Support Contract for EFG Portal

Tender description

Provision of the development resources to build and support Guarantees Portal software which is used to register loans that BBB have provided guarantees for including the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans. The current scope for these requirements covers CBILS 2.0 and the Claims and Arrears process Lot 1: At short notice in March 2020, BBB was designated by HM Treasury as the body responsible for administering the Coronavirus Business Interruption Scheme, the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Scheme, and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme ("Coronavirus Loan Schemes"). BBB required certain software support and development services at extremely short notice to handle the requirements of the Coronavirus Loan Schemes. There was not enough time to carry out a competitive procurement in accordance with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 ("PCR 2015"), but BBB concluded that regulation 32(2)(c) permitted it to contract directly with Thoughtbot. Thoughtbot was already providing similar services to BBB in connection with the Enterprise Finance Guarantee ("EFG") Scheme. BBB therefore contracted with Thoughtbot so that the software solution being used for the EFG Scheme could be adapted to support the Coronavirus Loan Schemes. The Coronavirus Loan Schemes were each intended to be open for applications for a period of six months. The Coronavirus Loan Schemes have since been extended due to further unforeseen developments in the context of the pandemic forcing further suppression of social and commercial freedoms. In particular, on 17 December 2020 the Chancellor announced that the Coronavirus Loan Schemes had been extended to 31 March 2021. Accordingly, BBB will require technical support (i) for applications for financial support up to at least 31 March 2021 and (ii) in connection with the management of the portfolio of loans for at least five years. As a result, BBB has concluded that it needs to continue contracting with Thoughtbot to avoid any interruption to the Coronavirus Loan Schemes.