“New chapter” for public services in Shropshire to be discussed by Cabinet

The fine details of how Shropshire Council’s new trading company will operate are due to be discussed by councillors. 

A draft version of the strategic contract between the council and its company, ip&e (inspiring partnerships and enterprise), will be presented to Cabinet members on Wednesday 20 February 2013, along with the company’s draft business plan. 

The aim of the company – which is wholly owned by the council – is to provide services for other public sector and private organisations at a ‘public profit’ which can then be invested back into the council. 

Shire Services is looking at the feasibility of being one the first to move into the new company, and staff are working on a business plan to enable transfer later in the year.  The transfer was originally planned for April 2013, but is likely to be later in the year, while officers prepare tenders for several large contracts which will influence the final business plan.

Work is also taking place to identify when functions provided by the Shared Services team can be transferred to ip&e to ensure that the team is in the best possible position to exploit business opportunities.

Keith Barrow, Leader of Shropshire Council, said:

“Although a strategic contract may not sound very exciting, this is actually a really significant milestone for the council and ip&e.  It’s important we carefully consider the draft contract and business plan, so we’ll take away the thoughts of councillors before a final version is presented to Cabinet in the summer.

“It’s also important that services only transfer to ip&e when they are ready and all the right due diligence work has been done to make sure they are in the best position to trade – this is about doing things in the right way rather than the quick way.

“This report can be the start of a new chapter in Shropshire.  We are the first council in the country to do this on such a scale, and the move to becoming a commissioning council is all about providing services in different ways rather than cutting them.  The public profit generated by ip&e will help us deal with the even more severe Government funding cuts that are on the horizon, and ensure that the people of Shropshire continue to receive excellent public services.”

To read the report click here.