approaches come at a significantly greater cost than the
option to spray weeds with herbicides, the preferred option.

It is not recommended that weed control cease on the public highway
network, as the damage caused and the subsequent cost of repair
will far out way the cost of any preventative weed control
measures.