What you need

These resources guide you through the steps to plan, agree and run your Local Management Agreement.

Tender
If you plan to use an outside contractor to do the work under a Local Management Agreement, you will need to invite tenders or get competitive quotes to see what they can do, at what price.

Getting it right
To get high standards and good value for money, you need to make sure that the contractor is capable, reliable and trustworthy. Choosing the wrong contractor can create huge problems, and undermine the whole Agreement.

So, a typical tender should include:

Title For example: "Invitation to tender for communal gardening services at Anywhere Estate, Anytown"

Summary One or two sentences to say what the service is, who is issuing the tender (for example, "the Anytown Residents Association") and explain that the service will run under a Local Management Agreement. See ‘Getting started’ and ‘Why do it’

Specification Insert the description and standards from the detailed plan. Ask the contractor to show how they would meet all these standards, and highlight any areas where they would do something differently, or to a higher or lower standard. See ‘Detailed plan’

Location Say where the service will be provided and, if necessary, include a sketch plan or scale drawing of the areas to be covered (for example, to show the communal areas for a gardening contract).

Period State how long the contract will run for, when it will start, and what the arrangements will be for extending it beyond the original term.

Health and safety Attach your health and safety statement and ask the contractor to show how they comply with and support it. See ‘Health and safety’

Equalities Attach your equalities statement and ask the contractor to show how they comply with and support it. See ‘Equalities’

Cost State whether you want a fixed price (for example, for cleaning) or one that varies according to how much work is done (for example, repairs), and say how you want the total broken down (for example, by block or particular task). State whether the contractor should include VAT and any other expenses (for example, waste disposal, new equipment or travel costs). See ‘Money’

Insurance State what types of insurance the contractor will need, and ask them to supply details of their policies and cover.

Form of tender Say what form you want tenders in, and how many copies (for example, “a written proposal covering all parts of this invitation to tender - one bound copy and one unbound copy for photocopying”).

Say how you want tenders to be returned (for example, "by Recorded Post and clearly marked ‘tender’ to Name, Secretary, Anywhere Estate Residents’ Association, 32 Alpha House, Anytown, AN3 4HY".

Deadline Say when you need tenders by, and make it clear that you will not accept late tenders (for example, “to arrive by noon on Monday 12 February 20??”).

Added value Invite the contractor to say how they might provide any extra service or help at no extra cost, and explain that this will form part of your decision-making. There’s no harm in asking! For example, a contractor might offer work experience placements to older children in the area, or contribute to a social event.

References Ask for details of two of the contractor’s existing or previous customers who you can contact for first-hand feedback on their work.

Contacts Give the name, phone/fax/email and address of the person who can answer any queries about the tender, and contact details for the Council’s Support Officer. Explain that extra information given to any company will also be made available to other tenderers. Include the Taking Charge website address, http://www.takingcharge.org.uk, so contractors can find out more about Local Management Agreements.

Making the decision
To decide between competing tenders, don’t just choose the cheapest, or a firm that you know, or one that has been recommended to you. To help you be fair and objective:

• Use a simple scoring system, where you award up to five points for each aspect of the tender (cost, health and safety, references etc) and then total the scores to choose a preferred contractor. You can use this technique to shortlist two or three contractors, and then meet/interview them to make the final decision.