NCA21335 Aspire Cash Service

Tender description

The University of Edinburgh has awarded a contract to JS Group, for provision of their ASPIRE Cash service, allowing the University to dispense imbursements to students experiencing hardship, in the form of cash, vouchers and draw-down funds. This is a 12-month contract with an optional further 1 x 12-month extension. This is a pilot contract aimed at testing the value of utilising the Aspire service to facilitate hardship payments to students with minimum delay. It is intended that this will also free up internal resource and allow measurement of the true extent of our requirement. It should be noted that the contract value is an estimate, based on a flat % fee per transaction. Actual contract value may be significantly lower if the uptake of this payment service during the pilot period. A value of GBP110,000 has been used, but this applies only in the case of exercising a 12-month extension, and assumes maximum uptake. Real figure expected to be significantly lower, particularly in the initial 12 months period. Lot 1: A contract award is a 12 month subscription to the ASPIRE Cash service from JS Group. This allows the University to dispense imbursements to students experiencing hardship, in the form of cash, vouchers and draw-down funds. An optional further 1 x 12-month extension is included. This is a pilot, aimed meeting the immediate need while testing the uptake of a facility to process these unusual payments with minimum delay, freeing up internal resource and allowing measurement of uptake and development of a future ITT. It should be noted that the contract value is an estimate, based on a flat % fee per transaction. Actual contract value may be significantly lower if the uptake of this payment service during the pilot period.. NB. it is possible, and likely at this stage, that uptake will be far smaller than we have allowed for in the award value. Should the contract uptake prove to be higher than anticipated the University will accelerate plans to prepare an ITT and opent to competition as soon as possible.