The Corporation of the City of London, as the policing body for the City of London Police, was granted responsibility for the delivery of the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s National Cybercrime Programme. This necessitated the acquisition of a diverse range of new capabilities. The Corporation therefore approached Bloom’s extensive marketplace of specialist professional services, with a view of rapidly engaging a capable supplier of legal, regulatory, and compliance services.
Challenge
The Corporation’s new responsibilities would entail a number of challenges. These concerned machine learning and AI, multi-agency data sharing, and managing suppliers of new technologies that were based overseas. A series of procurements on behalf of all UK police forces and wider law enforcement agencies were also required, to equip them with the capabilities necessary to tackle the evolving cyber threat.
To support this work, it was necessary to augment the capacity of the existing team and to source senior-level expertise. They’d need to be able to adapt to meet demand in the long-term, to provide appropriate advice and implement best practice compliance arrangements.
Solution
Bloom uniquely delivers the NEPRO³ framework, allowing us to rapidly source appropriate suppliers for our customers. Our managed approach to procurement also minimises internal resource requirements for the customer. It addresses each aspect of the procurement process, rapidly identifying suitable suppliers in a compliant manner. This allowed us to address the Corporation’s precise needs whilst meeting its tight timeframes.
Bloom’s versatile marketplace enabled the Corporation to identify and swiftly engage a specialist supplier of legal, regulatory and compliance services of sufficient calibre to meet the Programme’s needs. As the chosen supplier would need to provide support to meet demand over a sustained period, and at a competitive price, Handley Gill Limited was ultimately chosen to provide the required services.
The Corporation would need to reduce its exposure to inflation pressures in relation to the project price. A lock in rate was, therefore, implemented. It was also crucial that additional resource could be acquired at short notice during periods of high demand.
Outcome
The Corporation was able to attract high level expertise from Handley Gill Limited, which transformed the Programme’s approach to legal and regulatory compliance, as well as wider human rights and ethical governance considerations. Translating complex legal concepts into practical requirements and solutions, suitable for a team of officers and staff with little previous legal and commercial experience, has ensured that the Programme has maintained its ability to deliver promptly on its objectives while appropriately managing, identifying, and implementing necessary safeguards.
Handley Gill Limited provided a ‘cradle to grave’ level of support. This encompassed Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs), in addition to transfer impact and equality impact assessments. Additional support covered drafting privacy notices and cookie policies, providing input to draft business cases and tender specifications, evaluating tenders, drafting and negotiating data processing agreements and wider contracts, advising on draft legislation, establishing governance mechanisms, and responding to data subject and third party enquiries and complaints.
The additional resource provided by Handley Gill’s consultants has been integrated effectively with existing teams and was secured for a fraction of the commercial cost. The Programme has been enabled to deliver several multi-million-pound national projects, including projects offering services directly to the public. These included Police CyberAlarm and the Cyber Resilience Centres.
Additional value was also realised by embedding the resource within the team. For example, by having the consultant attend team meetings, Handley Gill was able to identify blind spots and propose solutions to limit liability and/or improve outcomes without detracting from overall goals. It also allowed them to decisively support wider policy initiatives and legislative proposals.
Bloom remains committed to providing the public sector with innovative procurement solutions that centre social value. We continue to champion SMEs, delivering both savings and value for money for the public sector.
To find out more, or to discuss your requirements in more detail, please contact us or email us at enquires@bloom.services
