Archived decisions


	Hampshire County Council
	Policy and Resources PRC		Item
	10 July 2007
	Use of Consultants - Review of a sample of transactions
	Report of the County Treasurer

Contact: Bevis Ingram, (01962) 84 7508; [email protected]

1 Introduction

1.1 This committee has raised questions about the cost and use of consultants by the County Council. Members will recall a "factual" note produced for the meeting on 4 December 2006. This stated:

In 2005/06 a total of £6.1m was coded to consultancy fees in the County Council's accounts, compared to £7.4m in 2004/05 and £7.9m in 2003/04.

The vast majority of these fees are for design and supervision of Highways and construction schemes, undertaken by outside firms of consultants.

It would be difficult to summarise further details as the figures comprise several thousand individual accounting entries charged to a large number of schemes.

1.2 This was followed up with a report to the meeting on the 3 April 2007 (item 10 - Use of Consultants), which reviewed options for further investigation into the use made of consultants. As a result of this paper, members asked that a sample of transactions coded to consultancy in the County Council's ledgers be reviewed.

1.3 The review of transactions has been undertaken and is appended to this report (Appendix A)

1 Comment on Transactions (Appendix A)

1.1 Thirteen transactions have been selected at random, but with the proviso that transactions should be selected from all the major service department areas. This means that the sample of transactions do not necessarily reflect thus the majority of consultancy spend being on construction projects. No transactions have been identified for the County Treasurer's department as in the period reviewed no consultancy procurement took place by this department.

1.2 For each transaction the department has provided details of why the consultants were used, how they were selected, what they did, and the costs, benefits and outcomes. These are summarised in Appendix A.

1.3 A theme running through these responses is that consultants are employed when the County Council lacks the required specialist knowledge or expertise in-house or when an independent view is required.

1.4 The review of transactions did not reveal any instances where the County Council's financial regulations and procedures had obviously been followed incorrectly (although the review was not a formal "audit").

1.5 The Committee now needs to decide whether to undertake further work in this area. In doing so, it needs to consider its other review priorities and workplan.

2 Recommendation

2.1 That the Committee notes the review of transactions.


Links(s) to Corporate Strategy
	Yes	No
Hampshire safer and more secure for all	_	_

Maximising well-being	_	_

Enhancing our quality of place	_	_

Section 100 D - :Local Government Act 1972 - background documents

The following documents discuss facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and have 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.

(Quote list of documents here: either "none" if 1 or 2 above apply; or list the relevant letters, memos, etc and their location).


Company or consultant used	Individual Transaction Amount £	Activity undertaken	Why consultants were used	Selection process	Cost and benefits	Outcome
Children's Services
Sue Pepper	3,300.00	To deliver workshop facilitation and support to schools and partner organisations as part of the national extended schools agenda.	The county was required to identify potential consultants to be trained by the Training and Development Agency (TDA) in order to support schools with the national agenda.	The DfES and TDA have recommended HCC on its approach with using the consultants. The consultants were selected by department and partner agency recommendation and endorsement. CVs were requested to verify the suitability of the candidates experience.	Flexibility in delivering the short project. The costs will be met from the LA Standards Fund Grant until September 2008.	Meeting the Government's targets to date and being on target to achieve the September 2008 core offer requirement.


Company or consultant used	Individual Transaction Amount £	Activity undertaken	Why consultants were used	Selection process	Cost and benefits	Outcome
Policy & Resources - Chief Executives
H Neild	1,629.67	To supply a film location manager to the Film Hampshire Service.	To provide specialist knowledge and expertise which is not available in-house.	The manager approached the Economic and Development Office directly and offers competitive rates for the service provided.	The direct cost is £788.33 per month. The estimated value of the productions generated through the service was £450,000 in 2005/06 excluding the additional tourism generated by the productions.	The service generates approximately 120 serious enquiries per annum. The productions filmed in Hampshire generate tourism.
Policy & Resources - PBRS
Opus International Consultants	2,968.44	Regular planned structural survey of a building.	The department cannot resource the high number of surveys that must be undertaken each month.	Part of a seven year contract which followed all the necessary tendering procedures.	Meeting structural inspection deadlines.	To reduce costs a trial is being undertaken using an engineer seconded from the consultancy firm to undertake the surveys.
Policy & Resources - Human Resources
A W Life	2,992.00	To deliver specialist training to Adult Services on Cultural Awareness, Equality and Diversity.	Insufficient in-house knowledge and expertise to meet demand within the timescales.	Potential candidates were interviewed and were required to undertake a presentation. Recommendations and references were also sought.	The total cost was £10,000. The benefits was the provision of specialist training within a tight timescale.	Delegates have a greater awareness on cultural, equalities and diversity issues.
Policy & Resources - Chief Executives
Ipsos MORI	10,920.00	Budget consultation, survey and workshops regarding the council tax levels.	To undertake independent and specialist research.	They are one of five approved suppliers. The contract was tendered for County Supplies in 2006.	Establishing public opinion on the levels of council tax.	The consultation helped inform the level of council tax set.
Policy & Resources - IT Services
Manpower UK Ltd	16,131.61	To provide specialist SQL Server Database Analyst IT consultancy.	The expertise is not available in-house.	The consultant is supplied under the Manpower Agency contract which was tendered for in 2004.	The consultant is establishing internal processes and is developing the in-house team by sharing knowledge.	The development of the in-house team and necessary system controls and processes to an area which supports critical IT systems.
Policy & Resources - IT Services
EPI-Use Ltd	8,000.00	Configuration, testing and proving the feasibility of using specific SAP modules.	To provide expertise which was not available in-house.	The consultants are from the approved suppliers list and have proven experience in this specialist field. There are very few suppliers in the market place.	Work completed to timescales and within budget. Provided knowledge sharing and documentation which will enable in-house support for the future.	The feasibility of using the module was confirmed. The module was tested and will be used to link the pay award process to individual performance plans from 2007 onwards.
Recreation and Heritage
Kingshurst Consulting Group	4,392.00	Carried out a review of the management structure within Milestones.	Expertise and familiarisation with the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council's priorities and objectives.	They have a contract with the South East Museums Hub who funded this work as part of the Renaissance in the Regions programme.	The review was funded by the Renaissance in the Regions programme not by HCC.	The review is being implemented.
Adult Services
ROCC	7,500	To support service user involvement in Supporting People Strategic Reviews.	The necessary expertise was not available in-house. Using independent consultants also provided essential credibility with the service users when undertaking the consultation.	Selected due to experience, specialist knowledge and by recommendation.	The annual value of the contract was £15,000 paid in two instalments however there is no long term contractual relationship with the supplier.	The activity contributed significantly to the recognition from the Audit Commission that "HCC delivers an excellent Supporting People programme with excellent prospects for improvement". The model of service user participation and consultation is being adopted all over the UK.
Environment
Open University	2,500.00	Desk based study to produce a scoping report for food waste trials.	The consultants are considered experts in their field and could report within tight timescales.	Selected as they are considered experts in their field.	The consultants cost £2,500 and could deliver the report within the set timescales.	Specific knowledge gained on the use of home composters and digesters. The study has recommended within Project Integra which has subsequently led to trials.
Environment
Laing Rail Projects Ltd	50,000	High level assessment, compilation of a business case and delivery model for a new rail station at Chineham.	The expertise is not available in-house.	Laing Rail Projects Ltd occupy a unique position which qualifies them to undertake the activity. They are the only company outside Network Rail with experience of planning, constructing and operating a railway station on the national network (Warwick Parkway). Formal single tender approval was sought and granted on this basis. A day rate comparison was undertaken.	The total cost will be £53,230 of which £35,487 has already been paid. The final instalment is payable on completion of the report.	The final report is outstanding.
Environment
Adams Hendry	10,000	Consultant to represent HCC at a public local enquiry relating to a planning application appeal.	Specialist expertise and extensive experience of the mineral industry and Hampshire issues.	The consultants have represented HCC before with considerable success. They provide a good service on time and to budget.	The main benefits were the provision of unfettered expert planning advice and the provision of additional resource with specialist waste planning knowledge.	The outcome of the appeal is not yet known. The evidence was provided on time and in a professional manner.
Environment
LRL Consultancy Services Ltd	25,000	Providing advice on the Material Resources Strategy and the LAA theme - Using resources more efficiently	The expertise is not available in-house	The consultant is a nationally acknowledged leader in his field, has access to vital networks and can deliver to the tight LAA timescales. Formal single tender approval was sought and granted on this basis.	Consultancy fees of £25,000 were approved however the actual cost was £15,367.	This consultancy arrangement was with a retiring Assistant Director. The consultancy support has enabled the transfer of skills in the waste management and material resources arena.

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1 Introduction

1 Comment on Transactions (Appendix A)

2 Recommendation