To seek approval for a four month extension to the Sensory Impairment service in Herefordshire.

The service is currently operating under an extended contract period. It was hoped that this service would be aligned to the sensory pathway being reviewed by the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), however timescales for this do not currently align and adequate time is required to enable commissioners to hold a full competitive open tender for the service.  

That:

(a)   the existing contract with Hereford Vision Links for the sensory impairment service be extended for a further 4 months from 30 September to 31 January 2019 at a cost of £30k and;

(b)   the service is recommissioned through an open tender competition process to commence as detailed in paragraph 23 with the new service to commence from 1 February 2019 to 2 February 2022 to an expected maximum contract value of £430k (please note that the equipment element cannot be capped and it may exceed this value).

1.     The service is not recommissioned and the contract ends. This is not recommended as the provision of a sensory impairment service for visually impaired and for those blind and deaf is a legal requirement for the council as is the maintenance of blind register.

2.     The service is taken in house. This is not recommended as a recent soft market test has indicated market interest in the delivering the service.