To seek agreement to conclude the service delivery review.

The Chairman reminded Members that Cabinet had authorised the commencement of negotiations with Amey at its meeting in September 2008.  The report for consideration sought agreement to conclude the service delivery review, which, following negotiations had secured commitment from Amey to key principles which would achieve the objectives of a minimum of £1million savings per annum and improved service delivery. 

The Director for Environment and Culture outlined the key principles which defined the future basis on which service delivery would be carried out and the means by which performance and value for money of those services would be assessed and managed.  The Director emphasised the focus on outcomes, as opposed to outputs, and stated that there would be an important shift from an operational focus of service delivery to supporting the wider community and the broader Community Strategy.  The high degree of uncertainty suffered by current staff affected by the review was acknowledged and it was stated that subject to the Cabinet’s agreement of the report’s recommendations, the staff in the scope of the review would be given formal notification of a potential TUPE transfer.

The inclusion of the reference of ‘Improved direct local engagement with ward members and parish councils by Amey staff to ensure clear, direct points of contact’ was welcomed by the Chairman of SMC and it was further hoped that this principle would reduce the level of double working which currently occurred.  The Director assured Members that there was a clear role for Amey in contributing to key performance indicators including those relating to sustainability and social factors.  It was acknowledged that it was necessary to ensure that value was added in the delivery of services and that importance was placed on working closely with voluntary groups, parish councils, and other organisations for the benefit of the people of Herefordshire.

In response to a question relating to the Council’s representative on the Strategic Partnership Board (as outlined in section 4.4, page 17), the Leader advised Members that the representative would be determined by the Leader.

The Acting Director of Resources, responding to a question seeking clarification on the methodology used to demonstrate savings, advised Members that he had recently met with the relevant Directors from Amey to ensure and verify the methodology used to define savings in the contract negotiations and that such savings were being tracked and demonstrated.  Members were advised that a methodology to capture and track non-cashable savings would also be established.

Responding to a question on the share value of Amey Wye Valley, the Director of Environment and Culture stated that, in order to demonstrate due diligence, independent advice was being sought as to the current share price valuation, although it was expected that the sum would not be significant.

The Cabinet Member Highways and Transportation stated that whilst the service delivery review was a good move in the right direction it was important to ensure that appropriate challenge was made, and assurance sought, on securing the principles outlined in the report.  It was stated that the authority did not aggregate responsibility for the service delivery and that the establishment of a Client Team would provide a robust mechanism by which service provision could be assessed.  In commending the report to Cabinet, the Cabinet Member Highways and Transportation advised the meeting that the new arrangements would provide decent return on investment and would ensure efficiencies; it was also reported that no compulsory redundancies were expected as vacancies due to natural wastage had to date been filled by agency staff.

In responding to a question from a Member in Attendance regarding the value for money and cost effectiveness of contracts, the Acting Head of Highways stated that monitoring was a key role for the Client Team.  Members were informed that there would be an open book accounting process which would provide the Client Team with the opportunity to assess contract prices, additionally the Client Team would undertake sampling on schemes and would also consider prices against comparable marketplace benchmarking information.

Members thanked the Director of Environment and Culture and his team for their efforts in undertaking the service delivery review.

RESOLVED that:

(a)   The principles set out in the report be agreed.

(b)   The detailed negotiations that follow from the principles in the report be concluded under the authority of the Chief Executive.

(c)   The staff in the scope of the review (as identified in the report) be given formal notification of a potential TUPE transfer.