Business and management consultancy and related services

Tender description

The Solent LEP, through its accountable body Portsmouth City Council, is inviting tenders from suitably qualified companies to provide a ‘one stop shop’ component of a Business Support Hub. The Solent LEP is seeking to deploy funding being made available through the Solent Growth Deal for the provision of the one stop shop component of a Solent Business Support Hub in the 2016/17 and 2017/18 period, to ensure momentum is maintained. This invitation to tender is seeking a provider of a Solent Business Support Hub one stop shop for this period. Contract awards will be made on a circa 2 year basis, however, applicants should note that year 2 of the contract will be subject to satisfactory provision of all year 1 deliverables and final contract documentation will include a break clause to reflect this. The Invitation to Tender and supporting information can be obtained from the Council's InTend e-sourcing solution: https://in-tendhost.co.uk/portsmouthcc/aspx/home The Solent Business Support Hub one stop shop service for 2016/17 — 2017/18 will need to provide the following range of services to Solent Businesses and Entrepreneurs: — Act as a single point of contact through which all enterprises, including social enterprises, will be able to access advice and information on local and national support programmes. — Help enterprises to become ‘finance ready’, with strong business plans capable of attracting finance from banks, business angels, equity finance, Solent LEP funding programmes and our Access to Finance initiative (set out in the EUSIF Strategy). — Make appropriate referrals, where beneficial. — Assist new business start-ups. — Help businesses to expand into new markets, making referrals to UKTI and local Inward Investment Services for the Solent LEP area — Assist SMEs to help develop and implement strategies focused on: o e-commerce and the extension of markets, nationally and internationally; and o improving the efficiency of business processes, through the activities such as web-based invoicing, cloud computing, borderless collaboration and flexible/remote working. — Appropriate and clear signposting to content and tools on GOV.UK and GREATbusiness.gov.uk will be available on the website and at business support events — Signpost specific advice to innovative companies, drawing on the area Higher Education Institutions and InnovateUK.