Property Services - Cleaning Contract Variation

This paper seeks approval for a variation to the cleaning contract to continue the enhanced cleaning regime delivered during the Covid-19 pandemic at a reduced cost to that incurred in the last year, and to regularise the pre-pandemic contract performance issues. The value of the 12-month variation is £3,100,000 which will be funded from within the existing budget.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to:

1. Approve the continuation of cleaning in the MOPAC estate at an enhanced level to that delivered pre-Covid for a further 12 month period. The additional cleaning services have been widely recognised as delivering a positive outcome for the MPS over the past 15 months since the pandemic commenced and this has been key to successfully providing the ‘Covid secure’ workplaces introduced by legislative change. Retaining this workforce is an essential requirement as the UK returns to post-restrictions working patterns with greater numbers of Officers and Staff returning to the MOPAC estate.

2. Approve that Property Services negotiate and implement that change into the current contract with the existing MOPAC cleaning supplier up to a value of £3.1m per year for a further 1 year period. This will secure the retention of the additional 100 staff currently seconded on short term contracts to support the MPS response to+ COVID 19 by way of a formal contract variation will ensure the MPS retains service levels, but at a lower cost.

3. Agree to Option 4 as the endorsed option for a 1 year period.

1. Introduction and background

1.1. The cleaning contract was awarded with effect from April 2018. In 2020 responding to the pandemic a series of contract variations within the delegation of the Metropolitan Police Service were agreed to enhance the cleaning regime.

1.2. This paper seeks approval to a 12-month contract variation to continue the enhanced cleaning regime and to address the pre-pandemic contract performance issues.

2. Issues for consideration

2.1. In response to the pandemic in 2020 an enhanced cleaning regime was put in place to ensure Covid-secure working environments were provided for officers and staff. This was provided by way of an increased overtime allowance to existing cleaning contract operatives and the securing of additional cleaners.

2.2. This paper seeks approval for the cessation of the overtime allowance and to negotiate with the contract provider to secure the additional cleaners to form part of the overall cleaning workforce and rectify performance issues experienced pre-pandemic.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. The estimated additional cost of the contract variation is £3.1m. This cost will be met from within MPS resources – either the existing Property Services budget and/or the ear-marked reserve for Covid-19 pressures.

4. Legal Comments

4.1. MPS Legal Services assure that the proposed contract variation is within the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.

4.2. Paragraph 4.13 of the MOPAC Scheme of Delegation and Consent provides that the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime (DMPC) has delegated authority to approve all unforeseen variations and extensions to contracts with an original value of £500,000 or above, when the variation or extension is greater than 10% of the original value and/or is for a period of more than 12 months.

4.3. Further legal advice is set out in the restricted section of the report.

5. Commercial Issues

5.1. This paper refers to the supply of cleaning services to the MOPAC estate, and by way of a contract variation regularising the uplift in cleaning which arose from the Covid-19 pandemic. The variation will also address the recovery of the contract that had performance issues prior to the pandemic.

5.2. The MPS assured that the London Living Wage is paid to all cleaners.

5.3. Further information is contained in the restricted section of the report.

6. GDPR and Data Privacy

6.1. MOPAC will adhere to the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018 and ensure that any organisations who are commissioned to do work with or on behalf of MOPAC are fully compliant with the policy and understand their GDPR responsibilities.

6.2. The MPS assure that the contract variation does not use personally identifiable data of members of the public, so there are no GDPR issues to be considered.

7. Equality Comments

7.1. MOPAC is required to comply with the public sector equality duty set out in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. This requires MOPAC to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations by reference to people with protected characteristics. The protected characteristics are: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

7.2. The MPS assure there to be no negative equality or diversity implications arising from this process negating the requirement to present any mitigation.

8. Background/supporting papers

• Appendix 1 MPS Report Reassurance Cleaning