Insurance contracts are due for renewal from 01 April 2026. The timetable for consideration of options and completion of the renewal exercise means that evaluation will not take place until January-February 2026 and if a full tender exercise is undertaken the contract award needs to be made by early March 2026. This will not leave sufficient time for a report to be prepared in time for any financial implications on the insurance budget to be assessed for inclusion in the 2026/27 budget.

It is therefore proposed that the Leader of the Council authorises the procurement process and delegates authority to the Service Director for Finance to award the contract, where they would not already have the authority to do so, to ensure the provision of insurance will take effect from 01 April 2026.

Once the first decision has been taken, the Service Director for Finance will take a further decision to award the contract, where they would not already have the authority to do so, to ensure the provision of insurance will take effect from 01 April 2026.