Variation Agreement #5 (Extension of term of Waste Water Surveillance Testing)

Collection, Identification, Packing and Transporting to the Laboratories for waste water samples for testing and analysis for Covid-19 as part of the Govt Waste Water Surveillance Programme.

This is an extension of the term and scope (number of tests) of the Waste Water Testing previously published (CF-0100600D0O000000rwimUAA1).

No extension would have posed a significant operational risk to the UK Waste Water Surveillance Programme as testing would have ceased after 31.01.21.

As no further data would be available the Core Cities surveillance programme would need to be paused until alternative laboratory capacity could be sourced, likely the steady state laboratories (EA and Bangor University) that were due to come online in mid-February ramping up to full capacity only by first week in March.

Wastewater data is being used to support key programmes including mass testing and genomic surveillance, therefore the discontinuation would also impact other areas of T&T.

Due to system changes made by Contracts Finder and the fact that this contract has been signed by the contracting authority with retrospective effect (as reflected in the related FTS notice), the contract award date reported in the Awarded Information Section refers to the day before services commenced as opposed to the date on which the contract was signed."