All local authorities are subject to a duty to secure continuous improvements in the delivery of their services, having regard to a combination of economy, efficiency and effectiveness. This is often referred to as their "best value duty".
When an Authority appoints a Contractor to perform waste management services on its behalf under a PFI/PPP contract, the Authority still remains subject to this best value duty in respect of those services. The Authority will therefore want to be sure that the Contractor acts in such a way that is consistent with its best value duty.
For this reason, the WIDP Contract (Clause 35 and Schedule 15) contains provisions which impose a duty on the Contractor to secure best value when performing the Services. Other key features of the WIDP Contract best value drafting are as follows:-
• Cooperation and Assistance: the Contractor is required to help the Authority in relation to audits, inspections and data reporting. The Contractor also has to allow access to the Facility, the Contractor's documents or personnel as necessary.
• Annual Reporting: the Contractor is required to report to the Authority on the Services once a year in an Annual Services Report. The Contract Management Manual should highlight the date on which the Annual Services Report is due in every contract year. The Authority can comment on the report and any supporting evidence and it may ask for a change to the way the Services are delivered by issuing a Best Value Services Change Notice. In response, the Contractor must produce an Annual Services Plan, which sets out its proposals for giving effect to the Authority's desired change. The Contractor and Authority then discuss matters with a view to agreeing the final terms of the Annual Services Plan. The Contractor must mitigate its costs and maximise any savings in this context. If agreed, the Authority must then send an Authority Change Notice to the Contractor, which brings into play the provisions of the Change Protocol.
• Performance Standards benchmarking exercise: the WIDP Contract contains optional drafting for Authorities to compare certain Performance Standards against those of a comparator group (as will have been agreed before Contract signature). If, following this benchmarking exercise, the Authority considers that the relevant Performance Standards can be improved, the Authority can issue a Best Value Services Change Notice and the above provisions on agreeing and documenting such a change would then apply.
The Contract Management Team should be aware that the best value legislation and related performance framework have undergone significant change in recent years. The Contract Manager should involve the Authority's legal department when considering how to apply the contractual Best Value provisions in the light of the current position at law. It may be that certain provisions are no longer applicable and need not be imposed by the Authority. Where this is the case the position should be highlighted in the Contract Management Manual.