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 Terry Woods Lancashire Constabulary has today appointed a new Assistant Chief Constable.
Terry Woods, currently Chief Superintendent at Lancashire Constabulary will take over from ACC Mark Bates when he retires this summer.
The appointment of ACC Woods comes just a month after Sunita Gamblin, formally a Chief Superintendent at Derbyshire, was recruited to replace Deputy Chief Constable Andy Rhodes when he takes up the position of Chief Constable in June, creating a new Chief Officer group at Lancashire.
Terry Woods has worked at Lancashire Constabulary for 21 years, starting as a Constable at Burnley and subsequently working across Lancashire at Blackburn, Accrington, Preston and Blackpool.
He said: “It is an absolute honour to have been selected as an ACC in Lancashire, a county I have been proud to serve for 21 years. I would like to thank all those who have supported me including staff, partner organisations and particularly my family. I look forward to playing my part in the future of Policing and serving the communities of Lancashire going forward.”
DCC Andy Rhodes said: “I am delighted that Terry will be joining our new team and his knowledge of Lancashire’s communities and operational challenges will be a real asset for us. Terry has a hard earned reputation and will bring fresh insights to our plans for the future.”
Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw added: “This is an exciting time in Lancashire Constabulary with a new leadership team building on a solid and high performing legacy of their predecessors. A new team brings new momentum and innovation helping us to meet new challenges and I am looking forward to working with the new Assistant Chief Constable Terry Woods and the rest of the senior management team on delivering my police and crime plan for Lancashire.”
Arrangements will now be made regarding ACC Terry Woods start date and his immediate responsibilities.
 Richard Clayton QC Reporter: Stuart Littleford
7BR, the leading multi-disciplinary barristers’ chambers, recently announced significant additions to the Set with five new barristers and the appointment of a new Senior Clerk to the Criminal Law team.
Acclaimed Public Law Barrister Richard Clayton QC and Lee Parkhill have joined 7BR from 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square, significantly strengthening the Set’s public law capabilities. In addition, bolstering 7BR’s other key areas of practice: Vincent Coughlin QC has joined the Criminal Law Team from 4 Breams Buildings; Nick Jack has joined the Family Team from Fenners Chambers; and Liam Ryan has joined the Clinical Negligence and Personal Injury Team from Ely Place Chambers. Additionally, Steven Wright, formerly of Three Raymond Buildings, has been appointed as Senior Clerk to the Criminal Law Team.
As a multi-disciplinary Set, public law is a strong thread running through a number of the practice areas 7BR offers. The now enhanced Team will directly support those practices and establish 7BR as a strong Set for conventional public law work.
Rachel Holmes, Chief Executive of 7BR, commented:
“We are delighted to welcome five barristers of such high repute to 7BR and are particularly excited by the expansion of our Public Law Team. The capabilities of 7BR across practice areas, so many of which encounter public law issues, means that we can now advise clients on all aspects of those matters as well as establishing 7BR as one of the preeminent public law sets.”
Public law expert Richard Clayton QC undertakes a wide range of advisory and litigation work. He is regularly instructed in judicial review proceedings as well as in cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the Privy Council. Richard advises on community care, local government and public sector issues, as well as undertaking a wide range of human rights, international and regulatory work. Described in Chambers as “very academic but also very sharp when it comes to tactics”, he is the joint author of the Law of Human Rights (which has been cited in over 45 House of Lords, Supreme Court and Privy Council cases) and sits as a Deputy High Court Judge.
Joining alongside Richard, Lee Parkhill advises and represents both claimants and defendants in judicial review proceedings. Lee is regularly instructed in challenges to the re-organisation of public services, disputes on the provision of care and contested decisions of ombudsmen and regulators.
Vincent Coughlin QC – regularly named by the Ministry of Justice as being one of the top ten busiest silks in the country – has exceptional expertise across the full breadth of criminal law, from corporate corruption and complex tax frauds, to terrorism, homicide and drugs importations. Vincent recently defended the executive editor of The Sun who faced charges alongside Rebekah Brooks for alleged conspiracy to pay officials for stories. He is currently representing a senior Rolls Royce Executive in the global investigation by the SFO and the US Department of Justice in respect of alleged multi-million pound corrupt payments.
Family Law Barrister Nick Jack has developed an outstanding reputation for his work in public law cases alongside his regular instructions in Private Law children work. Nick advises on permanent removal applications, internal relocation cases and Hague Convention cases, and is described as “An exceptional advocate with the ability to quickly put his clients at ease”.
Liam Ryan has a civil practice specialising in personal injury and commercial litigation. Within Liam’s personal injury practice he has developed particular expertise in the field of stress at work, a niche area in which he predominantly advises senior employees in the professional and financial services sectors, most recently a partner of a law firm.
The wider additions to 7BR reinforce the Set’s ongoing commitment to being recognised for excellence across a range of civil and criminal disciplines as the Set looks to attract further quality barristers in key practice areas over the next 12-18 months.
Rachel Holmes concluded:
“As one of the leading multi-disciplinary Sets, we pride ourselves on providing our clients with a collection of specialists across a broad range of legal practice areas. The barristers who have joined further strengthen and reinforce that standing in the market and are part of our wider future growth plans.”
 MD of Bloom, (Formerly Nepro Ltd) Rob Levene Reporter: Stuart Littleford
There has been much debate about the serious impact changes to off-payroll tax rules (IR35) will have on the public sector and contractors alike. The MD of Bloom, (Formerly Nepro Ltd) Rob Levene, argues that the changes present the public sector with a real opportunity to procure ‘outcomes’ and not ‘hours’, mitigating some of the risk and delivering better procurement practices all around.
Rob Levene told GPSJ: “The new rule will impact 20,000 contractors working for the public sector. Our clients are telling us that the changes to off-payroll tax rules are causing serious concerns. Without action on the way that interim staff are engaged, public sector buyers are likely to face consequences from the HMRC and to suffer immediate price hikes and reduced choice and access to skilled contractors.”
These fears are far from unfounded. A poll by the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) which appeared in Contractor UK last year highlighted that the public sector may face a talent drain. The poll showed:
- 54% of PSCs intending to exit the public sector if the ‘paying agent’ is granted responsibility for IR35
- 31% say they will leave behind working for taxpayer-funded bodies regardless of whether they would be required to pay the same tax and NI as employees
- 23% say they will no longer do government work if they have to pay tax like an employee.
“As a business focussed on delivering outcomes for our clients, we believe these changes present public sector buyers with an opportunity to re-evaluate how they procure contractors,” Rob continued. “Best outcomes are achieved when a consultant is engaged to deliver pre-defined outputs, on a fixed fee and timescale basis. So acting on this change could be a blessing that makes organisations think differently about how they engage contractors.
We’ve seen unprecedented demand from clients looking for a solution to the impending tax rule changes. As we’ve explained that it’s not just a solution to the IR35 problem, but also an opportunity to review how contingent labour is used and consider if best value is being achieved. An ever-increasing number of contracting authorities are signing up to our solution.”
4 steps to mitigating the risk of off-payroll tax rule changes
The IR35 solution from Bloom can be broken down into 4 steps:
- Data Gathering – the client identifies which contractors may be in scope of IR35
- Diagnostic – using various methods to investigate whether the contractor is inside scope of IR35 or could be outside if procured via a Statement of Work. This means that:
- Instead of focussing on hiring an ‘interim’ covering a 9-5 schedule, 5 days a week, buyers need to hire a contractor focussed on delivering the project outcomes
- Contractors eligible to be procured in this way are identified, helping mitigate some of the risk that is being placed on the public sector.
- If some contracts are clearly identified as being inside the scope of IR35, the client is immediately alerted and can ensure appropriate tax and NI is deducted
- Supplier Engagement – Bloom works with suppliers in close partnership to make sure that they are comfortable with transferring their contracts to statements of work, and through the process of registration
- Requirement Transfer – Milestone-based and outcome-focused Statements of Work are written, keeping those that are eligible safely and legally outside IR35
To cope with the demand, Bloom has created a dedicated team to guide clients through its diagnostic service and the recommended outputs. They have already signed up clients from across the public sector, and continue to receive new requests every day.
Rob Levene added: “The demand levels aren’t surprising when you consider that there are numerous advantages to procuring professional services through outcome-focused Statements of Work. Existing clients save up to 19% on average when measured against project budget. Our strategies of supporting SMEs, local procurement and social value help clients achieve their procurement goals. Another big benefit is the reduction in scope creep; for one client who used Bloom to fulfil 132 projects in a 12-month period, only 7 projects extended.
Contractors benefit from this new approach too. Whilst many now need to face the tax consequences of the changes, others could take this opportunity to change how they are procured by focusing on the outcomes first. By registering as a supplier with Bloom, they get access projects with over 130 public sector clients. For SMEs in particular (which make up the majority of our supply chain) this is an incredible opportunity to access public sector contracts.
Employing a consultant through Bloom means taking a different approach to employing interims and consultants. By changing the focus from delivery to outcomes, you change the relationship with the person doing the work. There’s no confusion of employment boundaries. Just a clearly defined outcome, delivered for a fixed fee, in a defined time.
And that’s the opportunity. Change to a focus on outcomes and actively manage the risk these tax changes bring. You might even see the change as a blessing one day.”
 For all utilities, transformation and flexibility are not optional as they face the challenges ahead: they are the key to survival.
Driving this change in culture are a number of people, whilst a number of key technologies will enable and shape the utilities’ transformation and increasing flexibility.
Utility Week Live 2017 has identified the 10 most important transformation leaders and technologies, as voted for by the industry themselves.
Key People
The ten individuals set out have embraced innovation and driving change in their respective companies, across the sector, and more widely. They are the leaders in the transformation the utilities are undergoing towards becoming more flexible, sustainable and suitable for the new world we’re all heading towards.
These people are: Basil Scarsella, chief executive, UK Power Networks; Ben Jeffs, director and chief executive, MOSL; Cathryn Ross, chief executive, Ofwat; Cheryl Latham, chief executive, Brighter World Energy; Dermot Nolan, chief executive, Ofgem; Piers Clark, founder and chairman, Isle Utilities; Elon Musk, founder and products architect, Tesla and chairman, SolarCity; John Reynolds, chief executive, Castle Water; Simon Harrison, group strategic development manager, Mott MacDonald, and chair of the energy policy panel, IET; and Tony Cocker, chief executive, Eon UK.
Over the coming months, Utility Week/WWT/WET News/Network will speak to the top ten people, speak to people in the industry about the influence and impact they have had, publish biographies detailing their careers and key decisions, or hearing from them direct with columns.
Key technologies
The ten technologies outlined opposite/below are fundamentally changing the shape and look of the utilities sector – in particular the energy side things. These include technologies and innovations that are already a key part of utilities’ daily operations, and those whose influence and impact is only going to grow in the coming years.
The top ten technologies are: cloud computing; demand response and demand side management; electric vehicles; energy storage, including battery technology; geographical information systems (GIS); the Internet of Things (IoT); machine learning; smart metering; solar; and wind.
Over the coming months, Utility Week/WWT/WET News/Network will speak to experts in the technologies, look at examples of how they have been rolled out and assess the impact they’ve had, look at the numbers behind the innovations, and getting investor views on the development of the technologies and how close they are to transforming the business as usual operation in the sector.
The Utility Week Live 2017 transformation technologies:
- Cloud computing
- Cloud computing is a general term for the delivery of hosted services over the internet. It enables companies to use computer resources, such as data storage or an application, as a utility, rather than having to build and maintain computing infrastructures and servers in house. This could enable multiple devices, including tablets and mobiles, access to programmes and data remotely vie the internet.
- Demand response/demand side management
- Demand response and demand side management provides an opportunity for consumers to play a significant role in the operation of the electric grid by reducing or shifting their electricity usage during peak periods in response to time-based rates or other forms of financial incentives. The aim is to cut peak loads and remove the need to reinforce energy networks by better tying demand up with supply.
- Electric vehicles
- The last three years have seen a remarkable surge in demand for electric vehicles in the UK – new registrations of plug-in cars increased from 3,500 in 2013 to around 85,000 by January 2017. The increase in the number of EVs will potentially put additional strain on energy networks by increasing demand at peak times. However, there is also the opportunity to utilise EVs as mobile storage devices.
- Energy storage (including batteries)
- Energy storage (ES) technologies offer great potential for supporting renewable energy and the UK’s energy system. The offer different ways to store the energy created by variable renewable technologies at times when demand is low, but supply is high. They will then be able to provide a variety of services when needed.
- There are a variety of energy storage solutions available and being developed, including battery technologies, pumped storage, and mechanical storage.
- Geographical information systems (GIS)
- A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer system for capturing, storing, checking, and displaying data related to positions on Earth’s surface. GIS can show many different kinds of data on one map. This enables people to more easily see, analyse, and understand patterns and relationships. For utilities, this will enable them to assess information about the land, such as the location of factories, farms, and schools, or storm drains, roads, and electric power lines.
- Internet of Things (IoT)
- Simply put, this is the concept of basically connecting any device with an on and off switch to the Internet (and/or to each other). For utilities, this could enable a variety of devices at different sites and locations to connect to one another and to communicate and take orders from staff or collectively follow programmes. This could include the safe shutdown of assets at a substation in response to a failure, and another asset responding to ensure continuity of supply. At a domestic level, this could enable smart appliance to respond to external signals to turn on or power down.
- Machine learning
- Machine learning is the field of computer science that gives computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. In the last decade this has provided innovations such as self driving cars and practical speech recognition. Moving forward, this could lead to improved and automated network management.
- Smart metering
- On a basic level, smart meters are electronic devices that record consumption of energy and communicate that information at back to the utility for monitoring and billing. The UKs smart meter programme is due to rollout 53 million smart gas and electricity meters by 2020. The technology is also thought to be an enabler technology, allowing for things such as 24 hour switching, smart appliances within a connected home, and opening up smarter local network management solutions.
- Solar
- Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity. Within the UK, 10 per cent of its renewable power comes from solar power, or 1.5% of total UK electricity. This comes from a total of 8GW of solar PV which has been deployed so far. Solar is owned by 670,000 homeowners, and thousands of businesses, farmers, schools and community groups. Despite cuts to subsides for the technology, it is expected to continue growing as the government strives to meet its carbon targets.
- Wind
- The UK is one of the best locations for wind power in the world, and is considered to be the best in Europe. It contributed 11 per cent of UK electricity generation in 2015, and 17 per cent in December 2015. The deployment of wind power is set to increase, despite government opposition to new onshore developments. Offshore wind is expected to be the biggest growth area, with bigger turbines and larger windfarms being developed.
The Utility Week Live transformation leaders:
- Basil Scarsella – chief executive, UK Power Networks
- Scarsella has seen UKPN win the utility of the year award at the Utility Week awards twice in consecutive years (2015 and 2016). This has been achieved by improving the safety, efficiency and reliability of the DNO’s operations. Alongside this, under Scarsella’s leadership UKPN is also embracing new technologies, such as energy storage at its Leighton Buzzard site.
- Ben Jeffs – director and chief executive, MOSL
- Jeffs was named chief executive of MOSL in July 2015 and since then has a seen the development of the market operator from a small, starter company to the delivery body behind the opening up of the non-domestic water market. He has helped drive forward the programme which will significantly change the way the water retail market operates.
- Cathryn Ross – chief executive, Ofwat
- Ross has been influential in helping the regulator shift away from descriptive regulation to a more principles based approach. She returned to Ofwat in July 2013 after five years away at the Office of Rail Regulation. Since then she has guided the industry through the PR14 price review and is gearing up to take the sector through the even more revolutionary PR19. Ross also has an important role in ensuring the sector is ready for market opening in April 2017.
- Cheryl Latham – chief executive, Brighter World Energy
- Latham has set up the new energy supplier, Brighter World Energy, in an attempt to tackle two major problems: UK energy customers being “consistently overcharged” and people in poor nations such as Africa living without access to energy. It promises to install a solar-powered micro-grid in an African village for every 2,000 UK customers it signs up.
- Dermot Nolan – chief executive, Ofgem
- Nolan joined Ofgem as chief executive officer in March 2014, having previously been commissioner at the Commission for Energy Regulation in Ireland from May 2008 and its chair since May 2011. He has overseen turbulent times within the energy sector, with pressure mounting on suppliers following the Competition and markets Authority probe. Nolan will now have to ensure customers are treated fairly under the principles-based approach being adopted by the regulator. Away from retail, Nolan will also manage the transformation of the energy networks to a more flexible system, including making it easier for storage solutions to be developed.
- Piers Clark – founder and chairman, Isle Utilities
- Clark set up isle Utilities on the back of his experience gained working at Blackstone’s water-sector private equity fund and from four years as Thames water’s commercial director. He has also helped to establish the Technology Approval Group (TAG) in 2005. Isle Utilities is a global team of scientists, engineers, business and regulatory experts, with a “common drive to make a positive social, economical, and environmental impact through the advancement of innovative technologies and related practices”.
- Elon Musk – founder and products architect, Tesla; and chairman, SolarCity
- Musk is best-known for his exploits with the Tesla motor company, which is developing electric vehicles. The Model S was the most popular EV in the world last year, selling more than 50,000 units. Following on from the success in the automobile sector, Muck has driven Tesla forward with the development of the Powerwall storage system – both for domestic and commercial purposes. He has generated interest in the energy storage sector and EVs that goes far beyond the traditional reach of the sector.
- John Reynolds – chief executive, Castle Water
- Reynolds has driven the rapid expansion of Castle Water from a new entrant in the Scottish water retail sector, to the one of the largest companies in the UK water retail space. This has seen the company takeover the customer bases of Portsmouth Water and Thames Water.
- Simon Harrison – group strategic development manager, Mott MacDonald; and chair of the Energy policy panel, IET
- Harrison has a pan-infrastructure perspective including energy, transportation, water, the urban and built environment, having built his career primarily in the electricity sector. He also has an active interest in energy policy has led to him directing a number of key studies in the UK and elsewhere. Harrison also chairs the IET’s energy policy panel, and most recently the Future Power Systems Architecture Project, a collaboration for the UK government between the IET and the Energy Systems Catapult.
- Tony Cocker – chief executive, Eon UK
- Cocker has worked his way up through the company over a period 19 years to arrive at his current position. He spent 11 years with Eon UK before being names as chief executive in 2008. Since then, he has seen go through a split, with the newly created company Uniper taking on ill focus on the conventional energy world – consisting of upstream and midstream businesses that originally belonged to Eon.
Utility Week Live returns to the NEC in Birmingham on 23 and 24 May and will showcase the latest innovations and technical solutions for the industry.
The theme for this year’s event is transformation and flexibility, and it is the show for essential services to showcase hundreds of new products from specialist suppliers and innovators, technical presentations, pitches and live demos.
Plus, there is an extensive programme of seminars exploring the future of gas, electricity and water.
For more information, please visit: www.utilityweeklive.co.uk
 Simon Terry CEO at 4C Associates Westminster City Council is partnering with International management and procurement consultancy, 4C Associates, to launch Symbiance, the first company of its kind dedicated to helping local and central Government, and public sector organisations make significant financial benefits.
Over the last three years, Westminster City Council’s procurement team has contributed year-on-year savings across the Council, of more than £120m. As a result, the council already has the lowest band D Council Tax of any local authority and is 45% lower than the inner London average. The Westminster team now wants other authorities that face the daily pressures of reduced funding, to benefit from their success.
By combining Westminster’s know-how in public sector spend with 4C Associate’s consultancy expertise in procurement and managed services, including 4C’s work within the private and public sectors, Symbiance will deliver a range of cost saving services such as: ‘Cost Reduction;’ which includes reviewing spend across the entire organisation; ‘Target Operating Model’ which assesses the efficiency of how the organisation is structured and functioning; ‘Process & Technology,’ to identify any inefficient systems and processes; and ‘Managed Services.’ The consultancy’s team of specialists will drive value by assessing cost efficiency throughout the entire organisation from the supplier contracts, to the operating model, right down to the spend item of goods and services used.
Mark Ellis, Partner at 4C Associates, said, “UK public sector services are constantly feeling the financial squeeze caused by a rise in demand for services and cuts in funding. Symbiance will help to overcome these economic challenges. 4C’s consulting capabilities, Westminster’s deep understanding of local government and both organisations’ demonstrated ability to deliver value, brings a unique combination of expertise and experience that is already proving to be of great interest to public sector organisations, from local and central Government to wider public services such as housing associations, health authorities and educational establishments.”
Simon Terry CEO at 4C Associates, told Government and Public Sector Journal: “Symbiance will help public sector organisations address their increasingly difficult challenge to improve, or at least maintain, services while they simultaneously reduce costs. Symbiance combines Westminster City Council’s outstanding ability to deliver real value in local government with 4C’s expertise in transforming private and public sector operations and in driving value through better efficiencies and lower costs. The innovation we have shown in creating Symbiance reflects the approach we have and will take in helping our stakeholders achieve their goals.
“Symbiance will work with the Chief executives, CFOs and CPO/Heads of Procurement of public sector organisation to help them deliver value. We offer consultancy services to improve performance through transforming processes, organisations, capabilities and better use of technology, we offer targeted cost reduction programmes to address budget challenges and we offer managed services to provide best-in-class capabilities for the long term.
“Symbiance will help public sector organisations deliver short term savings, sustainable long term value and transform their operations to create an internal capability.”
 Anthony Oliver, Chief Procurement Officer at Westminster City Council Anthony Oliver, Chief Procurement Officer at Westminster City Council, told GPSJ today: “Over the past three years Westminster City Council has delivered budget savings over £100m. This has been necessary to counteract the significant financial challenges of reduced funding from central government and chronic cost pressures within services. The Council has strengthened its strategic commissioning and procurement capabilities. Through our transformation Westminster has exemplified the delivery of Better for Less, driving innovation and sustainability though its procurement which it now can leverage for other public sector organisations. Symbiance brings together Westminster, the best of local government and 4C’s expertise in delivering cost reduction and organisational efficiency.”
“Westminster City Council’s Procurement Services team are looking to leverage its significant success in the Council to drive value, reduce cost and work with its customers to innovate services through its joint venture with 4C Associates, supporting other public sector organisations facing similar challenges,” he added.
 Chris Price, Director, Public Sector at Computacenter Following the announcement of the Government Transformation Strategy today Chris Price, Director, Public Sector at Computacenter has told GPSJ:
“We welcome The Government Transformation Strategy announced today. This is an important step towards ensuring the UK Government remains a global leader in its approach to public service transformation through harnessing best of UK tech.
“The government has made significant strides in the adoption of digital over the last six years, and this new strategy rightly recognises the need now to focus on the wholesale end-to-end transformation. This means tackling the ‘back-end’ plumbing, and driving efficiency with an internal focus on equipping civil servants with the right workplace tools.
“As a home grown British technology company with a global footprint, we look forward to playing a key role in delivering this transformation and in doing so contributing to the UK’s economic growth.”
 Dave Chaplin, CEO of ContractorCalculator Public sector bodies may need to implement an emergency action plan to avoid losing vital skills warns Dave Chaplin, CEO of ContractorCalculator ahead of April’s IR35 reforms. The advice comes following HMRC’s guidance that invoices paid after 6 April 2017 for work carried out before that date will be subject to the new rules.
Any public sector body that pays its contractors one month in arrears will need to receive invoices before 6 March while those that pay their contractors on anything more than 60 day terms will need to consider settling invoices before 6 April. Any public sector body that cannot provide proof to the recruitment agency that a contractor is outside IR35 according to the new rules will result in a contractor having his or her tax and National Insurance Contributions (NICs) deducted at source.
Dave Chaplin commented: “The fallout of the new rules for public sector bodies is potentially disastrous. We have been warning public sector hirers about the impact of the new legislation for some time now so I would hope that they have been conducting due diligence and getting their ducks in a row to deal with the new reforms well before now.
“The reforms represent a potential car crash for all public sector bodies that hire contractors. A poll we conducted last year told us that 80% of contractors plan on abandoning the public sector rather than accept a contract inside IR35 so it is important that hirers work closely together with their contractors now to establish a contractor’s employment status or else risk losing them altogether.”
Contractor Calculator would point out that those public sector hirers which pay their contractors a month in arrears may well struggle to assess all their contractors in time with only weeks to go so has come up with an action plan for them to avoid a contractor skills brain drain:
– place limited company contractors in a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) umbrella solution temporarily whilst assessing contractors.
– test contractors as soon as possible – engaging a contractor via an umbrella for more than 12 weeks will mean they are eligible for certain employment rights under the Agency Workers Regulations creating additional costs.
– Contractor Calculator’s solution ir35testing.co.uk is currently available and will provide free online IR35 testing instantly. The test displays the contractor’s IR35 risk along a spectrum allowing hirers to make a fully informed decision regarding a contractor’s status and minimising any risk.
– once each contract has been IR35 tested hirers will know which contractors have passed and who can return to trading via their limited company on the same terms as before and can negotiate an outside-IR35 contract for those who fail.
Dave Chaplin added: “The timing of these reforms is causing utter chaos and already threatening an exodus of talent. This will have a significant impact on an already stretched public sector. Government projects rely heavily on contractor expertise and the whole point of hiring contractors via personal service companies (PSCs) is the public sector wants contractors, not employees, for short-term expertise on tap. The proposed reforms are already starting to potentially cause irreconcilable damage for all involved but we are where we are, so I would advise any ill-prepared public sector body to heed our advice and carry out our action plan without delay.”
Please visit: www.ir35testing.co.uk
 James Pegum, CEO of Priava Priava, the leading cloud-based venue management software company, has announced that a growing number of local government organisations in both the UK and Australia are deploying its cloud-based venue management software to maximise event bookings, reduce costs and improve services to local residents.
Councils face unique challenges in managing hundreds of community and commercial events and bookings every month across a multitude of facilities and spaces, including recreational grounds, sports halls, stadium, swimming pools, community centres, halls and dedicated function spaces.
Priava’s cloud-based software – including event booking with an online calendar, venue and inventory management, CRM, task management, file storage, sales management, online enquiries, and catering modules – enables councils to manage bookings for multiple venues from a central application and offer online self-service bookings. UK councils that have so far adopted the software include Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, London Borough of Ealing, London Borough of Waltham Forest and London Borough of Woking.
James Pegum, CEO of Priava, commented: “At Priava we understand that no two councils or government organisations are the same. Our purpose-built software has been designed to be flexible, intuitive and easy-to-use, with the aim of streamlining booking processes in accordance with the needs and existing processes of our council and government clients. This enables users to increase efficiency, enhance services, reduce costs and maximise occupancy and income across a diverse range of venue spaces.”
Priava’s system includes an online calendar, offering the public a self-service option to check availability and make room-booking enquiries.
Support for flexible working
As it is cloud-based, nothing ever needs to be installed onsite, which means different venues, spaces and facilities of all sizes can be managed using just the one application, and flexible working staff can be easily supported. Built-in reporting enables managers to check the utilisation of resources at a glance, ensuring local residents get the best value for money.
 Key benefits for councils
Some of the benefits that councils are realising from automating the booking of facilities and running of events include:
 Me Learning directors celebrating their win Online training expert, Me Learning, has been announced as one of the fastest growing technology companies in the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 EMEA 2016. Featuring rising technology companies across the entire Europe, Middle East and Africa regions, the figures reveal Me Learning in a credible 360th position.
Rankings for this international award are based on percentage growth over a four year period. Me Learning’s growth tripled in this period and grew at a staggering 322%, catapulting them into the top 500 for this geographically wide region.
In order to be considered for the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 EMEA 2016 entrants must prove a base-year operating revenue of at least 50,000 Euros and current-year operating revenues of at least 800,000 Euros. Headquarters must be based in the EMEA region and should be a technology company that ‘develops or owns proprietary technology that contributes to a significant portion of the company’s operating revenues’.
Me Learning is a specialist provider of quality e-learning solutions to both private and public organisations, specifically to the social care sector, charities, education and health. It creates, develops and sells specific online training courses that range from compliance related to tailor made learning platforms. Today, Me Learning works with 110 Local Authorities in the UK and has over 250,000 registered learners.
Nick Richards, co-Founder of Me Learning comments, “Since starting the company in 2005 we have seen steady growth as our breadth of courses develop and our customer base grows and grows. To be considered and even included in the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 EMEA 2016 is testament to the consistently high quality of work our team produces. We were delighted to be included in 2015 but to reach 360th in such a wide global region for 2016 is fantastic news – let’s see if we can be even better placed next year!”
“Innovation is more than technological advancement; it’s also a state of mind,” added Paul Sallomi, vice chairman, Deloitte LLP and global technology, media and telecommunications industry leader. “The winners of the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 program in EMEA recognise that this new type of thinking is essential for business success. We look forward to your continued leadership in introducing new tools that can enhance the personal lives of consumers, and drive growth for companies worldwide.”
Achieving a position in the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 is impressive in this highly competitive and rapidly changing environment. To be featured in the listings companies have to be both dynamic and successful – for the second year running Me Learning has matched these requirements and proved it with their resulting sales.
For further information on Me Learning please visit www.melearning.co.uk or follow on @MeLearningUK
 Transformation and flexibility are the two headline themes of Utility Week Live, which returns to the NEC in Birmingham on 23-24 May 2017 bigger and better than ever.
Today’s utilities need to rise to the challenges of changing models of consumption and competition, the demands of sustainability and extreme weather, and political and economic upheaval: all these require a new approach from the essential businesses delivering water, gas and electricity to UK homes and businesses. Transformation and flexibility are therefore not optional for utilities, but the key to survival and success.
Utility Week Live 2017 will bring together these businesses with their supply chains and wider stakeholders to explore the new models of thinking and operating that are demanded by this challenging environment.
With last year’s show featuring more than 100 speakers, 150 exhibitors and 3,000 delegates, the 2017 version promises to grow this still further.
The pan-utility keynote conference will feature top utility leaders debating themes including resilience and decision-making amid uncertainty (including the potential impact of Brexit), skills, sustainability and new business models. ‘Meet the regulator’ and ‘meet the buyer’ sessions will give delegates the chance to pose questions to Ofgem and Ofwat, and for utilities to engage with major energy and water users.
Meanwhile, seminar sessions will once again take place in individual theatres on the show floor dedicated to Water and Energy, and there will be a new Customer Theatre for retail and customer-focussed topics.
Essential show features include the Innovation Zone (organised in partnership with the Energy Innovation Council); the Drilling & Tapping competition, including the World Water Cup (in partnership with the Institute of Water), the Streetworks Village, the Network Zone and the Outdoor Demonstration Zone. To mark the opening of the non-household retail market for water we will also be introducing the Water Retail Pavilion (co-hosted with our sister show edie Live), where water retailers can meet the major business buyers of water.
“After the success of last year, I am extremely excited to announce that Utility Week Live 2017 has launched,” said Amanda Barnes, Chief Executive of Utility Week Live. “It is a great opportunity for the multi-billion pound UK utilities industry to gather over two lively days of networking and come face-to-face with the key decision makers across the gas, electricity and water sectors.”
The Utility Week Live exhibition, technical seminars and keynote plenary sessions are all free to attend, while a paid ticket will be required to gain access to the keynote conference and panel discussions.
www.utilityweeklive.co.uk
WATER THEATRE SESSIONS INCLUDE: Preparing for PR19; Innovation in water; Energy efficiency opportunities; World class water; The circular economy and resource recovery; EU and environmental legislation policy update; Market opening: working with retailers; Water resources and energy from sludge; A sustainable water industry for the future – 2020 and beyond
ENERGY NETWORK THEATRE SESSIONS INCLUDE: Regulation update; The future of innovation; The storage revolution; The data driven network; The future of gas networks; The network of the future; Future heat; The connected customer and the network of the future; Innovation and cross vector thinking
CUSTOMER PROGRAMME THEATRE SESSIONS INCLUDE: Energy retail and the post CMA landscape; The connected customer; Putting customer service at the heart of water companies; Understanding the implications of next day switching; Meeting the needs of vulnerable customers; Smart metering and business transformation; Community energy; Delivering gold standard customer service
KEYNOTE THEATRE SESSIONS INCLUDE: Decision making in the face of uncertainty and turbulence; Smart utilities and their role in smart cities; Meet the Regulators – a Q&A session with Ofgem & Ofwat; Innovation: Digital utilities and the customer interface; Sustainability and climate change resilience; Meet the Buyers – a Q&A session with major energy and water users
Show features
The Innovation Zone: Organised in association with the Energy Innovation Council, this popular feature will showcase the latest game-changing innovations for the gas and electricity industries via technical pitches and live product demonstrations.
Drilling & Tapping championships including the World Water Cup: In partnership with the Institute of Water, the Drilling and Tapping competition sees teams racing against the clock to complete a simulated household connection to a water main. This year the contest incorporates the World Water Cup, with visiting teams competing from the USA and the Netherlands.
The Streetworks Village: The interactive streetworks village will involve a wide range of streetworks solutions providers demonstrating their products on a patchwork of specially-constructed streets.
Water Pavilion: Co-hosted with Utility Week Live’s sister show edie Live, the Water Pavilion will bring together water retailers and major business buyers of water.
The Network Zone: Come along for insights and networking into the wholesale energy market from Network, the dedicated title for electricity, gas and heat distribution professionals.
The Outdoor Demo Zone: Take a breath of fresh air while watching live product demonstrations outdoors from a host of Utility Week Live exhibitors.
Statistics
£791 million: The expected spend by visiting companies in 2016 with exhibitors at Utility Week Live.
The show is attended by 100% of Britain’s water companies, energy companies and network operators.
 David Taylor & Nicola Perry – Leading the Flogas Rural Housing Development Flogas Britain, one of the UK’s leading liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) providers, has created a specialist Rural Housing Development Team, to further strengthen the support it gives to rural, off-grid housing developments.
The team’s core focus will be to help off-grid housing developments operate “as if” they were on the national mains gas network, by creating a miniature gas grid that provides an uninterrupted supply of LPG directly into individual homes, from bulk storage tanks located on site or underground.
Part of DCC Energy, the leading oil and LPG sales and distribution business in Europe, Flogas has been building rural miniature gas grids – often referred to as ‘metered estates’ – for over 30 years, and operates hundreds of them across the UK.
The launch of the Rural Housing Development team sees Flogas expand its offering, increasing the expertise it can give to rural housing developers, architects and home owners, and recognises the rapid growth of the rural house building sector.
The team will consist of specially trained, dedicated experts who will fully manage the LPG installation process from start to finish, from the site appraisal and planning stages, through to system specification, design, installation and aftersales maintenance. Their aim will be to make it as easy as possible for developers, architects, installers and specifiers to build off-grid homes with low cost, efficient and environmentally friendly energy for heating, cooking and hot water. They will also work with existing estates to convert them from oil or solid fuel to LPG, with full project management to ensure a seamless transition.
By operating on LPG as opposed to oil or solid fuels, home owners can make huge cost savings, and reduce their carbon footprint by up to 50%, which from a developer’s perspective will make the homes easier to sell.
In addition to providing hassle-free solutions during the build phase, Flogas will also provide customer service that is second-to-none to the eventual house purchasers. LPG will be delivered via the UK’s largest LPG depot network and storage tanks will be fitted with full telemetry, ensuring supply to the homes is never interrupted. Additionally, each property will be fitted with an individual smart meter to ensure all billing is based on actual readings for that property rather than estimates, and home owners will benefit from competitive pricing, transparent billing and online account management tools.
Nicky Perry, Business Development Manager at Flogas, said: “We’ve been working with rural housing developers for more than 30 years, so we’re delighted to be creating this specialist team to further strengthen the support we can give them.
“We pride ourselves on being experts in energy, and with a wealth of LPG experience, the new team will be able to provide even more tailored solutions to help house builders in rural areas reap the rewards of a more secure, efficient and economical fuel supply.
“Our aim is to make life as easy as possible for both the developers and subsequent home owners. We’ll deal with everything, so developers can focus on building the properties, and home owners will feel like they are on the national grid, enjoying cheaper and greener energy than they would with solid fuel or oil
She concluded: “As space in urban areas becomes progressively limited, we’re seeing more and more homes being built in rural areas, away from the national gas grid. There is therefore a bigger demand for rural heating solutions than ever before; and with home owners looking to keep costs and emissions as low as possible, metered estates are becoming increasingly popular. Our new Flogas team is looking forward to being at the heart of it.”.
Developers interested in finding out more can visit: www.flogas.co.uk/metered-estates-developers or call 0800 313 4720
 Matthew Wort Following Philip Hammond’s first (and last) Autumn Statement yesterday, Matthew Wort, Health and Social Care expert and Partner at Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP commented:
“Philip Hammond says social care is a problem for the next parliament, but the crisis is now.
What do you value more, your wi-fi or your relatives and friends who need care and support? This is the question posed to the general public today as Philip Hammond refused to acknowledge social care in his Autumn Statement. While the Government seemed happy to invest in virtual connectivity, dropping business rates for super fast broadband, the sector that relies on personal connection has been ignored.
The Chancellor declared that social care is a “problem for the next parliament” and he couldn’t be more wrong. It is a crisis now, and it is a crisis that needs answers now. Directors of Adult Social Services accept that 1.6 billion was needed to maintain care at current levels, so given that social care providers now also need to find funding for a 30 pence rise in the National Living Wage services look set to only go one way.
By putting its head in the sand, the government sends a worrying signal to the health and social care industry and a confirmation that the government is no longer focused on improving an industry that is relied upon by at least 2 million of the most vulnerable people in our society.
Sadly, this is no surprise, following Prime Minister Theresa May’s failure to mention social care in her 7,000 word Conference speech last month. Not only are the Conservative Party not dealing with the social care time bomb, they’re not even interested.
The sector needs to come together with one voice ahead of the next budget and we all need to make clear what we value more our elderly relatives, those people living with physical or learning disabilities or a faster internet connection?”
 Following the Autumn Statement, Councillor Ray Puddifoot MBE, London Councils’ executive member for adult social care, said:
“The Autumn Statement did not acknowledge the pressures facing adult social care services up and down the country. In London alone the cumulative funding shortfall for adult social care will be at least £800 million by the end of this Parliament.
“Failing to address growing demand for and additional financial burdens on adult social care services will place further strain on the NHS, weaken the care market and deprive vulnerable people of essential care, resulting in poorer general health and services that are not fit for purpose.
“There is still time for government to act by supporting London’s case for devolution of powers and responsibilities linked to the capital’s health and care system. This will make it possible for London to transform services through quicker and deeper integration of health and care services, which is critical to the long term improvement of health of Londoners and sustainability of services.”
If you are involved in managing and maintaining a city’s assets and infrastructure, GIS and engineering projects, join this webinar to learn how the new Reality Lens tool-suite can help visualise, map and measure your infrastructure direct from your desktop, delivering real cost savings and productivity benefits.
When: Tuesday 4th October 2016……2pm-3pm BST (one hour)
The webinar includes an introduction by Andrew Coote – Director WhereConsulting, which will focus on GeoSpatial solutions in Urban Planning.
HERE has been capturing highly accurate geospatial data for more than 30 years and leads the way in the deployment of next generation reality capture to provide lidar-enabled 3D map imagery. Capturing over 700 thousand new points per second, this high-precision geospatial and 3D point cloud data is now available for managing Enterprise applications through HERE’s new product called Reality Lens.
Reality Lens is a unique and scalable tool for infrastructure asset management, GIS and engineering projects that enable you to access complete urban environments. In the webinar we will describe how the map and measure features allow you to locate and gauge your assets with centimetre precision or visualise future constructions.
Webinar highlights:
- An introduction by Andrew Coote – a respected industry leader in the application of geospatial solutions within local Government and urban planning.
- A detailed look at how HERE has used its leadership in 3D imagery and reality capture to create Reality Lens and how it can make a key contribution to city infrastructure planning and management.
- An interactive demonstration of the Reality Lens tool using live London data
Who is the webinar aimed at?
People involved in the provision of UK public service or transport infrastructure, utilities, and construction or urban mobility projects – we will demonstrate how Reality Lens can deliver productivity benefits and real cost savings by reducing transportation or data collection costs.
Register now by clicking the box below:
For more details on HERE reality Lens go to: realitylens.here.com
 Exhibition from 2014-2105 The EEM Supply Chain Showcase takes place in Nottingahm on 29 & 30 September 2016.
EEM Ltd is free to join, not for profit organisation supporting 63 public sector organisations in finding best value products & services through collaborative procurement. EEM secure contracts with 100’s of suppliers and manufacturers, covering all aspects of repairs, maintenance and construction on behalf of our 63 members which results in best value rates and efficiency savings.
EEM Ltd procures all Contracts and Frameworks through the EU creating a compliant and efficient service for the Public Sector reducing both internal and external costs through being a free service.
As a not-for-profit organisation, EEM donates any operating surplus back to the members for the member to use for community projects.
In September 2016 EEM shall be distributing £144,000 in Community Donations, examples of the amounts to be given are: Nottingham £44,213.34, Chesterfield £10,660.67, Mansfield £6,053.93 and Derby 10,794.76.
EEM Supply Chain Showcase 29 & 30 September 2016
What: A 2-day exhibition style and networking event with up to 73 exhibitors supporting the Public Sector (Repairs, Refurbishment and New-build).
Exhibitors: Manufacturers, suppliers and contractors relating to construction and maintenance of social housing and other public sector property.
Invited: All UK public sector organisations, including Housing Providers, Authorities, Universities, Hospitals and the Blue Light Services.
Why: To meet with manufacturers, distributors and contractors who have been procured through an open EU process and to identify efficiency savings through aggregation and volume procurement at no direct cost to the Public Sector.
Where: Trent Vineyard Conference Centre, Nottingham, NG7 2PX
 The 2-day event is split into the following themes:
Day 1: Thursday 29th September 2016: 10.00am – 3.00pm Planned and responsive repairs and maintenance.
Day 2: Friday 30th September 2016: 10.00am – 3.00pm New Build Development and associated services.
Day 1 – Repairs & Maintenance.
Tickets: Free to all Public Sector bodies and Housing Providers. Free entry, Free Coffee and Free Lunch.
For more information and to register please visit: www.eemshowcase2016.eventbrite.co.uk
 Gary Plant, MD, Altius By Gary Plant, Managing Director of supplier assessment and compliance specialist Altius
With stiffer sentencing guidelines for health and safety, corporate manslaughter and food safety and hygiene offences now in force for England and Wales, public sector organisations should tighten up health and safety compliance.
While organisations may have robust procedures internally, what about health and safety processes of those delivering your outsourced services. It’s necessary to ensure compliance across your entire supply chain.
New sentencing guidelines, which came into force on 1 February 2016, aim to create a consistent, fair and proportionate approach to sentencing organisations or individuals convicted of corporate manslaughter, health and safety and food safety and hygiene offences.
Hitherto, guidance for the courts in dealing with less serious health and safety and food safety offences has been lacking. The comprehensive new guidelines cover the most commonly sentenced health and safety offences and food safety offences in England and Wales.
According to the Sentencing Council, this could cover: “a building firm that causes the death of an employee by not providing the proper equipment for working at height, a restaurant that causes an outbreak of e. coli poisoning through unsafe food preparation, a manufacturer that causes injury to a new worker by not providing training for operating machinery or a gas fitter whose sub-standard work leads to the risk of an explosion in someone’s home.”
 Altius Exigo software screen shot Large organisations (taking into account turnover or other measures of financial health) committing serious offences could feel the full force of the changes in higher penalties. The Sentencing Council has stated that some offenders will be subject to higher penalties, particularly large organisations responsible for more serious offences. But it says that fines will be “fair and proportionate to the seriousness of the offence and the means of offenders.” As such, the guidelines set out sentencing ranges that reflect the varied levels of risk of harm that can result from such offences.
The guidelines provide a starting point and a range of possible fines dependent on the seriousness of the offence and how culpable the offender is judged to be. This could range from minor failings in procedures to deliberately dangerous acts. For serious health and safety breaches, individual company directors could face prison sentences and heavy fines.
The new guidelines mean there is nowhere to hide when it comes to facing up to health and safety breaches and even if procedures and policies are robust in your own organisation, you could face exposure from suppliers. It is critical for organisations to scrutinise their health and safety policies, training and compliance, and ensure that risk is assessed across the entire supply chain and standards are applied and continuously monitored.
It’s more crucial than ever before that organisations have robust compliance procedures. This might mean swapping archaic spreadsheet-based compliance systems for more agile compliance software systems that provide total supply chain visibility and a complete health and safety compliance audit trail that is easily accessible and retrievable should a company end up defending itself.
Altius’ managed compliance services and software solutions help public sector organisations to manage compliance across their entire supply chain.
Request a free demo of Altius’ Exigo compliance software system that makes health and safety management easy
Further information www.altiusva.com
 Gary Plant_Managing Director – Altius Vendor Assessment By Gary Plant, Managing Director of supplier assessment and compliance specialist Altius
External suppliers can help public sector organisations reduce cost, boost efficiency and improve quality. But the flip side is that they can also bring liability in the guise of delays, problems, waste, extra cost and adverse PR.
Here’s 10 possible warning signs that you might need to run a supplier health check.
- You don’t have perfect 20:20 vision of your suppliers, contractors and service providers.
Supply chain blind spots are a common symptom of sickly supply chains. Ask yourself: Do you have full visibility of your suppliers and contractors? Are you able to plot trends and spot weaknesses by mapping the full historical data? Do you have sub-contractors in your sights?
- You have data overload.
Have the simple spreadsheets you set up years ago grown enormous and complex? Do these spreadsheets align with your other back office systems? Can you use the information collaboratively. How easy is it to turn the information into useful management reports and instantly retrieve requested data? If you are relying on manual processes to manage a large supply chain, chances are that you will be drowning in data.
- You’re taking no chances and audit everyone.
There’s no doubt that seeing something with your own eyes gives you an extra degree of confidence, but it’s expensive and often ineffective. The frequently audited supplier can becoming proficient at passing audits. Audits can be a very powerful tool if used sparingly and positively, but when overdone they become a drain on both supplier and client.
- Your cyber defence and data protection strategy is still on the to-do list.
One of the newest threats to your supply chain is going to get bigger and more sinister in years to come. Failing to ensure that your suppliers are cyber-compliant and data protection measures are in order can leave your business open to catastrophic breaches of data and large associated fines. Make sure a comprehensive cyber defence and data protection strategy is in place and regularly update to combat the latest threats.
- You don’t have clear accountability lines for assuring subcontractors.
A common concern among managers is that while they’ve got good assurance that their suppliers and contractors are in good shape, their visibility of the next tier down of the supply chain is poor. The natural tendency is to want to gain assurance of that tier and beyond too. These conscientious managers often start the process of getting to know who the sub-suppliers are and start checking them, but the process is long and complex so it isn’t always completed. Sometimes they will insist sub-suppliers are chosen from an approved list. But when things go wrong, the first tier supply will rightly point out that you, the client, said that the sub-supplier was OK. With the best intentions, you’ve taken away their responsibility and accountability to manage their suppliers.
- Your insurance bill is eyewatering.
Rising insurance premiums may be a signal that there’s risk lurking among your outsourced services and your insurer doesn’t believe you have things under full control. By demonstrating that you have a grip on supplier compliance, you should see premiums fall.
- Team members are tightly stretched
Have you got too many people bogged down in non-value added, reactive activities? Are you under-using their skills to manage a clunky supplier compliance process? Wouldn’t it be better to utilise their talents for value added activities, such as developing supply contracts, rather than supervising and ‘policing’ them.
- You worry about legal action.
If things go wrong with outsourced contracts, how easy would it be to defend your actions? Have you got a full audit trail of all the up to the minute evidence available to instantly view and download anytime and anywhere?
- You’re asking too much from supplier assessment.
Is your supplier assessment tailored precisely to the risk each supplier represents and proportional and reasonable? Are your suppliers asked to jump though unnecessary hoops and assessed on criteria that have no relevance to the work they will undertake for you? Do you stress your contractors out each and every year, rather than keeping a continuous dialogue going and updating their evidence, as required?
- There’s a ‘dark’ side to your compliance process.
Does your assessment system simply measure compliance and financial solvency once a year – leaving you in the ‘dark’ about the other 364 days and crossing your fingers that you’ve got things covered for the entire 12 months. What happens when there’s new legislation or business requirements? In these instances, do you have to wait until the assessment anniversary to bring compliance up to date?
Altius has launched an online supply chain health check tool that will demonstrate how much visibility and control you have and identify possible areas of risk. Supply chain managers submitting answers to the quick online questionnaire receive a customised report highlighting strengths and weaknesses in their supplier relationships and suggested actions for improvement.
Complete the supply chain health check at: www.altiusva.com/supply-chain-health-check
 Support Worker Nicholas Blunt, PC Michael Clarke, Specialist Mental Health Practitioner Louise Shaw Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and local health services are working in partnership to help people with mental health needs who frequently come into contact with the police.
A 12 month pilot will see mental health professionals from Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust based at the Rochdale Police Station. They will work alongside a dedicated police co-ordinator to help identify and engage with people with mental health needs who routinely come into contact with the police services. Once identified, the Mental Health Practitioner will assess if the vulnerable individual requires further support from either mental health, social care or other support services.
Louise Shaw, Specialist Mental Health Practitioner at Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, said “This is a new and exciting opportunity to build upon the relationship between local mental health and police services.
“It is evidence of the commitment from the local NHS and the police in providing a strong and successful partnership with the common aim of improving the quality of life for some of the most vulnerable within our community.
“We are confident that this will not only bring about positive changes to the lives of people in need, but it will also reduce the demand on the police, health and social care and other support services in our local area.”
Chief Superintendent Chris Sykes said: “Our foremost objective with this pilot is to provide the most effective care and support to those with mental health issues, as soon we are aware of their needs. Having mental health professionals on hand will speed up this process and in turn benefit those most in need.”
Clinical Lead for the Clinical Commissioning Group, Dr Anirban Roy has been instrumental in shaping the pilot, he said; “The team from Rochdale are already working with a number of people who have frequent contact with the police, and with the support of other health professionals are identifying problem cases before they can escalate, helping to reduce the demand placed on a number of front line emergency services. We are confident that the pilot will not only improve the health and wellbeing of these individuals, it will be positive for the community as a whole.”
Joining Louise Shaw on the pilot project will be Mental Health Support Worker Nicholas Blunt, with support from police co-ordinator PC Michael Clarke.
 Andy Brewin, Social Housing and Social Value Business Manager, AkzoNobel Dulux Trade brand owner, AkzoNobel was named as a key contributor to the development of a new toolkit at its launch last week – Social Value and Procurement: A toolkit for housing providers and contractors – that defines and measures social value through the life cycle of the procurement process.
The toolkit developed by HACT with the support of solicitors, Trowers & Hamlins LLP and procurement specialists, echelon Consultancy Ltd alongside contractors and Housing Associations, enables Housing Providers to quantify and measure social value generated through the supply chain. The HACT social value methodology, Wellbeing Valuation , provides a consistent mechanism to enable contractors and manufacturers to identify and respond to the needs of registered providers.
AkzoNobel was the only manufacturer on the HACT-led working group that designed the toolkit, demonstrating the company’s commitment to helping Housing Providers and contractors define and deliver social value within procured contracts. The toolkit will enable companies bidding for contracts in the housing sector, including Dulux Trade Contract Partners, to clarify precisely how they will drive social value through delivery of the contract.
Andy Brewin, Social Housing and Social Value Business Manager, AkzoNobel, one of the speakers at the launch, spoke of his optimism that the new HACT toolkit will help the supply chain to achieve ambitious targets linked to social value measures. He also told the audience of professionals from the Housing Provider, Authority and developer community including Northern Housing Consortium, Wandle and Wates that the toolkit will help to positively impact the lives of people living and working within the social housing sector. Reiterating the responsibility of companies throughout the supply chain to drive forward and improve social value ratings, Andy Brewin used AkzoNobel as an example of a manufacturer that not only uses its paints to demonstrate social value but that is committed to driving up and improving training prospects and skills-based learning for housing sector beneficiaries.
Andy Brewin, AkzoNobel said: “We are delighted to have been invited to work with HACT and the other partners on the development of the toolkit. It was important to us as a company to contribute to its development from the point of view of a manufacturer as the whole supply chain has to be considered if attempting to seamlessly deliver social value through the procurement process.”
“Our participation has allowed us to evaluate our own social value to the housing sector. Our social value will be measured through our future product or service developments, through our brands such as Dulux Trade, our new training facility, the Dulux Academy for professional decorators, trainees and apprentices and through the scheme we run for our Contract Partners. Our participation on the working group has reinforced that manufacturers, contractors, Housing Providers and Authorities need to be aligned so that they can recognise and meet the needs of the people that they serve.”
For further information about the toolkit, please visit hact.org.uk/procurement-toolkit or www.duluxtradepaintexpert.co.uk
 Mark Hall By Mark Hall, public sector director at Redcentric; and Peter Nailer, senior bid manager at Redcentric
From vehicle hire to laundry services to enterprise technology – there are now countless purchasing frameworks for almost anything the public sector needs to buy. Take the Digital Marketplace, specifically covering technology. The several frameworks within it, such as G-Cloud, comprise numerous different lots with each of these offering a variety of technology choices. Add to this all of the other buying organisations and their frameworks and quickly the options for the public sector buyer become complex and downright confusing! As an IT services provider included on frameworks such as G-Cloud 7 and the NOECPC Hosting framework, at Redcentric we have had a front row view of how frameworks have evolved. Originally established to help simplify purchasing (particularly for smaller public sector buyers with limited buying power) and bring cohesion to public sector procurement, there have been many success stories. However, as the number of frameworks grows by the day, are frameworks still doing the job they set out to?
Considering that sales over G-Cloud recently hit £1 billion, it is clear to see that this framework has achieved its goal. With some 1,900 approved suppliers in place it has created a highly competitive marketplace centred on the government’s ground breaking ‘Cloud First’ strategy for both SMEs and large IT suppliers.
The conditions set by G-Cloud encourage fairness by ensuring a level of transparency. For example, suppliers have to publicly display pricing on the framework to give each other an accurate view of what they are charging, allowing competitors to set their rates accordingly. Also thanks to G-Cloud contracts not exceeding two years, buyers aren’t stuck with suppliers for an excessive length of time, and can rethink their options as they themselves evolve.
But the benefits and adoption of G-Cloud do not resonate across many other frameworks. Some place a cap on the number of suppliers able to win a place on the framework effectively creating monopolies dominated by big players who have the resources to apply. These caps fail to properly harness competitiveness amongst suppliers and do little to encourage them to innovate. Some framework contracts are set for as much as four years, tying organisations into long relationships that may go beyond their requirements.
The increase in volume of frameworks is also a problem. This rise is partly due to fact that any organisation operating in the public or not-for-profit sector has the authority to establish a framework and encourage other organisations to use it – provided they comply with EU law. Everything from schools and colleges to district councils and charities have done so, drawn to the commercial gains and incentives. For every sale made over a framework the founder receives a commission of between 1 and 5%.
 Frameworks: a victim of their own success So let’s consider, does the current framework landscape meet its goal: to make public sector buying easier and more cohesive? The answer is complex- in some cases, like G-Cloud, the answer is yes, in many cases the answer is no.
Speaking from a supplier perspective, the sheer volume of frameworks that exist, even just in relation to IT, create pressure to apply for a place on them all in order to avoid missing out on potential business. This can be a full time job, with smaller suppliers who lack resources pushed out. Once again this means that larger suppliers are likely to realise greater opportunities, reducing the ability of frameworks to deliver a level playing field. But more worryingly is the impact on innovation. As the choice of suppliers diminishes so too does the choice of innovative and cutting-edge solutions from start-ups that lack experience and funds to gain a place on the framework.
As technology frameworks have increased in public sector procurement, the IT community has responded with a rise in the level of subcontracting used to deliver the work required against them. However, this goes against the transparency that frameworks are meant to provide. Naturally for simplicity sake, IT managers tend to prefer a single supplier to meet all of the organisation’s needs, meaning that many IT suppliers have to outsource to deliver the full service. But this too favours the big suppliers, as they can afford to win a place on the framework, but then subcontract most of the work to smaller companies who can only be on a framework via their contractee. Larger suppliers retain a cut of the profit generated from the sale, passing small margins on to contractors who deliver much of the work.
Public sector buyers are already faced with complexities when using frameworks to procure resources. While the frameworks aim to support buyers by undertaking compliance checks of suppliers, there can still be a burden on the buyer as regulations change or are updated. Take the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, which is available in a 127 page document at www.legislation.gov.uk. While it’s down to suppliers to review and ensure they’re compliant, it’s often a non-procurement professional, such as an IT manager, who is the one making a technology purchasing decision with limited knowledge, understanding or time to review regulations.
So how can the situation be improved? Firstly a holistic review of all frameworks in operation across the public sector would help to show where effort is being duplicated and if there is an opportunity to pool the buying power of multiple framework operators and buying organisations. Frameworks need to start properly delivering on the goal of bringing the buying power of many public sector organisations together, to forge better deals and consistency, rather than just flooding the market with different options. There should be more regulation of framework provision, rather than an open book, ‘the more the merrier’, approach.
The popularity of a framework approach has certainly taken off, but in recent years we’ve seen the market grow in complexity rather than simplify purchasing. With large companies still dominating an increasing number of frameworks, and many lacking transparency with regards to sub-contracting, it’s possible the market may well end up counter-productive. Clearly this is where the success of G-Cloud should be heralded as a way forward for other service areas and lead others by example.
While the copious amount of frameworks may baffle public sector buyers, service providers can step in to help reduce the confusion. Redcentric offers a free consultation service in line with the ‘Cloud First’ goal. Our service establishes how Cloud and hybrid options can help specific public sector organisations achieve their objectives, and determines what digital services they will benefit from. The benefit of Cloud, including flexibility and remote working, are too plentiful not to adopt. And a successful implementation starts with a consultation to see how it can best suit the individual organisation.
To discover how Redcentric keeps it simple – providing efficient, secure and flexible Cloud solutions for the UK public sector contact us on:
Call: 0808 164 3515
Visit: www.redcentricplc.com/public-sector
Email: sayhello@redcentricplc.com
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