 Dear Colleague,
Welcome to this week's edition
of the NWCE weekly news. Our weekly newsletters are also available via
our website. Click
here to access.
We want to hear good news stories and lessons learned from around the
region for inclusion in our news updates relating to improving efficiency
or partnerships/collaborations. If you have news you want to
include in our update, please contact Beverley Brooks.
North West Centre of
Excellence
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Featured Event
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 What's in it for us?
The Shared Services project is turning to match-making to
engage its key audience.
The 'What's In it For Us' group will be holding a
20-minute speed updating session from Shared Services Programme Board
representatives at its next meeting on September 19.
The representatives will get 20 minutes each to give delegates a brief
overview of their sub-region's plans and activities.
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 Remploy red letter
The
NWCE has been made aware of a letter sent from GMB and Unite
about Remploy and the Priority Suppliers Scheme.
Since January 2006 the new public procurement regulations have
provided that all public sector bodies can lawfully reserve at least one
contract for a supported factory or business. However, the letter says
that this can be done "..without the
responsibility of going through the best value tender
process." This may contradict clause 7.2 of the Reserved
Contracts legislation that states organisations may reserve the right for
only supported businesses to apply, but the contract award procedures
must still be followed.
Further
guidance can be found here.
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 Focus on a framework - driving
down prices
The NWCE's 'focus on a framework' highlights key
frameworks or agreements that councils can use.
Does the cost of car rental
drive you crazy? This offer can help councils save on car rentals.
Councils across the country can
benefit from reduced rates with two suppliers of car rental - Arval and Enterprise Rent a Car.
Arval have reduced daily rates for the most
popular vehicles hired and Enterprise
has shaved 3% off daily rates across the board. Their delivery and
collection charges have also reduced by around 46% to a business address
and 30% to a home address. These reductions are not typical of market
trends, as the cost of vehicle hire is generally increasing.
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 Wake up to free training
North
west councils have woken up to the chance for free training to enhance
business improvement techniques, which would make an average saving of
£6,600 per person, per year, ongoing, is available to north west
authorities.
This training was offered in
June by the north west
Shared Services Programme, but initially there was little or no interest
in this opportunity to improve the skills of the workforce and
deliver bottom-line benefits to the authority's budget.
Following recent publicity,
numerous councils have now come forward to express an interest, and as a
result it is now likely the training will be re-offered imminently.
Don't let your authority miss out on this opportunity. To express
an interest contact Rosemary
Cowgill as soon as possible.
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Health and Social Care News
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 The right tools for care costs
The Regional Centres of Excellence are looking to
create a National Cost Model Toolkit to help councils to manage
the costs of placing adults with learning difficulties into residential
care and supported living.
The
toolkit provides a breakdown of the individual package of care and
accommodation related costs, and allows care commissioners to strike a fair
and sustainable deal for the required service.
A
regional version of the model has already proven to be a success in the
south east with councils saving up to 13%. Further benefits include
services more directly linked to the needs of individuals and clearer
contractual arrangements with providers. The project will also
include a version for use by service users and their carers, where
individualised budgets are being used to purchase care.
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 Taking advantage
A new report looking at whether
the desire to raise standards and deliver efficiencies in local
government construction has been at the expense of small and medium sized
enterprises, has been issued by the Local Government Task
Force.
Taking Advantage - How SMEs can become successful framework contractors,
focuses on experience from local government, and the work of five local
authorities which have given particular thought to the interests of SMEs in the development of their frameworks and the
experience of six contractors involved in frameworks.
This paper has been issued as a
follow-up exercise to "Transforming Local Government Construction -
The Power of Framework Agreements", a paper commissioned in 2006 by
the East Midlands Centre of Excellence, showcasing examples of local
authority construction frameworks and the contribution they can make to
increasing efficiencies in local government construction
procurement.
View
the report here.
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 A winning read
The September issue of the
Waste Information Network (WIN) e-bulletin is available
to download here.
This issue details the latest
news, events and case studies available from the Waste Information
Network.
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 The best things in life are FREE
The
NWCE have three free tickets available for each of the following events:
Shared
Services 2007 3rd October at the Barbican Centre, London - for further information click
here.
PFI
Exp 2007 27th September at the Hilton, London - - for further information click here.
The
tickets are offered on a first come first served basis. To claim
your free ticket contact Christine Acton
on 0161 342 3301 or email christine.acton@tameside.gov.uk.
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 Temporary Times
The
August 2007 edition of the OGC's Temporary
Staff Times is available to view
here.
This
newsletter is published for those in the public sector who use temporary
agency staff, and includes an important update on increased holiday
entitlement for temporary staff.
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 Northwest Regional Development
Agency (NWDA)
Regeneration and Development Panel
Launch Event
September 21, 2007, Aintree
Racecourse, Liverpool
The
NWDA invites you to the launch of the Regeneration and Development
Panels, featuring the NWCE's director, Colin
Cram, as a guest speaker.
The NWDA have recently procured
a number of construction related framework agreements, which comply with
public procurement legislation, through the Official Journal of European
Union. These frameworks are available to any other public sector
bodies or private sector organisations that receive any grant aid.
This event will bring together
those who wish to use the panels and the suppliers of services on each of
the panels. Delegates will have the chance to meet the successful
suppliers and learn how the frameworks will work in the future.
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 Sustainable Procurement Meeting
September 28 2007, Stockport council offices
The next sustainable procurement
meeting has been arranged.
This meeting will give an
update on regional and national work and an outline plan for implementing
the flexible framework. The meeting will also discuss the possibilty of carrying out a regional risk assessment
on one category - possibly staff uniforms.
For further information or to
reserve a place on the waiting list for the meeting click
here.
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 Transforming Service Delivery
Conference
October 30, 2007, QEII Conference Centre
Two for one offer
THE NWCE has an exclusive offer for
council representatives who wish to know more about the impact of CSR07.
The NWCE's
regional director Colin Cram is speaking at the Transforming Service
Delivery Conference to be held at the QEII Conference Centre on October
30 and, for a limited period, two delegates can book a place at the event
for the price of one.
The conference will look at
CSR2007 and its effect on local government, and will focus on the
recommendations made in the Local Government White Paper - 'Strong and
prosperous Communities' with regard to re-shaping public services and
partnership working in the challenging financial climate.
The standard rate is £195 plus
vat and the 2 for 1 offer is on a first come, first served basis.
Call Naz Malik on
0161 211 3030 or email naz.malik@govnet.co.uk
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 Free sustainability training
November 13 2007, Wigan Investment Centre
FREE training on sustainable
procurement is being offered to councils in the north west.
The NWCE is working with ActionSustainability to deliver training to help
delegates to discover the tools and techniques of sustainable procurement, look at the tools and techniques
available and identify and manage how sustainability affects council's
supply chains.
Delegates will learn how their supply chain affects the environment and
the society we live in, and is ideal for those wanting to learn more
about sustainability issues in their organisation's supply chain,
procurement and environmental staff new to these issues or budget holders
without a professional purchasing background who need to be aware of how
the decisions they make can affect sustainability.
Normally £350 per delegate, this
training is free of charge to one delegate per council if accompanied by
a supplier.
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 Sourcing Sustainable Solutions -
Meet the Buyers
November 21 2007, Manchester
THE
NWCE will be supporting a sustainable procurement event in Manchester in
November.
Sourcing Sustainable Solutions - Meet the Buyers will provide
delegates with the opportunity to meet suppliers who can provide
innovative environmental and sustainable products and services.
The NWCE will also be presenting The Chest, the new portal
for local government business opportunities.
A unique feature of the event will be pre-arranged
meetings with suppliers, selected according to delegates' criteria.
Delegates can tell the organiser their specific areas of interest, when booking, and the information will be used to research
and identify suppliers that match their criteria. On the day of the
event, delegates can take part in a series of private, pre-scheduled
meetings with the pre-matched suppliers.
The event on November 21 is free to attend for buyers. For
further information and/or to book a place click
here.
For
more information, contact Emma-Jane Allen on tel:
020 7700 0008 or e mail emma-jane@actionsustainability.com
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 The 3rd Annual NWeGG Conference
New Frontiers for Transformation
December 12 2007, Manchester
Central
This
event will focus on the future for the transformation agenda - a key
factor in the Government's plans to reform the public sector.
Delegates will hear from the
government on its latest strategy to modernise public services through
Transformational Change, understand the need to be customer focused, examine the key role that technology can play in
redesigning services for the benefit of both citizens and government
alike and network to share best practice and seek answers to the
challenges councils face.
There will be six seminars
designed to deal with different aspects of delivering effective change in
local government.
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North West Centre of
Excellence
Room
5.15, Council Offices, Wellington
Road, Ashton-under-Lyne
OL6 6DL
Tel: 0161 342
4080 Fax: 0161 342 3390
email: nwce@tameside.gov.uk
www.nwce.gov.uk
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