Agenda item

To consider a report regarding Public Sector Commissioning in Partnership. VAST, the provider of the infrastructure support service, will give a presentation at the meeting.  

The Council’s Business Improvement Manager introduced a report regarding Public Sector Commissioning in Partnership (PSCiP).

The Borough Council had been working with Staffordshire County Council to identify strategic collaborations with the potential for back office savings and additionality in contracts. The Borough Council had been actively involved with the funding and debt benefit and consumer advice contract since its commencement, and it would be ensured that the Council’s service outlines and specification were included in the documentation that would be released in the market place. This process was run by Staffordshire County Council, but there was a Newcastle Borough Council officer on the panel.

There had been two interested parties: VAST and SCIO. The money in the pot was the same as it had been for the last three or four years, additionality in the contract was the focus, rather than a monetary saving. Section 3.2.9 of the report detailed the feedback on outcomes that was beginning to be received.

The Debt Benefit and Consumer Advice service was currently being delivered by Age UK and the Citizens Advice Bureau. This service had been delivered separately by the two organisation previously. The organisations had been approached to investigate the possibility of working collaboratively, which had been a success. It had been indicated that this would be a short term contract and it was currently back in the market place, and would be due back for consideration in early October. There would be a Newcastle Borough Council officer on the evaluation panel. Market interest work had also been undertaken and it was expected that there would be a back office saving with the new contract. This potential saving would be investigated with a view to identifying it and then to take a decision on how to utilise the saving.

The Business Improvement Manager then introduced Jackie Wheeler, Development Team Leader at VAST and former Chief Executive Officer for the Newcastle Community and Voluntary Service (NCVS), who provided a verbal update regarding VAST and the progress it was making. The merger had taken place at the end of July with the contract with Staffordshire County Council beginning on 1 May 2013. There had been some changes in staff, but it had been possible to retain some staff from Newcastle-under-Lyme. NCVS merging with VAST had added value through VAST’s strong background in the field, and VAST also had specialised teams in areas such as marketing and graphics. There were eight outreach areas, with a presence in every district and there had been very little change to NCVS.

VAST were also working with large organisations such as The Prince’s Trust, Homestart and the British Heart Foundation to identify volunteers, and good relationships were being built with these groups.

The overall aim of VAST was to ensure that voluntary organisations received the support that they needed. This was considered to be easy to maintain in Newcastle as officers had been retained from the area. Work was taking place with Aspire with regard to Employer Supported Volunteering, with Aspire staff giving up two days per year to volunteer. VAST were also attending a job fair event where there would be a database that could match volunteers to the organisations that required them. A‘Business As Usual’ event was due to take place on 2 October 2013, which following the recent merger would introduce the range of development and volunteering support services that were available to charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises across Staffordshire. The event would give voluntary organisations the chance to meet funders who support local groups, and to take part in a question and answer session with VAST and Staffordshire County Council.

There was a quarterly newsletter called ‘Action’ and a weekly e-bulletin to publicise information about VAST, and they were also on Twitter and Facebook. The Staffordshire Voice was also online and ready to go. Things were looking very positive and good positive results were being achieved.

Members of the Committee were supportive of the changes that had taken place and thought they were a very positive move for the Borough and its residents. Jackie Wheeler was thanked for her attendance.

RESOLVED:                        That the information be received.