13. Waivers

13.1

The requirement for the Council to conduct a competitive purchasing process for contracts in excess of £10,000 may be waived in the following circumstances.

13.1.1	For contracts which are not subject to the EU Rules, the work, supply or service is required as a matter of urgency and a delay would be likely to lead to financial loss, personal injury or damage to property; or
13.1.2	the circumstances set out in the Public Contract Regulations 2006 Regulation 14 apply (whether or not the contract is of a type which is subject to the application of the EU Rules); or
13.1.3	the contract is awarded under a Purchasing Scheme of a type where a competition has already been undertaken on behalf of the Council; or
13.1.4	at the discretion of the relevant Senior Manager who may proceed in a manner most expedient to the efficient management of the service/Council with reasons recorded in writing.

13.2

A Responsible Officer who seeks a waiver of Contract Standing Orders, shall do so only in advance and only in exceptional circumstances. Further guidance on what may constitute exceptional circumstances permitting waiver of these Contract Standing Orders is set out in the Council’s Purchasing Guide.

13.3

All waivers from these Contract Standing Orders must be:

13.3.1	Fully documented
13.3.2	Subject to a written report in an approved format, available on the intranet, to be submitted in advance to the relevant Senior Manager which shall include reasons for the waiver which demonstrate that the waiver is genuinely required
13.3.3	Subject to approval in advance by the Section 151 Officer who shall record that they have considered the reasons for the waiver and that they are satisfied that the circumstances justifying the waiver are genuinely exceptional. Applications for waivers which are a result of poor contract planning will rarely be considered genuinely exceptional.
13.3.4	Subject to periodic report to Cabinet by Procurement and Contracts Unit and retrospective waivers will also be reported via Governance & Audit Committee

13.4

All decisions on waivers must take into account:

13.4.1	Probity
13.4.2	Best value/value for money principles.

13.5

For contracts subject to the EU Rules, any waiver from the requirement for competition must meet the conditions set out in the EU Rules in addition to the general requirements above.

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