Discovery Stage to establish future delivery options for student finance in Wales

Tender description

Why the Work is Being Done Student Finance Wales (SFW) is a service provided by Student Loans Company (SLC) on behalf of Welsh Government. Based in Llandudno Junction, the SFW service is responsible for processing, assessing and paying student finance for applications from Welsh students. The operating model, infrastructure and ICT systems within SLC are under increasing pressure from the demands and complexity of supporting four UK governments. SLC is addressing this through its 2020 Strategy. The primary role of the service is to: • deliver financial support to eligible students pursuing higher and further education; • pay Higher Education Institutions public contribution towards tuition fees. Problem to Be Solved Discovery stage setting out the customer’s experience of the student finance service in Wales. Map the service - how does it operate now? What are the implications of setting up a new service? Is a new service needed or better to invest in the current service? Where should we invest? What will the impact of investment be on the customer journey? Service needs to be bilingual, flexible, streamlined, interactive and online; capable of quickly processing grant and loan applications. The service must deliver WG outcomes and provide value for money. The heart of the service should be located in Wales. Who Are the Users Mainly students (including disabled students) but also parents, partners and HE and FE providers. Proposals should include discussions with SFW customers to identify user requirements. Existing SLC Stakeholder Groups could also be consulted. The service must ensure that students: • understand level and type of student finance is available to them; • understand how to apply; • know what evidence to provide and can submit evidence easily and quickly; • can communicate quickly and effectively with the funding body; • can track the progress of applications; and • receive student funding promptly to enable them to undertake their studies. Early Market Engagement Work Already Done In 2016, Ed Lester (ex-CEO of Student Loans Company (SLC)) was procured by Welsh Government to carry out a review. He provided advice on alternative options for the delivery of Student Finance Wales (SFW). A combined Options Appraisal / Strategic Outline Case proposed a preferred option for a Discovery Phase (Option 1- build a Welsh system (in collaboration with a strategic partner)). The Lester Report is not published but can be made available to the succesful Supplier. The Discovery phase will look at this and other options. Existing Team Welsh Government - 2 members of the Higher Education SLC Sponsorship Team. The supplier will also be required to work with the Student Loans Company (SLC). There won't be a dedicated SLC technical team, but the successful supplier will have access to SLC teams and SLC will help in any way possible. SLC will need to agree a schedule, according to when their various teams and resources are available. Current Phase Discovery Work Location Wales - Cardiff and Llandudno Junction; England - Darlington and London, Scotland - Glasgow. Please note that travel will be required and costs should be included in any proposals. Working Arrangments It is anticipated that day-to-day contact will be via telephone and/or email, as required. The contractor will need to visit the Welsh Government’s offices in Cardiff for meetings, as agreed as well as visiting any of the Student Loans Company offices. The supplier will send weekly updates by email to the Client. Travel costs should be included in the overall proposal. Security Clearance The supplier MUST hold a Cyber Essentials Certificate and evidence will be requested prior to shortlisting. A Security Aspects Letter will be issued by the Client. ICT contractors with admin access to servers require SC clearance. SLC will request the contractor's clearance ID and validate it with the appropriate body. Additional T&Cs The Supplier shall be required to provide a signed copy of the Welsh Government Security Aspects Letter (Available upon request). The Letter sets out additional security requirements which supplement the Cyber Essentials Certificate. It is mandatory that suppliers demonstrate that they meet the technical requirements prescribed by the Cyber Essentials Scheme. The supplier MUST hold a Cyber Essentials Certificate and evidence will be requested prior to progressing to the next stage of the evaluation. Skills & Experience have experience of combining user research, service design and developer expertise have an understanding of how a service can best meet the needs of a diverse range of users have experience in leading and supporting business case development, cultural transformation and service redesign have experience of delivering services and/ or solutions in the public sector and Financial Services Market of similar size and complexity have experience of working on digital proceservices with public sector clients have current CyberEssentials certification have experience designing services for users with low digital literacy have experience of proposing technical solutions provide evidence of delivering similar projects Nice to Haves an understanding of student data and the potential for data linkage between any new system and existing data systems understanding of Welsh Public Sector Welsh Language requirements experience of working on multi-lingual applications No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria How the overall approach and methodology meets the requirements How well the proposal meets our organisation’s policy or goal How well the proposal identifies the risks and dependencies and offers approaches to manage them Details of resource capacity and delivery team structure How the proposal demonstrates value for money Cultural Fit Criteria Work as a team with the client and other interested parties. Share knowledge and experience with all project partners. Work well with clients with low technical expertise, explaining methods and findings using clear terminology. Payment Approach Capped time and materials Assessment Method Written proposal Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 60% Cultural fit 15% Price 25% Questions from Suppliers Budget range maximum budget of £80,000 (excluding vat). each proposal should set out the necessary resources and time commitments needed to achieve the work within the set budget and timeframe. budgets should to include travel costs ( slc has sites at glasgow, darlington and llandudno junction). solutions should have controls in place to minimise risk and verify compliance with policy and budgetary requirements. the controls should manage risks that could affect the successful operation of the system. rules should be applied to the solution relating to eligibility for student finance support.