Upon expiry of the Contract, the services will be "handed back" to the Board and the Board will take over responsibility for the Facilities. The Contract requires that at the expiry date the Facilities are in a condition which is:-
33.1 consistent with the Contractor complying with its services obligations (e.g. have been maintained as envisaged in the Services Level Specification); and
33.2 consistent with them having been designed and constructed as required by the Board's Construction Requirements
(together remain as the "Handback Requirements"). The Board should ensure therefore that the Handback Requirements are clearly set out in the Board Construction Requirements and as a minimum, all components of the Physical Facet should meet Condition B of the Estatecode. The Contract contains a procedure for ensuring that the Facilities comply with the Handback Requirements.
It is the Contractor's responsibility to bring the Facilities up to the required standard prior to the expiry of the Contract. The Board may deduct money from the Contractor's Service Payment to form a "sinking fund" to guard against the possibility that it does not do so. Alternatively, the Board may require that the Contractor provides a "bond" from a third party (such as a bank or insurer) guaranteeing to the Board that sufficient money is available to rectify any deficiencies should the Contractor not resolve them.