In reply to steveej:
Other than porters, who we coordinated on our own (Some of them had a smattering of English, and one of our team spoke Nepali), we were completely solo after landing in Lukla.
Where the agency came into hand was navigating and "smoothing" the bureaucracy that is the Nepal tourist board. Getting permits sorted, booking flights and arranging return of garbage deposit. In the event of an accident, they are the ones with local knowledge who would be best placed to organize evac etc. If you want them to do more, they can (Most of their expeditions are fully supported/guided) but we wanted to be as independent as possible. We sorted our own kit, gear, food, logistics, etc. We had planned on freeing it, but bad weather and being short of time meant we used fixed ropes which had been put in place by other teams.
Our chief porter Bishal was excellent and I would definitely recommend him if he's still in the game - I could try and dig out his email address for you.
The Government Leason officer did absolutely nothing and was just a non-negotiable stealth tax!