WIREDGOV

The founder of a small British firm has told how his business was transformed after a £2 million contract with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) allowed it to compete on the world stage.

Leicester-based web technology firm Jadu was awarded a contract to develop a payment system for courts and tribunal services in February 2013, and after delivering the service within 18 weeks, the business has gone from strength to strength.

The company - which currently employs 70 people - was able to increase its workforce by 35 per cent after winning the contract. It expanded into Australia and grew its business in the US, becoming a truly global player.

It has also been able to re-invest in the business in order to compete for larger and more complex government IT contracts.

More than a third of all spending on contracts by the MoJ was with small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the last financial year, contributing a massive £1.75 billion to helping them grow and develop.

Suraj Kika, Jadu founder and chief executive said:

“MoJ investment in us has been crucial in expanding our business and we are now more ready than ever to help government provide genuinely innovative digital services.

“The relationship is built on trust, and that is the critical success factor. Everyone involved in this project was passionate about making it work from the start.

“Jadu has now been transformed with significant growth and investment to take into the future.”

A Government-wide campaign was launched today to help small businesses grow, with £45 million in funding from the British Business Bank’s investment programme announced to boost lending to small firms.

With 34.8 per cent of all MoJ spending going to SMEs, it is one of the top performing departments across Whitehall, far exceeding the Government’s ambition that a quarter of all expenditure goes to small businesses.

To help small firms bid for work on a level playing field the MoJ has made a number of changes to its procurement process including splitting up large contracts and removing red tape wherever possible.

The Transforming Rehabilitation programme, that will see the best of the public, private and voluntary sectors working together to tackle stubbornly high reoffending rates, is also ushering in a new generation of government contracts - creating genuine partnerships between small and large organisations.

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said:

“Jadu is a perfect example of how small businesses in the private sector can help transform our justice system, driving innovation and better value for hardworking taxpayers – and its something I want to see much more of.

“Our reforms to the way offenders are rehabilitated will see Government doing business differently. No longer will we see a few giant international companies dominating contracts.

“Voluntary sector organisations and SMEs will work hand in hand with larger organisations to begin turning round the lives of offenders and making our communities safer.

“By unlocking the massive potential of small firms we can finally begin bringing down reoffending, and provide a boost for the recovering British economy.”

As part of its drive to help smaller firms and charities, the MoJ recently launched the Justice Data Lab, which gives organisations access to high-quality reoffending data tailored to their needs. This will allow them to better understand the impact of their work and in some cases provide vital evidence of success when bidding for contracts.

The MoJ is also organising a market engagement event early next year, giving organisations the chance to suggest what further improvements the department could make in the way it works with small firms.

Latest figures show small businesses contributed to 48 per cent of private sector turnover and 14.4 million UK jobs. They also contribute £1.6 billion to our economy each year.

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