It is important that community benefit requirements included in the specification should be incorporated into the final contract terms.
Sufficient resource should also be allocated by the public body to ensure there is relevant and proportionate monitoring of intended outcomes as part of on-going contract and supplier management.
There should be intent on the part of the public body to effectively record progress made against each intended outcome which can be included as standing items in regular contract review meetings.
This helps to ensure that commitments by the winning bidder(s) on community benefits are monitored for progress and implemented in the agreed timescale within the duration of the contract. This is vital to demonstrate whether intended outcomes have been delivered and to identify lessons for further development or other contracts.
A public body should collect appropriate information to enable the reporting of community benefits within regulated procurements in line with the Act as explained earlier in this guidance.
See the Annex for examples.
