Archived decisions

Contact: Paul Berryman. Ext. 6619. email: [email protected]

1. Introduction

1.1 Following the Policy Review Committee's involvement in the Best Value Review of Regulatory Services the Leader has requested the PRC consider a number of issues relating to Regulatory Services. The September meeting reviewed issues around the National Performance Framework, which made reference to the respective Service Plans completed in Regulatory Services and this report highlights issues associated with the Hampshire Scientific Services (HSS) Business Plan attached at Appendix 1.

2. Background

2.1 Hampshire County Council runs its own Scientific Service which provides scientific advice, consultancy and testing services to customers. The Scientific Service provides statutory Public Analyst Services to Hampshire County Council and 25 other Local Authorities. It also provides environmental science services, in particular relating to asbestos management, waste disposal and health & safety at work. The Scientific Service also provides significant support to the County Council's landlord and property and management functions.

2.2 The HSS Business Plan, which is produced annually has been updated to incorporate new policies and systems designed to implement the Best Value improvement plan. It also highlights new contracts awarded via negotiation and tender.

3. Overarching Business Strategy

3.1 The key objective for Hampshire Scientific Service is to provide a statutory Public Analyst Service for the purposes of:

· Promoting good public health

· Reducing crime relating to food, environmental and product safety laws.

3.2 The laboratory competes in the marketplace to supply Public Analyst work to other Local Authorities in order to accrue economies of scale and therefore offer a more cost effective service to Hampshire County Council. It also operates within a framework of:

· Accreditation to recognised quality systems

· A strong customer focus

· Outcome-based service planning techniques

3.2 Another key strategy is to work in partnership with other specialist laboratories to optimise the range of scientific services available to Hampshire County Council. The Service's partnership with Kent County Council's Public Analyst laboratory has been cited as an excellent example of joint working. The partnership has won an additional £500,000 worth of business per annum.

4. Key Changes to the Business Plan.

4.1 The plan has been updated by:

· Incorporating Hampshire County Council's new Corporate Aims. The key links are now to Aim 4 (Building Strong & Safe Communities) and Aim 2 (Stewardship of the Environment), rather than old Aim 1.

· Adding the new Regulatory Services Vision.

· Summarising, at section 5, the key business decisions made as a result of the Best Value Review, including the decision to retain an in-house laboratory and how to make service improvements. e.g. New test suites introduced to give more focussed testing, quicker sample turnaround and 10% efficiency savings worth £30,000. (This links to the Food Service Plan).

· Strengthening the Asbestos Team to deal with additional workload as a result of new Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations.

· Detailing the laboratory's performance in external tenders and negotiations. Key successes this year include new contracts with Surrey, Bedfordshire and Derbyshire County Councils.

· Reflecting enhanced roles for the two Public Analysts relating to Research & Development, Technical and IT responsibilities.

· Expanding the section on income and expenditure, giving more detail on reasons for variances in 2002/03 and making comparisons for three years (2001/02, 2002/03 and 2003/04 projections) to enable trend analysis.

· Updating our quality objectives and performance indicators.

· Expanding section 7 on Research and Development projects. This includes a project to develop a new vitamin test which received Government LINK funding of £600,000 over 3 years. Partners include Boots plc, Britvic Soft Drinks, Newcastle University and The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Recommendations:

· That the Policy and Resources PRC note the Hampshire Scientific Service Business Plan for 2003/6.

Section 100D - Local Government Act 1972 - Background Papers:

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB the list excludes:

1. Published works.

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

File Location

None.

P&RPRC1003A