Corporate Estate Waste Management Landfill & Recycling

The Council intends to directly award A Framework contract pursuant to Section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023 and the Schedule 5 justification paragraph 7 :

The public contract concerns the supply of goods, services or works by the existing supplier which are intended as an extension to, or partial replacement of, existing goods, services or works in circumstances where—

(a) a change in supplier would result in the contracting authority receiving goods, services or works that are different from, or incompatible with, the existing goods, services or works, and

(b) the difference or incompatibility would result in disproportionate technical difficulties in operation or maintenance.

The current Framework Contract is split into 6 lots delivered by 2 contractors.

• Lot 1 Adur and Worthing Councils Area
• Lot 2 Arun District Council Area
• Lot 3 Chichester District Council Area
• Lot 4 Crawley Borough Council Area
• Lot 5 Horsham District Council Area
• Lot 6 Mid Sussex District Council Area

Chichester District Council are delivering lots 2 and 3

The Recycling Partnership are delivering lots 1,4,5 and 6

The contracts deliver an integrated waste and recycling service across the Council's estate covering approximately 330 customer sites supported by established collection routes, site-specific service schedules, reporting systems, payment mechanisms, waste management arrangements and container infrastructure.

The Council has assessed the potential appointment of an alternative supplier and considers that replacement of the incumbent supplier would require:

• Removal and replacement of existing waste and recycling container infrastructure across multiple locations;
• Re-surveying and reconfiguration of collection arrangements at Council and school sites;
• Establishment of new access, security and site-operating procedures;
• Migration to alternative reporting and performance management systems;
• Mobilisation of new collection routes and operational arrangements; and
• Extensive stakeholder engagement and training across service locations.

The Council considers that a change of supplier would result in significant operational inconvenience and disruption to established service arrangements across the 300+ operational sites.

The services support the day-to-day operation of Council buildings and schools and are essential to maintaining safe, compliant and uninterrupted public service delivery. The Council considers that continuity of waste and recycling collection services is critical and that the risks and costs associated with replacing the existing service arrangements would not represent an efficient use of public resources.

Forthcoming changes to waste and recycling legislation, including requirements relating to waste segregation, recycling and collection services, are likely to impact future service specifications.

Having an ‘opt in and opt out’ call off contract for West Sussex schools and corporate estate buildings offers the greatest flexibility and value for money through the economies of scale of a single contract. In addition, it reduces individual officer time in arranging and managing waste/recycling collections and disposals; and ensures greater compliance with legal duty of care requirements.

Ongoing geopolitical and market pressures continue to contribute to volatility in operating and disposal costs across the waste sector. Taken together, these factors make it difficult to define long-term service requirements with sufficient certainty and support the Council's decision to maintain service continuity through a shorter-term direct award while future requirements become clearer.

The ongoing uncertainties around Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) add a layer of complexity to contract renewals and procurements, especially in relation to this call off contract for West Sussex schools and corporate estate buildings where it is known that some facilities/premises are transferring to the Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority.

Having considered the available procurement options, the Council is satisfied that continuation of service with the current suppliers represents the most proportionate approach and avoids significant operational difficulties and substantial duplication of cost while maintaining continuity of service across the estate.