SS16027 - Kent and Medway Growth Hub

Background Kent County Council (the Council) is the largest local authority in England covering an area of 3,500 square kilometres. It has an annual expenditure of over £1bn on goods and services and a population of 1.3m.

The Council provides a wide range of personal and strategic services on behalf of its residents, operating in partnership with 12 district councils and 289 parish/town councils. Opportunity The Council is the accountable body for the Kent and Medway Growth Hub, receiving funding from Government via the LEP to provide the service.

The Council is seeking to contract with a provider or a consortium of providers to manage and run the Kent and Medway Growth Hub. Growth Hubs Growth Hubs are locally based, Government-backed services linked to the National Business Support Helpline.

They enable businesses to access local and national business support. Government funding for Growth Hubs is made available via the 39 Local Enterprise Partnerships.

A full list of existing Growth Hubs can be found at https://www.lepnetwork.net/growth-hubs/. Growth Hubs in the South East Local Enterprise Partnership Area The South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) covers Kent and Medway, Essex, Southend, Thurrock and East Sussex.

It is the largest Local Enterprise Partnership in England. The South East LEP (via Essex County Council as its accountable body) receives funding from Government for a Growth Hub.

The South East LEP operates a federal model, with local partnerships for each economic area within the LEP. For Kent and Medway, this is the Kent and Medway Economic Partnership (KMEP).

More information about SELEP and KMEP can be found at www.southeastlep.com and www.kmep.org.uk. The Growth Hub for the South East LEP area reflects this federal model, with separately-procured and managed services in Kent and Medway, Essex and East Sussex.

A central 'landing page' (www.southeastbusiness.org.uk) directs customers to the relevant service. The Current Kent and Medway Growth Hub Service A pilot Kent and Medway Growth Hub service commenced in November 2015, is operational until November 2016 and will be replaced by the new service set out in this specification.

The current service can be accessed at www.kentandmedwaygrowthhub.org.uk. Earlier this year, the South East LEP commissioned an evaluation of the Kent and Medway Growth Hub and the other hubs in Essex and East Sussex.

This specification seeks to take account of the findings of the evaluation. A copy of the evaluation report can be found in Annex 1 of Schedule 2 (Specification).

Additional Details The contract is anticipated to commence upon 01 November 2016 and will continue for a period of 24 months, unless terminated in accordance with the Conditions of Contract on the Kent Business Portal. Further background and technical information can be found within the tender documentation.

Additional information: Instructions to Suppliers: Expressions of interest will only be accepted via the Kent Business Portal. Note that in order to successfully submit your interest you will first need to register for an account.

After registration is complete and you've received your login details you should return to the advert for the opportunity (on the Kent Business Portal) and express your interest. You will then be emailed an invitation to submit a tender.