Questions we ask potential contractors

Mobilisation

This section advises that the mobilisation of the new contract will be based on a four-to-six-week turnaround.

Longhurst Group ask potential contractors to describe:

• How they intend to mobilise the contract successfully.
• How they’ll minimise disruption to customers.
• Details of their mobilisation team including credentials, qualifications and experience.
• Key milestones.
• Key mobilisation risks and how to mitigate them.
• Proposals for collaboration and communication with Longhurst Group, customers and suppliers.

Contractors are asked to keep their response to 1,200 words, including evidence and examples of similar contracts being mobilised successfully.

They’re also asked to submit an additional attachment which details a mobilisation plan.

TUPE

Longhurst Group has a section dedicated to questions around TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employee rights).

They ask contractors to confirm with evidence and examples details of how they’ll manage the TUPE transfer process, including the procedures and key personnel involved.

They ask contractors to detail:

• How they’ll go ‘above and beyond’ the legal obligations for consultation pre and post mobilisation.
• Their approach to maximising the retention rates of TUPE transfers.
• Recruitment, retention and training.
• Evidence of their previous experience of this.

Resources / contract management

Longhurst Group needs to be reassured of a potential contractor’s ability to ensure service continuity through robust resourcing and effective contract management and so asks them for the following information.

Please outline how you intend to resource and manage this grounds maintenance contract, with full details of staff and team numbers. Answers should detail as a minimum:

• Contract Management Team
• Numbers of operative resources and back-office support
• Supervisory structure
• Types and numbers of vehicle
• Subcontract support, including trades and locations
• Types of plant and equipment
• Depot and team base locations

Include details of the contract management approach which’ll be applied to this contract and the staffing structure for those involved in carrying out the services, including the supervision arrangements that are in place for staff on the ground.

Longhurst Group allows them to respond with 1,500 words. They’re also asked to submit an attachment of a contract-specific organisation structure/chart which documents the resources they can provide to Longhurst Group.

Quality and Service Delivery

Based on customer feedback, Longhurst Group wishes to improve the quality and consistency of grounds maintenance standards across our estates.

Longhurst Group is asking potential contractors to describe:

Their proposal for ensuring all Longhurst Group grounds are maintained in accordance with the specification and how they’ll ensure the quality of the services provided to our residents/customers? They’re asked to include:

• How they’ll make sure they’re visiting sites as often as it says in the specification.
• How their staff will be trained.
• How staff will self-audit their work against the specification and ensure high quality work.
• How they’ll meet and report on their targets consistently.

We also ask the contractors to advise if they have any proposals for improving our service, saving money, innovation or ideas to add value or how our sites look after reading our specification.

IT / portal / maintenance schedule visibility

After consulting with customers, Longhurst Group would like a customer portal to be introduced when we begin the new contract. This would hold information such as when the contractors are due to attend each site.

We’ve asked potential contractors to detail their solution for a customer portal system. We’ve asked them to include information such as:

• How residents can be provided with information through a live calendar and/or SMS notifications.
• How they’ll ensure Estate Officers can access all upcoming and historical visits to effectively audit and monitor the quality and frequency of visits.
• How our Finance / Management Team can access historical events so that they can run random reports to approve invoicing.
• GDPR and information/data security.

Customer Service / Resident Care

In line with our ‘Improving Lives’ strategy, (more information on this can be found here - https://www.longhurst-group.org.uk/improving-lives/) Longhurst Group expects the highest standards of resident care and customer service from the appointed contractors.

We ask potential contractors to outline what they consider to be our residents’ top priorities with regards to the grounds maintenance service and how they’ll ensure these are considered in the service they provide.

With evidence and examples from similar contracts, we ask potential contractors to explain how they’ll involve residents, drive customer satisfaction and reduce complaints.

We also ask for detail on their approach to dealing with and resolving customer complaints.

Social value and sustainability

This section asks potential contractors how they will support us in maximising social value, community benefits and sustainability on the contract.

As part of the response, we ask them to include contract-specific commitments in terms of social value/community benefits they can realistically deliver on the contract. Initiatives could include, but aren’t limited to:

• Enhancing green spaces and communal areas during grounds maintenance activities.
• Employment, training and skills for local people.
• Supporting local economies.
• Supporting local community initiatives.
• Reducing impact on the environment.