Press Coverage - Compete for London

Hackney based Point Blank was recently awarded its second contract through CompeteFor to deliver a community engagement programme for Westminster City Council.

Point Blank began as a small recording studio in 1994. Founder Robert Cowan spent so much time mentoring local musicians that before long a music, media and arts college was born. Fifteen years later, Point Blank has evolved into an award winning organisation specialising in grassroots development for young people.

Point Blank first registered on CompeteFor to apply for an opportunity advertised by the Five Olympic Host Borough Unit to deliver a series of short courses to increase skills and access to employment for young people in the area.

Mazin Saleem from Point Blank says, “Registering on CompeteFor was relatively easy. It took me awhile to gather the required information but once I had it saved into the system I didn’t have to worry about it again. When it became time to apply for the opportunity, it literally took me a couple of minutes to review my information and submit the application. We also set up our email alerts, which match us with other interesting contracts. Features like this are invaluable for small businesses like ours. CompeteFor centralises our business development and gives us the opportunity to apply for contracts we wouldn’t have seen otherwise.”

Six months later, an email alert notified Point Blank of another opportunity with Westminster City Council, the first of London’s local authorities to adopt CompeteFor for the council’s procurement. Point Blank was shortlisted through CompeteFor and after submitting a written bid, secured the contract to deliver six accredited courses in areas including DJ skills, music production and MC skills. The programme also gave students the tools and confidence to pass their knowledge onto others, providing a lasting legacy for Westminster City Council.

Mazin stresses that Point Blank’s experience has been very positive, “We’ve found high quality opportunities available on CompeteFor within the creative sector. While we haven’t been successful in all our bids, the ones we have won have allowed us to develop and expand as a company. For instance, the contract with Westminster Council is one of the largest contracts our Community Learning department has delivered to date.”