1 We reviewed documentation and reports provided by the Bureau and the Home Office to gain an overview of:
■ why and how the Bureau was set up, the procurement process adopted and the main terms of the contract agreed between the Agency and Capita; and
■ the problems which the Bureau had faced during implementation and since operations started.
This review informed our questions in interviews with key players and stakeholders in the Bureau. We were assisted in this by members of the National Audit Office's Public and Private Partnerships team and Professor Andrew Davies of the Cranfield University, who is an expert in information systems and Public Private Partnerships in this area. We also drew on data provided by the Bureau to analyse performance in service delivery.
Documents we reviewed included:
Procurement
Outline Business Case
Final Business Case
Tender specification issued to bidders (Business Proposition)
Tender evaluation documentation (including Board Minutes)
Consultants Assurance report
Contractual
Contract between United Kingdom Passport and Records Agency and Capita
Consultation with stakeholders
Meeting notes of customer/stakeholder Forum
Police Part V Implementation Group Papers (A Police forum which considered how Part V of the Police Act 1997 would be implemented).
Notes of meetings with Scottish Executive
Policy and legal framework
User Requirement
Bureau policy documents
Legal advice on split between public and private sector
Implementation
Consultants' report on ten lessons from the National Audit Office Passport report
File of change requests
Documentation on the outcome of the Pilot
Service Delivery
Service Improvement Plan
Capita Improvement/Recovery plan