Bromley Council has awarded an urgent interim contract for its Direct Payment Support Service to The Disability Syndicate, following the insolvency of the previous provider, Vibrance Ltd.
The contract, valued at £563,907 over 24 months, was directly awarded by the Director of Social Services under the Council's Contract Procedure Rules. This swift action was taken to ensure continuity of service for residents, and officers were commended for their prompt response, with no residents reported as being impacted by the previous contractor's insolvency.
While the typical process for awarding contracts involves competitive tendering, as stated in the Procurement Act 2023, a direct award was deemed necessary due to the urgency of the situation. The Director of Social Services had the authority to approve this direct award under the Council's Contract Procedure Rules, subject to agreement with relevant portfolio holders and directors.
The decision was noted by the Executive, Resources and Contracts Policy Development and Scrutiny Committee during their meeting on Monday, January 19, 2026. The committee was informed that due diligence checks had been conducted with the new provider, The Disability Syndicate. Key findings from these checks included that Bromley Council retains direct access to any resident accounts held by the provider and that there are limits on the funds the provider can hold at any one time.
Lessons learned from the previous contract's insolvency are being reviewed, with a focus on implementing more regular financial checks. The committee was assured that neither Bromley Council nor other local authorities had identified emerging issues with the previous contractor prior to their insolvency.
Further details regarding the meeting and related reports can be found in the Public reports pack for Monday, January 19, 2026 Public reports pack Monday 19-Jan-2026 19.00 Executive Resources and Contracts Policy Development.