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Housing watchdog to set up £1m panel for regulatory legal services

The Homes and Communities Agency has announced plans for a £1m framework agreement for the provision of regulatory advice.

The move comes days after the HCA started the procurement of a four-year, £30m legal services framework to support its land, property and investment activities across England.

The regulatory framework will run from 1 May 2018 to 30 April 2022 and be divided into two lots:

  1. General: A general framework to deliver support on public / administrative law and regulatory law; charity law; and corporate, commercial and financial law. It is envisaged that between five and ten firms will be invited to participate further in the procurement process at the second stage. It is envisaged that four firms will be appointed to this Lot.
  2. Specialist: A specialist panel to deliver support on insolvency and/or special administration law. Between five and ten firms will be invited to participate further in the procurement process at the second stage. It is envisaged that three firms will be appointed to the specialist lot.

The HCA said: “The regulatory function is currently carried out through the Regulation Committee of the Homes and Communities Agency, independently of the HCA's other functions. The [framework] will provide a flexible legal resource to support delivery of the regulatory function and - after the establishment of that function within a separate organisation - to support the regulator as a corporate entity.”

It added that this advertised framework was only to support regulation, with the HCA setting up a different legal services framework to support its other, non-regulation, functions.

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