Where do we get our money from?
The Children’s Court Guardian Agency is funded by the Department of Health through an annual budget allocation (Revenue Resource Limit).
Regularity of Expenditure
The Agency has a delegated Scheme of Authority which sets out who is authorised to place non-pay expenditure. The Scheme sets out who is authorised to place requisitions for the supply of goods and services and the maximum level of each requisition. Details of the Scheme can be found in the Standing Orders which are approved by the Board.
The Agency has a Service Level Agreement with the Business Services Organisation, including provision of professional advice regarding the supply of goods and services to ensure proper stewardship of public funds and assets. Under that Service Level Agreement, the Procurement and Logistics Service is a Centre of Procurement Excellence to provide assurance that the systems and processes used in procurement ensure appropriate probity and propriety.
The Corporate Services Manager ensures that expenditure is in accordance with regulations and all necessary authorisations have been obtained.
The budget allocation and details of spending of the Agency for the year is reported annually in its Annual Report and Accounts which are audited by the Northern Ireland Audit Office.
How we pay our staff
Health and Social Care staff in Northern Ireland are employed under Agenda For Change Terms and conditions. Agenda For Change is a regional framework for staff employed in the National Health Service.
This applies to the staff of the Children’s Court Guardian Agency for Northern Ireland. The majority of posts under Agenda For Change are ‘banded’ depending on the tasks required and level of responsibility across a number of core and specific dimensions.
You can find out more about Agenda for Change at: Pay Bands in Health & Social Care - HSCNI Jobs
Procurement Approach
The Agency was established by the Children’s Court Guardian Agency for Northern Ireland (Establishment and Constitution) Order (Northern Ireland) 2023.
The expenditure authority for the Agency is included in the Standing Orders approved by the Board.
The Children’s Court Guardian Agency for Northern Ireland has a Service Level Agreement with the Business Services Organisation for a range of services including Human Resources, Information Technology, Finance and Procurement. The purpose of this Agreement is to secure the effective and efficient provision of a range of support services from the Business Services Organisation (“BSO”) to Health and Social Care (HSC) organisations, including the Agency.
The letting and management of contracts for goods and services is carried out by Procurement and Logistics Service (PaLS), a function of the BSO, for all HSC organisations in NI. Contracts are arranged to optimize value for money for goods and services within the HSC, to ensure probity and to minimise resources used in the contracting process.
PaLS are required to comply with the Public Contract Regulations 2015 for contracts over a designated monetary threshold. PaLS is also committed to the NI Public Procurement Policy (2002) (as amended), and implements the Procurement Guidance Notes (PGNs) developed by the Procurement Policy Unit in Department of Finance, Construction Procurement Delivery (CPD). PaLS is a designated Centre of Procurement Excellence.
BSO PaLS also manages the transactional purchasing for HSC Organisations which is carried out 100% electronically. The Agency uses this system for the purchasing of all its goods and services and contracts. The Agency delegated scheme of authority for ordering and payment of good and services is built into the e-procurement process.
PaLS also advises on completion of due diligence in Direct Award Contracts and capital projects.