Details of Serco’s £118m Lambeth deal emerge

Lambeth agreed to award Serco the contract, which began on 1 October 2021, in February 2021 (see letsrecycle.com story).

While the initial six-year deal is worth £118.7 million, the contract notice shows the partnership could be extended up to a maximum of a further eight years.

The contract could be worth an estimated £277 million if it was extended to last the full 14-year period, the contract notice shows.

Lambeth received two tenders for the contract, the contract notice shows, neither of which were from SMEs.

Waste management company Veolia previously held the contract to deal with Lambeth’s waste.

Lambeth’s decision to award Serco the contract proved controversial, with parties such as local community groups and the borough’s Green Party citing concerns about issues including the part the outsourcing firm played in the government’s “test and trace” system.

‘Delighted’

A spokesperson for Lambeth council told letsrecycle.com there had been an “unintentional delay” in posting the award on the EU’s contract portal which has been resolved.

Since 1 October 2021, our team has done a great job of transitioning us into this contract

• Mark Stammers, regional director, Serco

Mark Stammers, regional director for Serco, said: ‘We are delighted to have been selected as the new service provider for Lambeth council. Since 1 October 2021, our team has done a great job of transitioning us into this contract while maintaining the quality of service that residents are accustomed to.

“By utilising a growing number of fully electric refuse collection vehicles, and with the roll-out of collections for new waste streams, we look forward to delivering an ever more environmentally friendly service for Lambeth.”

Lambeth

The contractual arrangements cover an “expanded” recycling and reuse service, including the collection of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), batteries and textiles, as well as rolling out food waste collections to 3,000 homes.

Lambeth says Serco committed to paying staff the London Living Wage or above.

And, the council said Serco scored highest on both price and quality, saving Lambeth around £2 million each year.

Representing an estimated population of nearly 330,000, the London borough of Lambeth had a household waste recycling rate of 36.4% in the 2020/21 financial year.