How does the Community Right
to Challenge work?
If a community group, charity, parish council or group of staff
(of the Council) identify a service they would like to run, they
will need to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) form to the
Council. If the Council accepts the Expression of Interest,
it must run a procurement exercise for the service. The
interested group will then need to compete with others who may wish
to run the service.
The Community Right to Challenge is only one mechanism to help
communities get involved in the running of services. It may
not always be the best route for a group or community. If you
would like to discuss with us ways of improving our services, or
look at alternative models for service delivery, please contact us.
There are a range of options for working in partnership.
Which groups* can use the
Community Right to Challenge?
There are 4 broad categories of groups who can use the
Community Right to Challenge:
• Voluntary and community bodies
• Charities
• Parish/Town Councils
• Two or more employees of the Council
*Please note individuals are not allowed to submit an
Expression of Interest.
What legal structure is
needed?
If you are a voluntary or community organisation then any legal
structure, which can be shown to be 'not for profit', will be
eligible for submitting an EOI, or that your activities are
primarily for community benefit. However a legal structure,
which has limited liability status, is likely to be essential when
it comes to running the service.
Two or more SSDC staff can submit an EOI. If you are
already involved in delivering the service you wish to take over
you don't need to have a registered organisation at the point of
submitting an EOI. However, you would need to show that by
the time of the procurement exercise, you would establish a
suitable organisation to be able to run the service.
Further guidance on Legal Structures and Staff Mutuals can be
found on page 8 of the CLG Guidance
Which public
authorities must consider Expressions of Interest through the
Community Right to Challenge?
All relevant Authorities must consider expressions of interest.
The Localism Act lists which are relevant authorities:
• County Councils
• District Councils
• London Borough Councils
• Certain Fire and Rescue
Authorities
What services are relevant
to the Community Right to Challenge?
The Community Right to Challenge applies to all 'relevant
services' (which means all services provided by the Council, unless
listed as an exclusion).
Exclusions include individual packages of services for
continuing health and social care for named individuals with
complex needs, provided/commissioned by a Local Authority or NHS
body (or jointly).
Some services are excluded up until 1 April 2014. These
include services commissioned by a relevant Authority or NHS body,
in conjunction with one or more health services, or by an NHS body
acting on behalf of a relevant Authority.
It is the responsibility of the nominating group to identify the
full details of the service. We are unable to accept
Expressions of Interest where the service has not been clearly
identified. SSDC may be able to help with providing the
information you need; please allow us up to 8 weeks to supply the
relevant information.
The Community Right to Challenge does not include 'functions' of
the Local Authority. For example a function of the Council is
to grant or refuse planning permission, but the processing of
planning applications is a service.
EOIs can be submitted for only part of a service, or for
delivery in a specific geographic area within South Somerset.
When can an Expression of
Interest in taking over a service be submitted?
Councils may choose to specify periods during which Expressions
of Interest may be submitted for any relevant service. At
SSDC we will accept Expressions of Interest at any time during the
year.
How do we submit an
Expression of Interest (EOI)?
Expressions of Interest have to be in writing and must include
certain pieces of information. If you do not submit all
the necessary information we will be unable to consider your
application. You can download a copy of our Expression of Interest form here.
How long will it
take?
We will acknowledge receipt of your nomination within 30
calendar days. During or after this time we will contact you
for further information and discuss your proposal. If your
EOI is eligible, we aim to consider it within 6 months. All
eligible EOIs will be considered by SSDC's District Executive,
which meets monthly. We will notify you of the date of the
meeting and notify you of any decisions made within 30 days of the
meeting.
Follow this link for a
diagram to explain our process.
What happens if my EOI is
accepted?
If your EOI is accepted, the Council is then bound by law to
undertake a procurement exercise. The time taken to begin
this will depend on the service and the way it's delivered.
What happens if my EOI is
rejected?
We will notify you if your proposal is not eligible.
Details of grounds whereby an EOI may be rejected can be found in
Section 6 of the CLG Community Right to Challenge Statutory
Guidance
Will my proposal be
considered as part of the procurement exercise?
No, once the procurement exercise is underway all potential
bidders will be treated the same. The process of expressing
an interest does not give the nominating body any preferential
rights once the procurement exercise begins. The legislation
does not restrict who the Council can transfer the service to.
It does not guarantee that the community will be able to take
over the running of the service. Please read SSDC's
Procurement Strategy for further information.
We want to take over a
service; can we recruit and use our own staff to run
it?
You will need to get specialist advice on this. There are
regulations (Transfer of Undertakings - Protection of Employment or
'TUPE') which apply to decide whether or not Local Authority staff
have the right to transfer if the service is run by another
organisation. There is further information on TUPE can be
found using this link to
ACAS.
What do I do next if I'm
thinking of submitting an EOI?
We encourage all interested organisations to contact us before
submitting an EOI. Contact details are at the bottom of the
page.
Some simple guidance on the Community
Right to Challenge has been produced by the Government published
guidance on the Community Right to Challenge.
For organisations wishing to take advantage of the new Community
Rights listed in the Localism Act, the Government has established a
range of support including funds for communities to develop their
proposals. The Social Investment Business, in partnership
with Locality and the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary
Organisations, will deliver a 3-year support programme worth
£11.5million. The programme will include a dedicated advice
telephone line where support and information will be
available. It will also include grants to help groups to use
the new Right and bid to run local public services, resources and
case studies.
We strongly recommend that you read the Communities and
Local Government Community Right to Challenge Statutory Guidance
and contact us before you consider submitting an Expression of
Interest.
You can contact us at communities@southsomerset.gov.uk
or by post: Communities, South Somerset
District Council, The Council Offices, Brympton Way, Yeovil BA20
2HT