Accounting and auditing services

Tender description

The Legal Aid Agency (‘LAA’) is looking for organisations which may be interested in future market engagement activities in relation to the re-procurement of the LAA's quality management system, Specialist Quality Mark (‘SQM’). This is not a call for competition. Compliance with a recognised quality standard (currently either the SQM Specialist Quality Mark or Lexcel, The Law Society's practice management standard) is a requirement for providers of legal services that have, or are seeking to obtain, an LAA contract to deliver publicly funded legal advice services. The LAA will soon launch a procurement process with the purpose of awarding a contract (or contracts) for the delivery of the SQM service from Jan 2017. If you are interested in any future market engagement in relation to this procurement please email civiltenders@legalaid.gsi.gov.uk by close of business on the 20.5.2016. The SQM is primarily an organisational standard, designed to ensure that providers of specialist legal advice services are well run and provide good client care. The SQM gives assurance regarding quality of advice by means of several proxies which, whilst not direct measures of quality, are fundamental to reliable delivery of a quality service. Key requirements include supervision and file review. A service concession contract for the auditing, awarding and distributing of the SQM to providers was awarded in 2010 and comes to an end shortly. The LAA will soon launch a procurement process to award a new contract (or contracts) for the delivery of the SQM service from Jan 2017. If you are interested in any future market engagement in relation to this procurement please email civiltenders@legalaid.gsi.gov.uk by 20.5.2016.