The Way Forward A national framework for the affordable housing sector that provides a suite of property related

services.
What is the Hub? The Hub is a United Kingdom wide Framework designed to suit the needs of the affordable housing sector. The Hub was established and is managed by Places for People a leading organisation in the affordable housing sector. The Hub was tendered in full compliance with the requirements of The Public Contracts Regulations, 2006. Objective Our objective is to offer quality Services meeting the aspirations and business needs of each member. By offering a range of fully compliant Professional Services we can offer our Members value for money and reduce the time and cost of procuring consultancy support. Members equally have the flexibility of using the Hub Framework as and when they require it and the opportunity to influence the Services provided to ensure these reflect their current and changing needs. We do not charge Members to join the Hub and aim to make joining simple and straightforward. Value for Money Places for People awarded the Hub to Savills and Trowers & Hamlins, two leading consultancy firms, following an extensive open competitive procurement process. We are satisfied that we can offer value for money to our Members, and will continue to benchmark our fee levels on a regular basis. A number of our Members have recently evaluated the benefits of the Hub against other frameworks, and decided as a result to join and obtain the benefits that we offer.

Become a Member We aim to make joining the Hub as simple and inexpensive as possible.
Does it cost to join ?

No - unlike a number of similar procurement clubs and consortia, we do not charge Members a joining fee. The process of joining is simple and straightforward. Once you have decided to join, contact us and we will send you a Joining Pack containing all of the information you need to become a Member including: Joining Agreement Fee Schedule Duty of Care Report and Warranty Framework Agreement between Places for People and Savills.

Once you are ready simply complete and sign the Joining Agreement and the Duty of Care Report and Warranty, (if you choose to obtain this from Trowers & Hamlins) and return these to us. You will then be registered as a Member and can begin to access all of the Services we offer as and when you need them for the next four years.

To join or to obtain further information contact:

Bill Byfield Savills

A national framework for the affordable housing sector that provides a suite of property related professional services.

Phone Office 0207 409 8737 Mobile 07770 702 461 bbyfield@savills.com
Sandy Livingstone Savills

Phone Office as above Mobile 07870 999 642 slivingstone@savills.com

Katie Saunders Trowers & Hamlins

Phone Office 0161 838 2071 Mobile 07789 98 2123 ksaunders@trowers.com

Stock Condition Surveys Asset Management Property Valuation New Build and Development Client Agent Investment Planning

Professional Services Hub

Professional Services Hub Completing the Jigsaw

Our Members require first class comprehensive advice to allow them to achieve their goals and objectives. The Hub offers the solution by providing Services from Savills and Trowers & Hamlins, two leading consultancy firms in the affordable housing sector, and by offering the widest possible range of Services to our members. The Hub provides the solution covering 31 property related Services summarised below: Development Services Stock Condition Surveys Property and Valuation Services Asset Management Strategies Legal Services Option Appraisals Investment Planning Procurement Partnering Advice Planning Master - Planning Land/House Sales and Marketing Programme Management of Housing Investment Architecture & Land Architecture Engineering Cost Management / Quantity Surveying and Employers Agent Repairs and Maintenance Procurement and Health-checks Resource Planning and Service Structures

Why join the Hub?

The Hub was tendered in full compliance with the requirements of The Public Contracts Regulations, 2006. The Contract Notice specifically defined the Framework as a Professional Services Hub open to all Affordable Housing Landlords in the United Kingdom with an upper limit of 50m for four years from 1st April 2010. What are the benefits? Membership of the Hub removes the management time and expense that would otherwise be incurred by Affordable Housing Landlords when commissioning Services through the OJEU. Drawing down Services through the Hub is fully compliant with the Public Contracts Regulations, 2006. As you would expect a full Duty of Care Report and Warranty from Trowers & Hamlins is available to prospective Members for a reduced fee of 500, alternatively a full due diligence pack is available. We offer holistic advice and Services from market leading firms thereby avoiding the need to create and mould a team of different consultants. The expense of tendering cuts both ways. By removing the time and expense of tendering we are able to offer the same quality Services for preferential rates. In addition to preferential rates and first class Services, Members will receive regular briefing notes providing updates from Savills / Trowers & Hamlins on key issues affecting their organisations. Newsletters will be issued providing an opportunity for all of our Members to contribute, share best practice and keep in touch with the latest developments. We recognise that different Members will have different needs. Ensuring national coverage with a local focus is essential to us. Regional Hub Boards comprising members will be created over the course of the first year. These Regional Boards will review the Services on offer and influence the nature and shape of any new Services going forward.

How will I get the service I want?

Our Members are looking for us to set clear service standards, to measure our performance against these standards, and to drive continuous improvement. By way of an example, our core service standards for joining the Hub and commissioning work Service Standard timescales for joining the Hub are set out below: Joining Agreement logged and confirmation issued Member Client Brief logged and issued to Savills / Trowers & Hamlins Savills / Trowers & Hamlins provide proposal Client acceptance of proposal 3 days 2 days 5 days 3 days

We will jointly measure each Members performance and service quality against a defined set of Key Performance Indicators. Members will also have the opportunity to comment on the Services they receive as part of our quality management system, and be able to influence the future type and delivery of Services.

Four Steps to a First Class Service We recognise that each Member will have individual needs in relation to the Services they require. We have developed Service Descriptions that reflect the anticipated service needs of Members. There is flexibility however to adjust or augment those Services to match your individual needs. Once you have become a Member accessing consultancy support is a straightforward and speedy process. 1. 2. Member develops a Client Brief. Savills / Trowers & Hamlins provide a Proposal based on the Hub Fee Schedule adjusted as required to match the Services required by the Client Brief. Member confirms agreement to Proposal (with approval by their Board as appropriate); Member issues letter confirming the Commission start date.

Affordable Housing Landlords increasingly require that their consultants understand all aspects of their business and can provide an integrated range of Services.

The Hub offers quality services and value for money, plus flexibility for Members to use whatever service they wish within the four year life of the Framework.

3. 4.

Once these stages are complete the work will be fully warranted by Savills / Trowers & Hamlins. Any variations and extensions to a commission will be dealt with in the same manner.