Purpose

This is a new contract the organisation
requires to continue with the fully managed
Azure service that supports the stability and
performance of existing workloads while also
supporting a broader programme of digital
transformation. This includes initiatives to
improve integration across public services
and expand the use of cloud native tools.
The service must be able to scale with
demand, meet compliance requirements,
and provide both technical and strategic
input to support these programmes.

The scope includes full lifecycle
management of the Azure environment. This
covers landing zone setup, subscription
management, platform monitoring, patching,
backup and restore, and cost control. It also
includes ongoing oversight of infrastructure
and platform services such as virtual
machines, app services, and databases,
with direct links into the organisation’s
existing incident and change processes.

A UK based delivery team provides ongoing
service management and technical planning.
This includes regular reviews and planning
sessions to align the service with
organisational priorities. The team is
expected to deliver continuous
improvements in performance, cost, and
platform configuration as needs evolve.

The service plays a key role in maintaining
cloud governance and resilience. It provides
the operational stability required to support
existing systems while also enabling future
digital initiatives to be delivered in a secure
and well managed environment.

Decision

To award a 3-year contract to GCI Network
Solutions Ltd (Nasstar) via the Crown
Commercial Services G-Cloud 14
Framework for a total value of £385,189.20.

Alternative options considered

Option 1 - Change supplier
The performance by our current provider
provides confidence that the organisation is
receiving a reliable service and reduces the
risk associated with introducing a new
provider whose performance within the
SYMCA environment would be untested. A
change of supplier would also generate
additional costs that would not be incurred if
services remain with the current provider.
These would include transition planning,
onboarding, knowledge transfer, technical
discovery, documentation reviews and the
internal resource required to support
mobilisation. Given the size and complexity
of the estate, these costs would be material
and would need to be absorbed alongside
the cost of the new contract itself.

Option 2 - Bringing the service in house
The organisation does not currently have the
specialist Azure expertise or capacity to
manage the platform in the required
standard. Building this capability would take
time and carry ongoing resource and skills
risks, particularly around areas such as cost
optimisation, backup configuration, and 24-
hour monitoring.