Report - Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Programme
Renfrewshire Council · 10 September 2026
Back to Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board — 10 September 2026 and its agenda
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PUBLIC ___________________________________________________________________ To: Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board On: 10 September 2026 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: The Director of Finance and Resources ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Contract Authorisation Report for Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Programme (RC-CPU-026-035) ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1 The purpose of this report is to seek approval of the Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board to award an Order Contract for an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Programme. 1.2 The recommendation to award an Order Contract follows a procurement exercise conducted in accordance with the Government Commercial Agency Dynamic Purchasing System for Artificial Intelligence reference RM6200, the DPS Schedule 7 Order Procedure, the DPS Buyer Guide and The Renfrewshire Council Standing Orders Relating to Contracts. 1.3 The contract strategy was approved by the Strategic Category Manager on 16 June 2026 and the Director of Finance and Resources on 23 June 2026. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations It is recommended that the Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board:
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PUBLIC 2.1 Authorises the Head of Corporate Governance to award the Contract for Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Programme to ICS.AI Ltd (Co. No. 11346801), being an Order Contract made under the Government Commercial Agency Dynamic Purchasing System for Artificial Intelligence reference RM6200 (DPS). 2.2 Authorises the maximum approved Order Contract value of £5,177,686 excluding VAT for the Order Contract’s full Contract Period, including use of the extension. 2.3 Authorises the Order Contract for a Contract Period of 3 years with the Council’s option to extend for a further Contract Year. The proposed Order Contract Start Date is 30 October 2026 however the actual date will be formally confirmed in the Order Form which forms part of the Order Contract. 2.4 Authorises the liability caps within the Order Contract of an annual total aggregate liability for either Party of no more than the greater of £5 million or 150% of the Estimated Yearly Charges. ________________________________________________________ 3. Background 3.1 This procurement is for the appointment of a Supplier to support the Council’s AI Transformation Programme. 3.2 As part of the Council’s Digital Strategy, approved in April 2025, there is an action to leverage advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and cutting-edge technologies to deliver value across all Council operations. 3.3 The Council carried out an AI Transformation Assessment in consultation with a wide range of employees from across all council services to understand and identify how a range of AI solutions can improve services, enhance efficiency and reduce costs. In April 2026, the Leadership Board approved a 3-year AI Transformation Programme across all council areas. Therefore, the Council has a new requirement to appoint a Supplier who will work with the Council to provide • AI software licensing and maintenance;
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PUBLIC • business change consultancy services to encourage AI adoption across the Council; and • implementation consultancy to implement AI software across Council services. 3.4 In accordance with the Renfrewshire Council Standing Orders relating to Contracts 29.5, officers identified that the Government Commercial Agency (formerly known as the Crown Commercial Services) Dynamic Purchasing System for Artificial Intelligence reference RM6200 (“the DPS”) was a suitable route to market. A procurement exercise was conducted in accordance with the DPS schedule 7 Order Procedure, the DPS Buyer Guide, and Renfrewshire Council’s Standing Orders Relating to Contracts. 3.5 To initiate this process, the DPS Marketplace was accessed via the Government Commercial Agency website and, in accordance with the DPS Buyer Guide, the following filters were applied based on the Council requirements to create a shortlist of 103 Suppliers: End-to-End Partnerships, AI Readiness, Use Case Pilots, Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS), Design & Build, Implementation, AI Security & Data Protection, Data Ethics in Use of AI, AI Product and Service Training, Virtual Assistants and Chatbots, National Language Processing (NLP), Generative AI, Speech Recognition, Data Governance and Management, Predictive AI, Local Government. 3.6 On 12 July 2026 the 103 shortlisted Suppliers were invited via email to complete a Capability Assessment questionnaire consisting of 17 mandatory Yes/No questions that included adherence to key dates and milestones, data protection, cyber security controls and governance. By the closing date set for returns, 22 June 2026, 14 Suppliers submitted a response. The 14 responses were evaluated by members of the Council’s ICT team, and all 14 Suppliers where able to comply with the 17 mandatory questions. 3.7 The 14 Suppliers were then invited to participate in the tender. The tender documentation was published on the Public Contracts Scotland – Tender (PCS-T) portal on 26 June 2026 with the tender documentation available for downloading from the PCS-T portal from this date. 3.8 By the closing date set for the return of electronic tender submissions, 10 July 2026, 1 Supplier submitted a tender and 13 Suppliers did not respond.
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PUBLIC 3.9 The submission was evaluated against the Award Criteria of 70% Quality and 30% Price, and the scores relative to the Award Criteria for the Supplier that provided a tender submission is noted below: Quality (70%) Price (30%) Total (100%) 1 ICS.AI Ltd 60.50% 30.00% 90.50% 3.10 The tender submission received by ICS.AI Ltd met the criteria set out in the procurement documents and was within the Council’s set budget and was therefore deemed to be value for money. 3.11 Community Benefits were requested as part of the procurement process and ICS.AI Ltd confirmed that the following would be delivered as part of this Order Contract: Community Benefit Description No of People / Activity Work Experience Placement for an individual 16+ years of age 1 S/NVQ (or equivalent) for • New Employee • Existing Employee • Supply Chain Employee 1 Industry Skill Transfer to Schools 1 Business advice/support to a local SME /Social Enterprise/ Voluntary organisation 1 Financial Support for a Social Enterprise or other approved community initiative 2 ___________________________________________________________________ Implications of the Report 1. Financial - The approved contract value of £5,177,686 excluding VAT for the full Contract Period included the extension (4 years in total). The Contract Year 1 costs will be met from the Service Modernisation and Reform Fund, with ongoing costs thereafter being met from anticipated recurring savings. The AI Transformation Programme is a key element of mitigation of the medium-term financial challenges faced by the Council. 2. HR & Organisational Development - Requirement for awareness and training of staff as new AI solutions are implemented. This will help build confidence and support change across Renfrewshire Council.
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PUBLIC 3. Community/Council Planning – o Working together to improve outcomes - the Council must work smarter and in fundamentally different ways, sharpening the focus of our organisation to meet the significant financial challenges. This Order Contract will ensure the Council takes advantage of new technologies to reduce manual tasks by automating administrative, logic-based tasks and therefore allowing staff to concentrate on other value-adding tasks. 4. Legal - This procurement was carried out in accordance with Government Commercial Agency (formerly known as the Crown Commercial Service) Dynamic Purchasing System for Artificial Intelligence reference RM6200, the DPS Schedule 7 Order Procedure, the DPS Buyer Guide and the Renfrewshire Council Standing Orders Relating to Contracts for an above Threshold Services Contract. 5. Property/Assets – None directly arising from this report. 6. Information Technology – Requirement for ICT support across different technical skill sets including Cyber Security to support the implementation of the AI Transformation Programme 2026 – 2030. The Supplier’s Cyber Security submissions have been assessed by representatives from the Council’s Cyber Security team and met the Council’s requirements regarding Cyber Security. 7. Equality & Human Rights - An Ethics and Assurance board will be established as part of the transformation programme and will be responsible for ensuring all Privacy and Equality requirements are met, prior to the implementation of all technology solutions. The recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human rights. No negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of individuals’ human rights have been identified arising from the recommendations contained in the report. If required following implementation, the actual impact of the recommendations and the mitigating actions will be reviewed and monitored, and the results of the assessment will be published on the Council’s website. 8. Health & Safety – ICS.AI Ltd Health and Safety submission was evaluated and satisfied the Council’s requirements
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PUBLIC 9. Procurement – The procurement procedures outlined within this report ensures that the Council meets it statutory requirements in response of procurement procedures, efficiency and modern Government. 10. Risk – ICS.AI Ltd insurance documentation was evaluated by Government Commercial Agency at the time of awarding ICS.AI Ltd a place on the DPS and have confirmed that the insurance documentation still meets the requirements. The AI Transformation Programme is a key element of mitigation of the medium-term financial challenges faced by the Council. The DPS does not permit unlimited liability Order Contracts therefore the following liability caps apply as part of the Order Contract: • An annual aggregate liability for either Party of no more than the greater of £5 million or 150% of the Estimated Yearly Charges 11. Privacy Impact – An Ethics and Assurance board will be established as part of the transformation programme and will be responsible for ensuring all Privacy and Equality requirements are met, prior to the implementation of all technology solutions. 12. Climate Risk – This project involves the use of AI which can have both positive and negative climate related impacts. A full Climate Change Impact Assessment (CCIA) will be completed to fully identify and quantify potential impacts and required mitigations as the project progresses. 13. Children’s Rights – None directly arising from this report. 14. Cosla Policy Position – None directly arising from this report. _________________________________________________________ List of Background Papers (a) Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Programme 2026 - 2030, Leadership Board, 29 April 2026 ___________________________________________________________________ Author: Jenny Bowles, Corporate Procurement Manager, Jenny.Bowles@renfrewshire.gov.uk