Contract management services for a major UK Housing Association

Situation

A leading UK Housing Association with a complex supply chain was experiencing escalating operational, commercial and regulatory risks. Ineffective contract management, inconsistent application of processes, limited tools and insufficiently skilled resource created significant exposure during a period of major organisational transformation.

Key challenges included:

Disputes with incumbent maintenance and repairs suppliers
Lack of visibility of supplier performance or value for money
Significant data quality issues
Weak P2P controls and fragmented payment validation processes
A major supplier exit and transition to manage
Introduction of Awaab’s Law and the expanding regulatory requirements of Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) need for improved commercial governance, improved repair outcomes and compliance assurance

The organisation engaged Clear Consulting as a specialist commercial and contract management partner to stabilise operations, resolve disputes, reduce risk and cost and build long-term internal capability.

Objectives

Establish contract management best practice to improve compliance, consistency, operational performance and the organisation’s ability to evidence outcomes against Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs)
Negotiate exit and transition of major maintenance and repairs suppliers, ensuring service continuity, value for money and alignment with regulatory expectations including TSMs and Awaab’s Law
Contract management of key Gold suppliers, with focus on performance improvement, KPI alignment, dispute avoidance and transparency required for TSM reporting
Analysis of the Purchase-to-Pay (P2P) process, charging arrangements and reconciliation of applications for payment to reduce value leakage and support accurate performance reporting
Contract maturity exercise to establish recommendations to close gaps in contract administration, commercial governance, roles and responsibilities and resource capability—ensuring resilience and compliance with new regulatory requirements including TSMs
Recommendations to reduce cost and risk, improve supplier performance, achieve value for money and contribute to enhanced resident experience and TSM outcomes
Contract segmentation to ensure a proportionate contract management toolset, reporting cadence, oversight model and supplier assurance aligned to regulatory expectations
Project management of the exit and transition from one major maintenance and repairs supplier to another, ensuring operational continuity and safeguarding TSM performance indicators

Services Delivered

Supporting the organisation to stabilise services and improve performance outcomes directly linked to TSM compliance. Clear Consulting delivered a comprehensive suite of services, including:

Contract Management Maturity Assessment
- Review of current contracts, processes, tools and skills, with a prioritised improvement roadmap to establish best practice
- Monitor performance of maintenance and repairs suppliers
- Interpret contract variations and ensure practical application
- KPI management and alignment to TSM reporting requirements
- Develop dispute strategy and remedial plans
- Review issue and management of payment notices and pay-less notices
- Operational and commercial contract management to implement best practice and apply lessons learned — applied to existing Gold suppliers and rolled out to the wider supply base through segmentation
- Roll-out plan for segmentation and contract management toolkit for proportionate governance and reporting
- Skills gap analysis for contract management in order to support the client team with recruitment of permanent resource, training, coaching and mentoring
- Health checks designed for existing contracts in other business areas (e.g., technology, digital systems, software, professional services) to assess risk exposure, commercial value, performance alignment, and opportunities for renegotiation or improvement
End-to-End Contract Management Process Design
- Standardised processes from pre-procurement through contract close-out
- Implementation of clear roles and responsibilities (RACI matrices)
Supplier Performance Management Framework
- KPIs, SLAs and scorecards for monitoring supplier performance
- Planning of regular supplier review meetings and escalation procedures
System Analysis
- Identified gaps in supplier management and contract administration within the replacement repairs and maintenance system and applied lessons learned from the existing system (payment, work order management, data quality, KPI reporting)
- Supported functionality testing and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) for the replacement Microsoft system, covering operational and commercial contract management as well as supplier management
- Provided project management support for implementation of the replacement supplier, including data and operational transition
P2P & Procurement Advisory Support
- Designed proposed streamlined purchase-to-pay process, invoice verification and reconciliation
- Identification of off-contract spend and corrective actions
- Creation of a heat map showing required documentation and supporting justification for payment, compliance as RAG status, plus statistics on volumes/value of orders
- Suggestions for a pragmatic and radical approach to expedite progress and prioritise efforts
- Hands-on validation and valuation of AFPs by additional analyst-level resource to accelerate progress
- QS inspection / valuation of completed works
- Development of a set of rules, parameters and lessons learned, with a more radical/pragmatic approach rather than replicating past system rules
- Oversight of systems management and process management
- Agile project management and software development expertise, using sprints to refine and adapt in pilot, development and testing phases
Training & Capability Uplift
- Workshops on contract management fundamentals, commercial awareness and supplier engagement
- Hands-on coaching to embed best practices within operational teams
Dispute Support
- Establish chronology and review supporting evidence for disputed items, assessing operational and commercial positions
- Preparation of Work Order packs for disputed items
- Negotiate Heads of Terms and operational assessment for practical transition
Negotiation, Exit and Transition Management
- Project management and commercial support for exiting suppliers at contract expiry in order to transition to new procurement or replacement provider(s) with minimal service disruption
- Operational and commercial contract management input to new contracts, integrating lessons learned on payment, reconciliation, KPIs, reporting, data and TUPE arrangements
- Commercial governance for the transition to new provider(s)
- Embedding lessons learned from historic performance, disputes and TSM feedback
- KPIs, reporting frameworks, data quality requirements and mobilisation plans
- Ensuring continuity of services critical to TSM categories, particularly repairs, responsiveness and communication
High-Risk Contract Stabilisation
- Hands-on support to stabilise underperforming or high-risk contracts
- Ensure immediate compliance with statutory deadlines, including hazard remediation under Awaab’s Law
Ongoing Contract Management of Key “Gold” Suppliers
- Proposals for oversight of critical suppliers in order to resolve disputes and monitoring performance to maintain service levels

Regulatory Context – Integration of Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs)

With the introduction of Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) in 2024, regulatory expectations have increased significantly. The framework demands improved operational discipline, accurate reporting, transparent supplier management and better resident engagement.

Our services directly strengthened the organisation’s ability to:

Meet and evidence TSM performance
Deliver more reliable and timely repairs
Improve contractual outcomes impacting resident satisfaction
Strengthen commercial governance, data integrity and auditability
Reduce risk exposure related to compliance with Awaab’s Law
Improve value for money and supplier accountability

Achievements and Outcomes

We delivered a structured improvement programme that stabilised the organisation operationally, commercially and regulatorily. Key achievements included:

Delivered a Practical Plan & Recommendations
- Produced a comprehensive plan outlining prioritised actions to reduce operational, financial and compliance risk
- Recommendations focused on cost reduction, value for money and risk mitigation across the supply chain
Capability and Knowledge Transfer
- Development and coaching of internal team, embedding skills in contract management, commercial assurance and supplier oversight
- Transfer of knowledge, tools, templates and processes to ensure sustainability and prevent recurrence of historical issues

Improved Contract Management & Supplier Performance
- Introduced standard processes, RACI matrices and dashboards for monitoring supplier performance and compliance
- Non-performing suppliers identified and improvement plans established
Enhanced Regulatory Compliance & Risk Mitigation
- Faster and more robust response to repair and safety issues, ensuring compliance with Awaab’s Law, Building Safety Act and other statutory obligations
- Strengthened TSM reporting capability through recommended improvements in data quality, performance monitoring and supplier management
- Established audit trails and documentation standards to reduce future compliance risk
Financial Savings & Value for Money
- Contract management toolkit designed to identify off-contract spend and renegotiated contracts, achieving cost savings without compromising quality
- Stronger governance reduced contract variations, cost overruns and supplier disputes
Sustainable Internal Capability
- Contract management plan and recommendations equipped the Housing Association team with planned tools, templates and knowledge to avoid future issues and continuously improve contract and supplier management
- Operational team support designed to empower and maintain best practice independently, reducing reliance on external consultancy
Process Efficiency Gains
- Streamlined P2P and contract management processes to reduce manual effort, errors and cycle times
- Digital dashboards for improved visibility of spend, obligations and supplier performance
- Reduction of commercial risk and value leakage, supported by strengthened P2P controls and payment validation

Conclusion

Housing associations with complex supply chains and inconsistent contract management can achieve measurable efficiency, cost and risk improvements through structured commercial interventions
Visibility, standardisation and capability building are essential for sustainable improvements
Integrating contract management improvements with P2P optimisation, supplier performance frameworks and regulatory compliance ensures both operational and financial benefits while building long-term internal capability

Through a combination of hands-on commercial expertise, strategic planning, regulatory alignment and internal capability building, Clear Consulting reduced risk, cost and operational instability while establishing a more mature, resilient and future-proof contract management framework.

Our work not only stabilised high-risk contracts and improved supplier accountability but also equipped the organisation with the recommended tools, processes and skills required to meet the increasing demands of Awaab’s Law, Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) and broader regulatory scrutiny.

By embedding best practice, strengthening systems, improving data visibility and enhancing internal confidence and capability, Clear Consulting’s recommendation and improvement plan enabled the Housing Association to deliver better value for money, improved service outcomes for residents, and long-term commercial sustainability across its entire supply chain.

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