Service Birmingham

Some more work for Capita

Outsourcing firm undertakes cost-saving review of Birmingham City Council contracts

By:
Published January 17, 2013, in Politics


Stewart Stacey

Stewart Stacey

Outsourcing firm Capita is undertaking a review of all Birmingham City Council private sector contracts in an attempt to drive down costs and secure efficiencies.With the local authority buying in goods and services worth £1 billion a year, Labour council leaders have identified procurement as an area where large-scale savings might be made to offset public spending cuts.

Cllr Stewart Stacey, cabinet member for commissioning, contracting and improvement, is working with deputy council leader Ian Ward to “critically examine contract management across the city”.

Capita, which  has contracts worth £1 billion with the council and runs the  joint venture ICT company Service Birmingham, has been asked to

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The Top 10 posts of 2012 on The Chamberlain News

Dontchya just love a list?

By:
Published January 3, 2013, in Politics


Dontchya just love a list?


 

 

Date set to broadcast Birmingham cabinet meetings to the world

City council close to agreeing webcast live screening deal

By:
Published December 18, 2012, in Politics


Live video streaming of Birmingham City Council cabinet and planning committee meetings is expected to begin in February next year.

The council is close to finalising a contract with an as yet un-named media company and has identified committee rooms three and four in the Council House as the venue for live coverage.

The preferred bidder has offered to provide a set number of hours’ coverage during the year for a fixed fee, but it will be up to council leaders to decide exactly which meetings are screened.

A source said it was also likely that some scrutiny committees and district committee meetings would be broadcast, fulfilling an open government commitment by council leader Sir Albert Bore.

The annual cost to the council of live streaming on the internet is thought to be in excess of

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Service Birmingham chairman trashes his own company

Cllr Barry Henley: Capita-led IT supplier has 'perverse incentive to do work by the most expensive route'.

By:
Published December 13, 2012, in Politics


Birmingham City Council’s private sector IT provider is enjoying profit margins two and a half times greater than set out in an initial agreement and can expect to be paid almost £1 billion over the remaining nine years of its contract.

Service Birmingham, the Capita-led company responsible for transforming IT services, running the council call centre and operating the local authority pay roll, is able to charge for hiring consultants at up to £2,000 a day – while ensuring it profits by adding a 17 per cent mark up to the council’s bill.

Details of Capita’s contractual arrangements have been revealed by Service Birmingham chairman, Labour city councillor Barry Henley, a computer expert who was appointed to the post in May.

Cllr Henley, a longstanding critic of Service Birmingham’s performance, disclosed that the 17 per cent mark up even applied to refreshing software “for which they are already paid for support in the original contract”.

The mark up meant that Service Birmingham had a “perverse incentive to

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Birmingham City Council and Capita urged to seek ‘marriage guidance’

Relationship on the rocks... but both sides determined to make it work

By:
Published December 12, 2012, in Politics


Birmingham City Council’s uneasy relationship with its private sector IT provider Capita has been likened to warring parents who have little in common but agree to stay together for the sake of the children.

The tounge-in-cheek comparison was made by Carl Rice, chairman of the main scrutiny committee, who said that both sides would benefit from the services of a marriage guidance counsellor to help solve their differences.

Cllr Rice was commenting during a hearing about an independent study into the performance of Service Birmingham, the Capita-led company that has an £1 billion contract to deliver council IT services and the local authority’s call centre until 2021.

A ‘health check’ study by Best Practice Group (BPG) concluded that Service Birmingham had given value for money in providing core IT services, but that the partnership with the council deteriorated following the end of a business transformation programme.

The study pointed to a lack of trust and understanding on both sides, and warned:

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