Agenda item

(To receive a report from Andrew McLean (Chief Commissioning Officer) which provides an update on progress for the potential transition of the Council's Payroll/HR Admin services and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system (BWON) to Hoople Ltd, via a shared service agreement with Herefordshire Council)

Consideration was given to a report by the Executive Director of Children's Services, which provided an update on progress for the potential transition of the Council's Payroll/HR Admin Services and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system (BWON) to Hoople Ltd, via a shared service agreement with Herefordshire Council.

Andrew McLean, Chief Commissioning Officer, introduced the report and gave a presentation to Members on the current position.  The presentation covered the following:-

1.    Payroll/HR Admin support & ERP System Update – Workshops;

2.    Due Diligence;

a.    Analysis Toolkit

                                          i.    Strategic Categories;

                                        ii.    Diligence Tests;

                                       iii.    Ongoing Reviews; and

                                       iv.    Rating Improvement throughout transition phase;

3.    Programme Plan;

a.    Category Breakdown; and

b.    Dovetail with Hoople's transition plan; and

4.    Questions?

Jason Davenport, External Payroll Adviser to the Council, explained that scenario testing had been undertaken on payroll, particularly in relation to retained firefighters.  The results of the testing had been solid and Hoople had given a demonstration of how that area of payroll would be delivered within the system.  A meeting had also taken place with the Chief Fire Officer and LFR Area Manager to identify any potential issues.  The Chief Fire Officer had indicated his confidence in the approach taken so far based on the information provided.

The Chairman paused the presentation to allow Members the opportunity to ask questions in relation to Due Diligence, during which the following points were noted:-

·       It was acknowledged that insourcing would be one form of contingency should the work with Hoople not progress.  However, it was explained, that the contingency areas would be to carry out an insourcing exercise or to continue the service with Serco.  As a result, no specific insourcing model had been developed;

·       In relation to Ref. No. 009 "What measurers do Hoople have in place for Business Continuity……….", the Board was advised that continuity plans had been requested from Hoople hence the MoSCoW rating of S.  Officers had reviewed past performance, track record, undertaken testing and read reviews but had not yet seen business continuity plans for other customers.  Hoople would, therefore, have the opportunity to build those into the contract over the coming months;

·       Ref. No. 013 "Dialogue with existing customers, including schools………" – the Board was advised that the Section 151 officer at Rutland County Council had been consulted who confirmed that the approach taken had been supported with best practice and that the whole service was being provisioned on his behalf;

·       Ref No. 029 "The location and proximity of Herefordshire to Lincolnshire for both operational and staffing aspects" – concern was noted at the ability both to recruit staff, with the required skills, to retain staff and the intention of Hoople to have a physical presence in Lincolnshire.  It was explained that there was ongoing dialogue with Hoople in relation to staffing and any opportunity for a local base.  It had also been identified that, at least during the transition period, there would be physical representation from Hoople in Lincolnshire;

·       It was suggested that the current process for Fire & Rescue payroll was too complex and that this should become more straightforward once certain complications had been removed.  Where there were iterations of payments which could be paid through annual payments this would need to be agreed with the Chief Fire Officer and the Fire Brigade Union (FBU);

·       Hoople would drive the recruitment process should the contract be awarded to them and, although the authority could insist on assurance that the right level of staff be employed, it would ultimately be the responsibility of Hoople;

·       The Board were content at the due diligence undertaken to-date and happy with the layout of the report, especially the inclusion of both RAG ratings and MoSCoW scoring.  It was requested that the direction of travel also be included to assure the Board in future that milestones were being reached in each area;

·       The Board stressed the need for any concerns to be shared with Members as soon as they arose.

The Chief Commissioning Officer continued to introduce the report and referred Members to the Project Plan on page 17.  The intention was to receive the transition plan from Hoople, which was expected on 5 July 2018, and ensure that the plan interlined with the needs and expectations of the Council.

During discussion, the following points were noted:-

·       Page 52 of the report noted that any TUPE process may affect a greater number of female employees.  It was explained that this view had been reached following the acknowledgement that the make-up of employees was predominantly female.  Until it was known how Hoople intended to appoint staff, work would continue closely with unions and existing staff.  The Board was advised that there would be a potential for redundancies;

·       The risk rating within Appendix 3 was explained to the Board.  Although the risk rating was showing as red on certain areas, this was due to the probability being rated quite low but the risk in each area being high;

·       There were no anticipated issues for payroll in 2018/19 however this was rated as a risk factor and would be regularly reviewed.  Although historical payroll issues were not being considered during this process, officers remained mindful of these issues;

·       It was noted that progress with trade unions was currently unclear and the Board requested more information;

·       It was also requested that staff focus be included in all future reports;

·       This report and presentation had also been considered by the Lincolnshire School's Forum who had made some suggestions in relation to learning/training on the system for teachers.  Early links with head teachers had commenced and all head teachers across Lincolnshire had also received the updates circulated to senior managers within the Council;

·       The role of Local Partnerships was explained as the company who would carry out external assurance on the programme.  Local Partnerships was owned by the Treasury and the Local Government Association and provide commercial and delivery expertise to the public sector.  In the field of Assurance, Local Partnerships was the only provider of services accredited by Government to deliver full OGC Gateway Reviews to Local Government and other local public bodies.  Members were referred to the Local Partnerships website which provided more information – http://localpartnerships.org.uk.  The Board asked for further information.

The Chairman closed the debate and confirmed that the Board had requested that the direction of travel also be included within future Due Diligence Analyses; that staff focus be included in future reports; and that further information in relation to the Local Partnership be provided.

RESOLVED

          That the report and contents be noted and that the requests of the Board be actioned.