References to ‘strategic commissioning’ in the media are increasing rapidly. Is this the answer to preserving reasonable service levels through a decade of public sector austerity? Many seem convinced of the case, but opinions of what ‘strategic commissioning’ is, and how to go about it, vary markedly.

Socitm’s appearance before the Public Administration Select Committee (PASC) on 22 March brought it out into the open. Outsourcing the ICT service might have many hidden costs. Not for the first time our benchmarking service reports that in 2010 the cost of ICT in councils that have outsourced is higher than where they have not. What are the
real risks in making the wrong decisions?

Socitm Consulting Expertise helps this national charity to save money on IT costs.

Action for Children is a national charity committed to helping the most vulnerable children and young people in the UK to break through injustice, deprivation and inequality, so they can achieve their full potential. Action for Children operates in locations from the north of Scotland to the south of England as well as throughout Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands.

Broadland DC (BDC) had begun the process to consider how and whether they should re-tender the contract for their current outsourced ICT function. The ICT service had been outsourced for over 20 years and the current contract was 10 years old. In that time the supplier had changed many times, but the staffing had remained fairly stable having transferred under TUPE. The ICT equipment was owned by the Council and was operated on site and the Council also held the software licences. The ICT Contract was coming up for renewal and a tender exercise was being undertaken using ESPO.

Established in September 2003, Valleys to Coast Housing (V2C) in Bridgend owns and manages over 6,000 homes in a diverse mixture of valley and town locations within the County Borough area. V2C was the first housing association in Wales to be formed by the large-scale transfer of homes from a local authority with the aim of providing affordable homes to rent and buy. V2C has a vision that extends beyond just homes and they are equally as passionate about developing and supporting thriving communities and promoting local engagement.

We have the skills and the tools to help you achieve a website that delivers for your council - that is a website that gives real value in terms of the services it delivers to your customers and the savings it makes for the council. We cover all that is needed, summarised below:

The new coalition government promises a very different approach to public services and the relationship between state and individual, but will be grappling with a huge budget deficit. What are the implications for the management of information, the effective use of technology and efficient service delivery in the public sector? Are the prospects grim, or is there in fact an opportunity to do things better and save costs?

In tough times, the frequent recourse of hard-pressed management in local authorities is to top-slice departmental budgets, perhaps with some ring-fencing of sensitive areas. The problem with this is it impacts morale across the organisation, puts customers on the look-out for falls in service quality, and above all focuses staff attention on maintaining services as they are.

Rochford District Council (RDC) faced important decisions regarding future options for its outsourced ICT service. The contract was awarded for 10 years and they were approaching the option for an extension for up to two more years. Since the award of the contract in 2001 the charges had significantly increased fuelled by indexation and contracted changes. Options to be considered included the two-year extension, re-letting the contract, or bringing the service in-house. In particular, the Council was concerned the option it chose supported the financial savings it needed to achieve over the forthcoming years. Equally it wished to remain flexible in order to take advantage of any shared services opportunities. It was necessary to ensure a timely decision was made on the extension in order to allow enough time for a procurement project to re-let the contract.

Suffolk Coastal District Council has implemented the most cost-effective, reliable and flexible option for maintaining and developing its ICT Services following an outsourcing options appraisal by Socitm Consulting. By advising the Council on the future of its ICT Service following the expiry of its existing outsourced contract, Socitm Consulting helped the Council to select the most effective option for supporting its key strategic priorities of efficiency, maintenance of service quality and obligations to county-level shared services.