Procurement Act and Consumer Standards covered in AMIP meeting

The June meeting of Asset Management Improvement Partnership (AMIP) took place at The Kia Oval and focused on the Procurement Act, which comes into force on 28 October, and the new Consumer Standards, which were effective as of 1 April 2024.

Echelon Group CEO Mathew Baxter opened the meeting, which was attended by 125 people, before welcoming a series of speakers talking about the Procurement Act.

Dr Steven Brunning, Head of Public Procurement at Anthony Collins Solicitors, was first to the stage, giving a presentation on the new rules for frameworks and dynamic markets.

He was followed by Kris Kelliher, Partner at Devonshires, who covered the increased focus on the contract stage under the new regulations. While they aim to speed up procurement in many ways they will lead to an increase in administration and the need for more resources, he said.

Stuart Brown, Senior Associate in the public procurement team at Trowers & Hamlins LLP focused on increased transparency and changes to bidder feedback in his presentation.

The trio were then joined by Andy Clorley, Head of Commercial Transactions at The Hyde Group; and Mathew Baxter, Chief Executive Officer of the Echelon Group for a Q&A chaired by Jane Nelson, Chief Operating Officer at Cardo Group.

The panel were asked to outline the three biggest changes for clients, and then contractors and suppliers, under the new regulations. There was also some discussion around KPIs social value and finally, the panel focused on what the sector should be doing to get ready, including training.

After lunch the focus switched to the Consumer Standards, with a session from Anne-Marie Bancroft, Head of Consumer Regulation at Altair, who talked about consumer regulation and changes for residents post-Grenfell.

The final session was led by Julie Butterworth, Head of Consultancy at Tpas England, who talked about the Tpas National Engagement Standards & alignment with the Consumer Regulations.

She was joined by John Scarr, Resident Involvement Manager for Wakefield & District Housing, which has Tpas exemplar accreditation, who talked about its accreditation journey.

During the lunchbreak, guests had the opportunity to join guided tours of the grounds, including a peek at the world’s oldest attributed cricket bat, Honours Boards and pitch side access.