The Right to Challenge is a national process introduced through
the government's
Localism Act. It aims to make it easier for voluntary and
community groups or council employees to bid to run council
services.
The Right to Challenge enables eligible groups to express an
interest in running a local authority service. Allerdale Borough
Council must consider expressions of
interest and, where it accepts them, run a procurement exercise for the service which
anyone can compete in.
It is intended that the right will pave the way for communities
to help shape and run excellent local services. This could include
making local services more responsive to local needs, offering
additional social value outcomes, or delivering better value for
money. Under the new law, councils must respond to challenge and
consider the positive impact the proposal could have on the
community.
Who has the right to challenge?
The following groups are all eligible to express an interest in
bidding to run a particular Allerdale Borough Council service. The
Right to Challenge is open to 'relevant bodies' defined as:
- a voluntary or community body;
- a body of persons or a trust which is established for
charitable purposes only;
- a parish council;
- two or more employees of the relevant authority; or;
- any other person or body specified by the Secretary of State by
regulations.
The statutory guidance defines relevant bodies as the
following:
Voluntary body is a body that is not a public
or local authority, the activities of which are not carried out for
profit. It can generate a surplus provided it is used for the
purposes of its activities or invested in the community.
Community body is a body which is not a public
or local authority, the activities of which are primarily for the
benefit of the local community.
Further information is available on the regulations and guidance
for
Right to Challenge (external link).
Services open to Challenge
Right to Challenge applies to all of the services that Allerdale
Borough Council provides. The right only applies to the provision
of services, it does not provide for delegation of the functions of
a relevant authority. The responsibility for the function itself
remains with the relevant authority.
For services provided in-house or part in-house the Council has
set a defined time window for Expressions of Interest - the window
will run from 1 January to 31 March each year, starting in 2013.
Expressions of Interest can only be submitted within the time
window.
For services which are provided by someone else currently
(external provider), the Council will place a notification on this
website 12 months before the current contract ends to enable
relevant bodies time to submit expressions of interest.