Arts Council England Saves Over £220,000 When Procuring FM Services

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• Arts Council England Saves Over £220,000 When Procuring FM Services

27 August 2020

Arts Council England has procured a total facilities management solution using the Crown Commercial Service, and as a result, have saved over £220,000.

Arts Council England (ACE) sought a single supplier that would address their social value aims and provide facilities management services nationally, across an estate of nine offices spread over England.

What did the Client Require from an FM Contract?

Arts Council England (ACE) develops and invests in artistic and cultural experiences that enrich people’s lives, supporting a range of activities across arts, museums and libraries – from theatre to digital art, reading to dance, music to literature, and crafts to collections.

They requested as part of the contract that their services needed to be streamlined by incorporating new technologies into their processes, such as an online logging system to manage the required services. Another key requirement was to make their data management more efficient, ensure social value and, of course, to achieve value for money in terms of both quality and price.

Due to the relatively small size of the Arts Council as an organisation, they previously found it difficult to appoint a supplier to provide FM services. On other tender exercises, the Arts Council received no bids due to a lack of supplier interest.

What was the Solution and Result?

The Facilities Management Marketplace provided by the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) incorporates a new lot aimed at supporting smaller government bodies. As such, ACE used the agreement to help them find a suitable supplier to deliver their needs. The agreement also aligned with the Arts Council’s social value aims, ensuring:

• Living wage paid by suppliers
• Supply chain opportunities for local SMEs
• Zero waste
• Appointment of apprentices and supporting placements to school children and young adults
• Recruitment of long–term unemployed labour and locally engaged labour
• Recruitment of young people not in education, employment or training
• Procurement and sourcing of sustainable, ethical and fair-trade services and products
• Community engagement

By using the FM Marketplace agreement, ACE has achieved a saving in excess of £220,000 over the term of their contract, based on price alone. CCS also provided support on contractual matters.

Zobair Mehmood, Head of Procurement at ACE commented:

“The support provided by the FM team at CCS made the procurement of the new contract very efficient and straightforward. I would definitely recommend using CCS for any procurement needs.”

Picture: A photograph of some empty theatre seating

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 27 August 2020

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