Posted on Tuesday 17th January 2012
Staffordshire’s finance lead has revealed plans to transform the way the county buys in services – bringing in extra savings of £15 million over two years.
Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Finance and Transformation Ian Parry said that the radical reform would save a further £5 million in 2012/2013 and an additional £10 million in 2013/2014.
The award winning procurement team will continue to focus first and foremost on providing top quality services for residents while achieving the best value for money.
The proposals would see the county appoint a ‘procurement partner’ – an organisation which would offer expertise in choosing providers to work with.
They will be discussed by Cabinet tomorrow (January 18).
County Councillor Parry said: “Staffordshire is once again leading the way by finding new and exciting ways to provide the best possible value for money for taxpayers. We will be the first council to work in this way and is another example of the county’s innovative thinking.
“I would like to see this exciting partnership in action imminently so that we can start saving more money for our residents. By boosting the size of the team on a short term basis we can make a real difference to the way that we buy services in, making the process much more efficient and effective.
“On average we spend approximately £525 million each year buying in services and I want to get the maximum value for every single penny we spend. We are also committed to working with local businesses and suppliers to support Staffordshire’s economy and boost employment.”
The external team would support and build upon the excellent work that the in house team is already doing but, having extra people, would help to speed up the transformation process.