TMBC Jadu Website and Customer Portal

Direct Award Justification

Existing Supplier Extension - Schedule 5, Procurement Act 2023

Additional or repeat goods, services or works - extension or partial replacement

This Direct Award is made in accordance with Schedule 5 of the Procurement Act 2023 (paragraph 19(3)).

Paragraph 19(3) provides that a direct award may be made where, treating the new contract as a modification of an existing contract, the modification is of a kind described in paragraph 4 of Schedule 8 (unforeseeable circumstances).

Paragraph 4 of Schedule 8 provides that a modification is a permitted modification where:

(a) the circumstances giving rise to the modification could not reasonably have been foreseen by the contracting authority prior to award of the contract;

(b) the modification does not change the overall nature of the contract; and

(c) the modification does not increase the estimated value of the contract by more than 50 per cent.

The Authority currently contracts with NEC Software Solutions for the provision of the Jadu website platform and customer portal, with Jadu operating as a sub‑contractor. Following the acquisition of Jadu by Netcall plc, NEC Software Solutions has confirmed its intention to withdraw as the prime contractor in May 2026. The Authority is therefore required to contract directly with Jadu to ensure the continued delivery of the platform and associated services. This change in supplier arrangements was not foreseeable at the time of the original contract award.

Alternative procurement routes, including G‑Cloud 14, were considered. However, pricing available through the framework was assessed as materially less favourable and cost‑prohibitive and would not represent value for money when compared with a direct contractual arrangement to continue the existing services.

A change of supplier or platform at this stage would require a full re‑implementation of the website and customer portal, including redevelopment of Council online services, migration of content and data, and re‑integration with existing systems. This would result in significant inconvenience and disproportionate technical difficulty. The Authority considers that the proposed extension does not alter the overall nature of the contract, as the same services will continue to be provided on substantially the same terms.

The Authority is operating within the framework of emerging Local Government reorganisation, which has led to uncertainty regarding future service delivery and governance structures. Given these circumstances, the Authority deems it inadvisable to alter any critical Enterprise customer-facing systems or to undertake long-term contractual obligations at present.

The Authority confirms that the increase in the estimated value of the contract does not exceed 50 per cent