CP1178-15 Business Support Framework

Local authorities across the Heart of the South West LEP area are committed to supporting businessesto prosper and grow. We recognise that good quality advice and support is one of the key ways to do this,encouraging people to start up, grow and be innovative in their business thinking. There are a wide variety of economic strategy documents relating to the geographies that make up the HOTSWarea, at district, county and unitary authority level. The LEP itself has distilled much of this information, toinform the development of its Strategic Economic Plan (SEP), which analyses the strengths, weaknesses andopportunities in the local economy and where further support may be required. All local authorities work closelywith the LEP to try and ensure that the work to support the local economy is well co-ordinated, structured andmakes sense to residents and businesses. When considering the business support needs of the area, it isimportant, therefore, to ensure that whatever is put in place takes account of local needs in each area, but alsothe strategic approach developed by the LEP and its partners. Further details of the analysis and conclusionscarried out by the LEP into the business support needs of the area are outlined within the tender documentation,and this has been used to inform the development of this tender framework, alongside local knowledge andintelligence of business needs.

Additional information: Devon County Council is using a secure (hosted) electronic tendering system through the Supplying the South West portal, www.supplyingthesouthwest.org.uk. New users must register first to obtain a user name and password before returning to this opportunity. Tenderers should refer to the help and user guides available suppliers guide ?Visiting Site for the First Time? by clicking the ?Help? button located on the header bar.

Suppliers interested in this opportunity should express their interest by clicking on the ?Register interest in this opportunity within the Business Opportunity Advert. Once suppliers have expressed their interest they can access the procurement/tender documentation from ?My Activities? on the home page or on the header bar.

Supplier user guides are available from the Help menu throughout the ProContract system. Suppliers are advised to make themselves familiar with the system prior to uploading Tenders by using the topics within the ?Help? menu located on the header bar of all pages.

In order to complete your electronic tender it must be downloaded to your system completed and uploaded using the response wizard to the correct area of www.supplyingthesouthwest.org.uk in accordance with the return instructions and the stated deadline for submission of responses.

Providers may wish to bid into one or all of the Lots, but we are looking for a range of providers to sit under each, ensuring comprehensive geographical coverage across the Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership area.