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AwardedFind a Tender · award

Critical Friend - Devolution Programme

Buyer: Essex County Council →

BuyerEssex County Council
StatusAwarded
DeadlineNot published
ValueValue not published
Published2 Jan 2026

What is being bought

The devolution programme team is bringing on external 'critical friends', experts who have been recruited through the company Solace. The purpose of this external critical friend is to independently assess the Devolution programme deliverables and outcomes to ensure that the new MCCA is fit for purpose and to review operational efficiency, compliance and performance outcomes to meet the objectives in the White paper. The assessment should provide recommendations for improvements or corrective actions. Actions will include: Review of Programme with CEOs/Leaders and WSLs. Review approach, strategy, operational, governance and deliverables. Review relationships and ambition with and between Greater Essex and the CA Review of programme governance and Governance approach for CCA , Constitution Strategic insights. Call on for advice/strategic insight as required by Sponsors. Targeted as needed Advise programme team on investment opportunities. Work with team to design investment opportunity options for Mayor Induction pack

Lot details

Lot 1

No lot description published.

Statuscomplete

Comparable-procurement analytics

No usable CPV category has been published, so a comparable market set cannot yet be built.

Procurement strategy & market signals

Framework agreementNot published
Dynamic purchasing systemNot published
Competitive procurementNot published
Recurring requirementNot published
Procurement method rationaleNot published
Rationale classificationsNot published
Special regimeNot published
Covered byNot published
Submission policyNot published
Selection criteriaNot published
Risk detailsNot published

Planning & early market engagement

BudgetNot published
No-engagement rationaleNot published
Planning documents0
Planning milestones0

No planning milestones published.

Related procurements

No linked framework, prior procurement or reprocurement published.

Awards

Contracts

1

Statusactive
Value£70,400

Documents & submission route

No documents are published in the current source record.

Source data inventory

Diagnostic view. “Not published” means this current release does not provide a value.

OCIDocds-h6vhtk-05fed0
Latest release ID000070-2026
Latest release timestampFri Jan 02 2026 15:22:51 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Sourcefind-a-tender
Official notice URLNot published
Tender statuscomplete
Procurement methodNot published
Procurement method detailsBelow threshold - unknown
Main procurement categoryNot published
Above thresholdNot published
Legal basis2023/54
Tender period: startNot published
Tender period: endNot published
Expression of interest deadlineNot published
Enquiry deadlineNot published
Award period: startNot published
Award period: endNot published
Submission method detailsNot published
Submission languagesNot published
Electronic catalogue policyNot published
Total tender valueNot published
Tender lots in source1
Tender items in source0
Tender documents in source0
Awards in latest release1
Contracts in latest release1
Parties in latest release2

Notice history

DateEventReference
2 Jan 2026award, contract000070-2026

All source data

Unmodified official OCDS data retained by Tenderline for this procurement process.

Complete current OCDS release JSON
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    "title": "Critical Friend - Devolution Programme",
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      "id": "2023/54",
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    "description": "The devolution programme team is bringing on external 'critical friends', experts who have been recruited through\nthe company Solace.\nThe purpose of this external critical friend is to independently assess the Devolution programme deliverables and\noutcomes to ensure that the new MCCA is fit for purpose and to review operational efficiency, compliance and\nperformance outcomes to meet the objectives in the White paper. The assessment should provide\nrecommendations for improvements or corrective actions.\nActions will include:\nReview of Programme with CEOs/Leaders and WSLs. Review approach, strategy, operational, governance and\ndeliverables.\nReview relationships and ambition with and between Greater Essex and the CA\nReview of programme governance and Governance approach for CCA , Constitution\nStrategic insights. Call on for advice/strategic insight as required by Sponsors. Targeted as needed\nAdvise programme team on investment opportunities.\nWork with team to design investment opportunity options for Mayor Induction pack",
    "procurementMethodDetails": "Below threshold - unknown"
  },
  "parties": [
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        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "6 Mitre Passage"
      },
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          "description": "Contract details notice on Find a Tender",
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      "dateSigned": "2025-09-29T00:00:00+01:00",
      "hasRenewal": true,
      "aboveThreshold": false
    }
  ],
  "initiationType": "tender"
}
Complete JSON history (1 releases)
2 Jan 2026 · 000070-2026 · award, contract
{
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      "status": "active",
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        {
          "id": "GB-FTS-170419",
          "name": "Solace"
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      "relatedLots": [
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      ],
      "mainProcurementCategory": "services"
    }
  ],
  "tender": {
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      "id": "2023/54",
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    },
    "description": "The devolution programme team is bringing on external 'critical friends', experts who have been recruited through\nthe company Solace.\nThe purpose of this external critical friend is to independently assess the Devolution programme deliverables and\noutcomes to ensure that the new MCCA is fit for purpose and to review operational efficiency, compliance and\nperformance outcomes to meet the objectives in the White paper. The assessment should provide\nrecommendations for improvements or corrective actions.\nActions will include:\nReview of Programme with CEOs/Leaders and WSLs. Review approach, strategy, operational, governance and\ndeliverables.\nReview relationships and ambition with and between Greater Essex and the CA\nReview of programme governance and Governance approach for CCA , Constitution\nStrategic insights. Call on for advice/strategic insight as required by Sponsors. Targeted as needed\nAdvise programme team on investment opportunities.\nWork with team to design investment opportunity options for Mayor Induction pack",
    "procurementMethodDetails": "Below threshold - unknown"
  },
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    {
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      "name": "Essex County Council",
      "roles": [
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        "region": "UKH36",
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        "locality": "Chelmsford",
        "postalCode": "CM1 1QH",
        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "County Hall, Market Road"
      },
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      }
    },
    {
      "id": "GB-FTS-170419",
      "name": "Solace",
      "roles": [
        "supplier"
      ],
      "address": {
        "region": "UKI51",
        "country": "GB",
        "locality": "London",
        "postalCode": "SE10 0ER",
        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "6 Mitre Passage"
      },
      "details": {
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      },
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      "awardID": "1",
      "renewal": {
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      "documents": [
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          "id": "000070-2026",
          "url": "https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/000070-2026",
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  "initiationType": "tender"
}