Crown Commercial Services (CCS) has launched a new suite of travel and venue solutions for the public sector that will provide users with zero and low-cost booking fees.
Public Sector Travel and Venue Solutions (PSTVS) enables the booking for rail and air travel, accommodation and event services including venue finding and hiring.
CCS says the solutions are designed to deliver up to £80 million a year in commercial benefits for the UK public sector.
CCS is an executive agency of the Cabinet Office that supports the public sector in procurement of common goods and service. The agency has recently awarded travel-based contracts to the likes of HRS, Capita Travel and Events, HRG, Diversity Travel, Redfern (part of Corporate Travel Management) and Calder Conferences, among others.
A total of seven suppliers have been appointed to deliver services to the public sector, which includes central government departments, local authorities, universities, schools, NHS trusts and the third sector.
Part of the solution includes CCS’s Public Sector Negotiated Programme, which gives the sector access to discounted airfares and accommodation rates. CCS says the programme helped customers pay on average 9 per cent less for air travel and 14.9 per cent less for accommodation.
Access to the travel solutions will be available through CC’s new Purchasing Platform, which is currently known as Digital Travel Solution. Users can utilise multiple solutions under a single sign-on.
According to CCS, the agreement could be worth up to £5.1 billion over the next three years.
Katrina Williams, head of travel at Crown Commercial Services, said: “We are delighted with the award outcome of our new Public Sector Travel and Venue Solutions commercial agreements. The new suite of solutions offers customer choice, commercial value and innovation for all public sector organisations, embracing developments in technology to enhance both the experience for organisations managing travel and for public sector customers booking travel.”
ccs-agreements.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/contracts/rm6016