Guidance

PSN standard terms and conditions

Published 15 December 2014

1. Overview

If you are selling PSN services or providing free PSN services you must have an agreement with every organisation that consumes your service(s). This might be a contract if you’re charging for the service(s), or a memorandum of understanding if you are a public sector body providing services free-of-charge. Whatever form the agreement takes, we call it a PSN supply agreement.

This document provides the definitions of certain words and phrases you need to use in your PSN supply agreement. It also provides some terms and conditions that you need to include in any PSN supply agreement you sign.

2. When is a supply agreement required?

A PSN supply agreement between a supplier and a customer must always exist where PSN services or PSN connectivity services are being provided, whether these services are being provided:

• directly to PSN customers
• between a PSN service provider and a PSN customer within the same organisation
• between public sector organisations

3. Defined terms

You must use the following standard definitions in all PSN supply agreements and must not use any other definition, except when:

1. use of the term creates duplication, ambiguity or inconsistency with other defined terms used in the same document
2. an alternative definition is authorised by the PSN team

The meaning of the mandatory clauses in our key obligations is not altered by the variation to the definition.

CESG	The UK government’s National Technical Authority for Information Assurance. See www.cesg.gov.uk
Code of Connection or CoCo	The agreement, as set out in the code template, setting out the obligations and requirements for organisations wanting to connect to the PSN, together with all documents annexed to it and referenced within it.
Code of Interconnection or CoICo	The agreement, as set out in the code template, setting out the obligations and requirements for an organisation to provide PSN connectivity services, together with all documents annexed to it and referenced within it.
Code of Practice or CoP	The agreement, as set out in the code template, setting out the obligations and requirements for an organisation wanting to provide PSN services, together with all documents annexed to it and referenced within it.
GCN Service Provider or GCNSP	A component, product or service that enables PSN-connected organisations to enjoy intra and inter-organisation IP data transmission and for which a PSN compliance certificate has been awarded by the PSN team.
Government Conveyance Network or GCN	The total network of all GCN services provided by all GCN Service Providers.
PSN connectivity service	A component, product or service that enables PSN-connected organisations to enjoy intra and inter-organisation IP data transmission and for which a PSN compliance certificate has been awarded by the PSN team.
PSN connectivity service provider	An organisation that is supplying or is approved to supply a PSN connectivity service in accordance with a CoICo.
PSN compliance certificate	The certificate awarded to the individual infrastructures, GCN Services, PSN services and PSN connectivity services that make up the PSN.
PSN customer	The PSN service consumer that has achieved PSN compliance certification for their PSN customer environments and holds PSN supply agreement(s) with PSN service providers and PSN connectivity service providers for the services concerned.
PSN supply agreement	Either a contract or – if it is between public sector bodies – a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deliver PSN services or PSN connectivity services.
PSN service consumer	An organisation which uses PSN services or PSN connectivity services.
PSN Service Provider or PSNSP	An organisation that is supplying or is approved to supply PSN services in accordance with a CoP.
PSN service	A functional service available to PSN-connected organisations from a PSN-connected infrastructure in order to enable the fulfillment of a specific business activity, which is offered by a PSN Service Provider in accordance with a CoP and for which a PSN Compliance Certification has been awarded by the Public Services Network Team.
Public Services Network or PSN	The government’s high-performance network, which helps public sector organisations work together, reduce duplication and share resources.

4. Key obligations (this wording is mandatory)

Every PSN supply agreement for the delivery of PSN services, PSN connectivity services or GCN services must include the following standard clauses:

1. the [supplier] shall ensure that any PSN and GCN services that it supplies, or are supplied by others, pursuant to this [agreement] shall have been awarded and retain at all times a PSN compliance certificate
2. the [supplier] shall ensure that any PSN and GCN services that it supplies, or are supplied by others, pursuant to this [agreement] are delivered in accordance with the applicable code, codes or Documents of Understanding (DoU)
3. the [customer] shall ensure that any PSN customer environment used to consume PSN and GCN services supplied pursuant to this [agreement] shall have been awarded and retain at all times a PSN compliance certificate
4. the [customer] shall ensure that any PSN customer environment used to consume PSN and GCN services supplied pursuant to this [agreement] shall be provided and maintained in accordance with the applicable code or codes
5. each of the parties warrants and undertakes that they shall throughout the term, where specifically requested in writing by the PSN team acting on advice from the Infrastructure SIRO, immediately disconnect its GCN services, PSN services or customer environment (as the case may be) from such PSN services (including any Direct Network Services (DNS)), GCN services and customer environments as the PSN team instructs where there is an event affecting national security, or the security of the GCN or PSN
6. the parties acknowledge and agree that the PSN team shall not be liable to them or any other party for any claims, proceedings, actions, damages, costs, expenses and any other liabilities of any kind which may arise out of, or in consequence of any notification pursuant to clause [5]
7. each of the parties acknowledges and agrees that these clauses [4] and [5] are for the benefit of and may be enforced by the PSN team, notwithstanding the fact that the PSN team is not a party to this agreement, pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999

• Changes may only be made to the format and numbering of these clauses.
• The terms in these clauses must be set out in accordance with the above Defined terms

5. General obligations (their effects are mandatory)

Every PSN supply agreement for the delivery of PSN services, PSN connectivity services or GCN services shall include a clause or clauses which shall, in substance, have the following meaning:

1. the PSN service provider shall cooperate with suppliers of other PSN services and GCN service providers to enable the efficient operation of PSN
2. the PSN services shall be delivered in a way that enables the sharing of services across customers of PSN services and maximises the savings to be achieved by such sharing of services

If you have any questions about this document or the PSN standard terms and conditions contact us.