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Issue - meetings

Publica Transition Plan - Phase 2

 

 

Meeting: 19/03/2025 - Council (Item 92)

92 Publica Transition Plan - Phase 2 pdf icon PDF 570 KB

Purpose

To consider the document Publica Transition: A Plan for Phase 2 of Council Services (“Phase 2 Transition Plan”), to note its contents and to approve the recommendations therein.

 

Recommendations

That Council resolves to:

  1. Approve the implementation of Phase 2 of the Publica Transition on the basis of the Phase 2 Transition Plan;
  2. Delegate to the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader of the Council the decision to deal with any final detail matters arising from the Phase 2 Transition Plan;
  3. Delegate authority to the Director of Governance in liaison with the Leader to update the constitution by making any consequential changes required as a result of Phase 2 of the Publica Transition.
  4. Carry out a budget re-basing for the 2026/7 financial year so that the funding provided to Publica is proportionate to the services received.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Purpose

The purpose of the report was to consider the document ‘Publica Transition: A Plan for Phase 2 of Council Services’, known as Phase 2 Transition Plan, to note its contents and to approve the recommendations therein.

 

Councillor Harris, Leader of the Council, introduced the report, summarised its key points, and explained the purpose of the transition: to create leaner, more efficient services and improve staff management for better services to residents. He acknowledged the challenges of Phase 1 but stated that the transition had been well managed by the senior management team. Phase 2 was noted as being another step on the journey.

 

The Chief Executive then spoke to the detailed Phase 2 transition plan. Key lessons from Phase 1 had helped refine the approach, including insights from a staff engagement survey. Feedback from the 75 transferred staff was largely positive.

 

Phase 2 was expected to be more complex due to fragmented roles requiring careful restructuring. It was noted that HR would lead the transition process, ensuring smooth staff engagement.

 

The Phase 2 transition prioritised high-spend and politically significant service areas, including:

  • property and estates
  • waste and recycling
  • leisure contract management, and
  • project management.

The report presented outline costs and processes, mirroring the approach taken in Phase 1, with Phase 2 focused on improving service delivery and securing council autonomy.

 

The resolution was formally moved and opened for questions.

 

Straight Through Processing (STP) was clarified as referring to a streamlined approach to enabling decisions and actions to be executed directly without requiring multiple levels of approval or intervention from external entities. In the context of Phase 2, STP would allow direct execution of decisions, removing external approvals, reducing delays, and ensuring Council autonomy. 

 

The notion of a ‘local employee’ was also clarified. It was noted that this terminology referred to staff who lived within or near the Council’s jurisdiction. This approach aligned with Council priorities, strengthened community ties, and supported sustainability by reducing commutes.

 

Councillor Evemy seconded the report and reserved the right to speak.

 

The Chair then moved to the debate on the resolution.

 

Members of the Conservative Group raised concerns about the transition process, predicting that both costs and risks would escalate. They acknowledged the potential benefits of bringing some services back in-house but urged that these benefits be weighed against the financial impact and the risks of the process, which would ultimately fall on taxpayers.

They urged a pause in the process for risk assessment and cost estimation. They noted that the Phase 1 transition cost had significantly exceeded estimates, with the additional costs for delivering services outside of Publica projected to be £750,000 per year, five times the original estimate in the Human Engine report. The additional costs of Phase 2 were deemed unjustifiable, due to ongoing Phase 1 issues.

It was noted that there was a sense that Phase 1 had been rushed and had lacked a detailed business case and proper due diligence.

It was mooted that the main goals of the Phase  ...  view the full minutes text for item 92

 

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