NW ‘Growth Hub’ to appoint single legal adviser for procurement support

The Cheshire & Warrington Growth Hub is looking to appoint a single legal services adviser to provide support its procurement team.

Run by Blue Orchid Enterprise Solutions and governed by the Cheshire & Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership, the Growth Hub delivers business support to new and growing businesses in the region.

It undertakes frequent procurement exercises and expects 20+ new procurements of new sizes each year. “The range of procurements vary widely from ‘off the shelf’ purchases to complex consultancy services,” the Growth Hub added.

The Growth Hub is in the process of completing a final application for the provision of the “Cheshire & Warrington Growth Hub and Grant Service”, a new ERDF  [European Regional Development Fund] programme to commence in the mid-2016.

The service required “comprises a range of legal services comprising procurement support compliant with EU and UK public procurement law and commercial contract advice services across the organisation”.

The chosen legal adviser will be expected to:

  • Provide ad-hoc telephone and email advice to the procurement team dealing with procurement queries as they may arise;
  • Review completed procurements as a desk exercise to ensure that historical procurements are compliant;
  • Work with the Growth Hub’s Procurement Team when developing large or complex procurements such as frameworks, dynamic purchasing systems, full above OJEU threshold tenders etc.;
  • Provide organisational wide training and update sessions on wider procurement;
  • Review and develop supplier contracts;
  • Provide advice and guidance in dealing with complaints/challenges or identified issues of non-compliance;
  • Undertake a general review and provide updates to ensure best practice and ensuring procurement adapts to changing legislation;
  • Draft terms and conditions of contract;
  • Review, advise on and draft procurement processes;
  • Provide wider generalist legal contract advice (“including for example, intellectual property advice”) that the Growth Hub may need from time to time.

The contract will run from 15 March 2016 to 31 March 2020.