Welcome letter from Dr Andrew Larner, Chief Executive at iESE
Pages 2-3
iESE news: Read about the iESE Transformation Awards, our recent CareCubed user forum, iESE staff news and the launch of our Disruptive Technology Framework
Pages 4-5
Profile: A closer look at the iESE Council of the Year winner 2019 - Eastbourne Borough Council and Lewes District Council
Page 5
In focus: A spotlight on public sector apprenticeship talent
Page 6
In depth: The work of the Scottish Improvement Service's Spatial Information Service
Page 7
Profiles: A look at two of our Certificate of Excellence award winners: The Kent Public Service Network Govroam and South Staffordshire District Council
EDITORIAL CONTACTS
TRANSFORM IS PRODUCED BY:
iESE
www iese org uk
Tel: 08434 878 026
Email: enquiries@iese org uk @iESELtd
CREDITS:
Editorial by: Vicki Arnstein
Designed by: SMK Design
Views expressed within are those of the iESE editorial team iESE is distributed on a triannual basis to companies and individuals with an interest in reviewing, remodelling and reinventing public services
has been a busy time at iESE these last few months We have celebrated our tenth annual iESE Transformation Awards and hosted a fantastic ceremony - on which no public money was spent - attended by our winners of Gold, Silver and Bronze awards across the thirteen categories.
We were delighted to welcome Local Gover nment Minister Rishi Sunak who gave a speech at the ceremony recognising the winners' achievements The judging panel were impressed with the variety and scope of the high-calibre entries which demonstrate the breadth of innovation and transformation happening across the public sector To read more about our overall Council of the Year winner - Eastbour ne Borough Council and Lewes District Council for their Joint Transformation Programme - see page 4
We also take a look at the winners of The Public Services People Managers Association (PPMA) Apprentice of The Year 2019 - a programme which celebrates apprenticeships in the public sector (see page 5) and for which our own staff member, Annabelle Spencer, was also a finalist
We also look in this issue at the Scottish Improvement Service's Spatial Information Service and the way it is pooling geospatial data from the 32 Scottish Councils and at whether the Geospatial Commission in the UK could consider taking a similar tact across local authorities in England and Wales (see page 6 to find out more) Lastly, on page 7, we look at two of our Certificate of Excellence award winners
We hope you enjoy reading this issue and remind readers to keep sending us their news and views for inclusion in Transform to info@iese org uk We hope in time that these pages will share your achievements as much as our own iESE news
Dr Andrew Lar ner and the iESE team
The iESE Transformation Award winners 2019:
Council of the Year 2019
Eastbourne Borough Council and Lewes District Council
Digital Transformation
Gold: Aylesbury Vale District Council
Silver: The Kent Public Service Network
Bronze: South Hams District Council and West
Devon Borough Council
Intelligent Council
Gold: Insight Bristol
Silver: Stirling Council
Bronze: Babergh and Mid Suffolk Councils
Reinventing Local Services
Gold: Metropolitan Police Service
Silver: South Staffordshire Council
Bronze: Cheshire East Council
Working Together
Gold: Lewes and Eastbourne Councils
Silver: Heddlu Gwent Police and Welsh Ambulance
Service Trust
Bronze: Hampshire County Council
Community Focus (place)
Gold: East Ayrshire
Silver: Folkestone & Hythe District Council
Bronze: South Kesteven District Council
Community Focus (people)
Gold: Wealden District Council
Silver: Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service
Bronze: Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council
Transformation in Heath & Social Care
Gold: Trafford Council
Silver: Dudley MBC
Bronze: Bracknell Forest Council
Transformation in Environmental Services
Gold: East Ayrshire Council
Silver: Folkestone & Hythe District Council
Bronze: Welshpool Town Council
Innovation Award
Gold: Surrey County Council Analytics Hub
Silver: Stirling Council Civtech
Bronze: East Ayrshire Council
Ambulance Service of the Year
Winner: Welsh Ambulance Service Trust
Fire & Rescue Service of the Year
Winner: County Durham and Darlington
Fire & Rescue
Police Service of the Year
Winner: Metropolitan Police
Dr Andrew Larner, Chief Executive
@LaverdaJota
Celebrating success at the iESE Transformation Awards
OUR TENTH ANNUAL PUBLIC SECTOR TRANSFORMATION AWARDS WERE HELD IN MARCH AND ATTRACTED A LARGE NUMBER OF HIGHCALIBRE ENTRIES
Winners of Bronze, Silver and Gold awards were invited to attend a ceremony held at Church House in London on 6th March This year we had thirteen different categories, including our overall Council of the Year 2019 award, which was presented to Eastbourne Borough Council and Lewes District Council for their Joint Transformation Programme We also introduced a new category of Ambulance Service of the Year, adding to the existing categories of Fire and Rescue Service of the Year and Police Service of the Year There were a high number of fantastic entries
demonstrating the scale of innovation and transformation occurring in the sector
The event was attended by Local Government Minister Rishi Sunak who gave a speech to the winners He said: “My biggest passion, as Minister, is making sure taxpayers’ money is used in the best possible way, and I’m delighted to be at an award ceremony that promotes transformation, entrepreneurship and efficiency, driven by the leading organisation in the field
"I want to thank all of this year's awards winners
Receiving an award is a great achievement and a recognition of all your hard work You have all made a big difference to your residents, leading the way in efficiency and transformation, so my congratulations to you all ”
The next iESE Transformation Awards will be held in 2020 but local authorities are able to apply for an iESE Certificate of Excellence at any time The certificates feed into the awards programme and help inform the categories for the annual awards
Dr Andrew Larner, Chief Executive at iESE, added: "I would like to thank everyone who made a submission for their efforts We hope that these awards will help us all to continue transforming our local public services "
To find out more about the Council of the Year 2019 see page 4
For more information about Certificates of Excellence
see page 7
iESE launches 'Disruptive Technology Framework'
IESE WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM SMALL TECH FIRMS WITH SOLUTIONS TO OFFER LOCAL GOVERNMENT AS IT WORKS TOWARDS BUILDING A ONE-STOP SHOP TO HELP AUTHORITIES FIND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THEIR PROBLEMS
The idea is to join up small tech firms with local authorities in a simple and cost-effective way, removing the barriers to entry that these companies usually face with the procurement process
iESE is already talking to several firms and is keen to hear from any business that would like to get involved in its Disruptive Technology Framework project "This initiative is aimed at any tech company with a solution to a local public service problem, but particularly in health and social care We are interested in new and innovative ways to increase the quality of a service or to remove the need for it altogether," said Dr Andrew Larner, Chief Executive at iESE "Through this alliance we would like to create a digital
shop window where authorities know if there is anything innovative out there then this would be a really good first port of call The current public procurement process is costly for small start-ups and this will hopefully crack that problem The idea is to remove the procurement bureaucracy so that they can procure these services simply and cost effectively," he added
To find out more about the Disruptive Technology Framework contact: penny.gardner@iese.org.uk
CareCubed delivering savings and wider benefits
IESE RECENTLY HOSTED A USER FORUM FOR CARECUBED SUBSCRIBERS WHERE IT HEARD HOW THE TOOL IS ASSISTING THOSE SOURCING SPECIALIST CARE PLACEMENTS.
CareCubed is our new secure online tool, which gives clarity on the cost of specialist care and helps manage care spend - a pressing issue for more than 200 local authorities with a social services responsibility The new product builds on iESE’s decade of experience with the Care Funding Calculator, with the new product even better equipped to help manage the ongoing challenge presented by the cost of specialist care placements
Attendees at the user forum in London explained how their organisations were benefitting from using CareCubed Paul Mensah, Team Manager (Adults), Care and Support Brokerage at Oxfordshire County Council achieved significant quantifiable savings with CareCubed's predecessor, the Care Funding Calculator – around £1 2m in a year at a previous local authority He is now
implementing CareCubed at Oxfordshire County Council “With CareCubed we can save a lot of money for the local authority and at the same time get value for money for our service users,” he said
Hackney Council is another organisation seeing the benefits, with Diana Sherwood, Project Manager at the authority, explaining that CareCubed makes a huge difference for providers as well as the council "It is a transparent tool and they realise that we’ll expect them to provide us with evidence where we don’t agree on some of their costs CareCubed helps to maintain a good relationship and also standardise how we operate with all providers,” she said
Rebekah Cooke, Team Manager, Community Team for Adults with a Learning Disability at Milton Keynes Council, highlighted that CareCubed brings some softer benefits too "CareCubed is really helpful and quite user-friendly, particularly when you are trying to use it not just as a negotiating tool with providers, but when talking to family
Vanda Leary takes digital lead
VANDA LEARY, WHO HAS WORKED WITH IESE SINCE 2010, HAS BEEN APPOINTED AS BUSINESS LEAD DIGITAL. She brings a wealth of valuable experience, which will see her concentrate on the development of iESE's digital offering - both for its own consultancy work and as a commercial offer
Vanda said she was delighted with the expansion of her remit, which has so far seen the successful launch of the CareCubed tool, which replaces
the Care Funding Calculator "We are currently working on a CareCubed App and have a range of other digital tools under evaluation and in development - look out for more news about these later this year "
One such tool in development is a modelling application which takes organisational data from payroll and HR records The application will show the organisation's structure visually and with accompanying summary information, allowing different scenarios to be set out and different versions saved for comparison
It is hoped that this will become a central platform which iESE will add Apps onto The first planned App is the Cultural Compass tool This will take behavioural framework data and, by allocating this information to each
members, carers and also service users themselves about how the hours are broken down and how much time is allocated," she said
CareCubed brings significant enhancements to the modeling of care costs in line with changing patterns of care provision, as well as ease of use on mobile devices, a fresher user interface and enhanced support for 'What If' options and analysis and collaboration within and across organisations It is already being used by more than 50 organisations in England and Wales and was also launched in Scotland in March
However, the successful launch of CareCubed is not the end of the journey A CareCubed App and greater reporting and analysis functions are currently in development iESE is also working with users to validate CareCubed for use with specialist children's placements too Our next user forum will take place in Manchester this autumn Email CareCubed@iese org uk or visit www.iese.org.uk/carecubed-tool to find out more
employee record, will allow an organisation to roll the data up to see measures for each team, section, directorate, service line and for the overall authority
iESE is also currently working on a Digital White Paper, which aims to give leaders a set of questions they can ask their authority to see where they have got to and what they might do to get themselves into a position to maximise the benefits of the digital revolution
We would like to hear from potential candidates with practical digital experience in the public sector as we look to grow our associate base in the digital arena
To find out more about potential digital roles email: enquiries@iese.org.uk
Vanda Lear y, Business Lead Digital, iESE
Eastbourne and Lewes scoop
iESE Council of the Year 2019
iESE’s tenth annual Transformation Awards attracted many highcalibre entries. The judges awarded the top accolade of Council of the Year 2019 to Eastbourne Borough Council and Lewes District Council for their work in bringing their staff and services together.
The two councils also scooped Gold in the Working Together category for their Joint Transformation Programme
iESE Council of the Year 2019: Eastbourne Borough and Lewes District Council
Since 2015, Eastbour ne Borough Council and Lewes District Council have been working on a Joint Transformation Programme (JTP) to bring the staff of the two entities together Whilst they had already previously shared some services, the merging of their teams has amounted to £8 2m shared investment and resulted in savings of up to £3 4m per annum
Dr Andrew Lar ner, Chief Executive at iESE, said the win in both categories – Council of the Year and Working Together - was well-deserved “The creation of a single management structure isn’t new, albeit that the savings achieved have been significant However, their entrepreneurial approach, from housing and regeneration to delivering high-quality affordable broadband, has targeted key community needs, building capacity and resilience of residents and businesses alike, and helping communities to thrive ”
In addition to aligning the two councils’ systems and workforces, the merger has sought to embed a culture of innovation and creativity, resulting in numerous income-generation initiatives This has included setting up specific ‘arms-length’ companies to allow the councils’ to exploit new opportunities, creating a dedicated asset-management team within its inter nal structures, and working with partners and stakeholders to bring in dedicated expertise and become a ‘partner of choice’ for the private sector
Jo Harper, Head of Business Planning and Performance at Lewes District Council and Eastbour ne Borough Council, said the two councils were delighted with the iESE Council of the Year win “We are proud to have the award and to have won it together speaks volumes It embeds that spirit of partnership ” Harper added that the two councils were particularly proud of how their joint working demonstrated how politicians can overcome ideological differences in the interests of the greater good – a reference to the fact that Eastbour ne has a Liberal Democrat administration, whilst Lewes has a Conservative cabinet with no overall control Harper said the win was a fantastic achievement but came at time when the two organisations were still in the very final stages of merging their two teams This has meant that publicising the win to
staff – who have been through a period of instability – has had to be handled delicately “We have had to be very sensitive because we are at the final stage of the restructure We felt that to come in with a great fanfare would not ring true with our staff The only reason that we have been able to achieve what we have so far is because everyone has gone through such a significant change and we have, as an entire organisation, been able to rise to this challenge Instead of saying ‘aren’t we great’, it is about saying 'haven’t we worked hard and been amazingly resilient and flexible and adaptable in times of change',” she explained
A convincing pitch
The two councils submitted a convincing pitch as to why they deserved to win Council of the Year 2019 The award application highlighted five areas where the councils are concentrating their asset management and commercial activity: regeneration developments, housing developments, property investments, pure investments and other income generation initiatives The property, legal and finance teams have looked to develop their commercial skills in particular
Numerous ventures were outlined in the award submission which impressed the judges One such project is the new Wishtower restaurant, due to be completed in summer 2019, which aims to become a destination restaurant for residents and visitors alike The project cost £ 1 8m, with the council contributing £600,000, with projected retur ns of £100-£150,000 per annum
Another project underway is investment in facilities for inter national tennis players who participate in the Inter national Tennis Championships in Eastbour ne and which will provide conference space out of season Three additional tennis courts have been constructed, along with the installation of a new irrigation system to improve the quality of the grass courts The total cost of the project is £54m, of which £5 6m has come from South East Local Enterprise Partnership and the Lawn Tennis Association The project has addressed a repairs backlog of £10m This investment aims to protect conference revenue, calculated to be worth £10m per year to the Eastbour ne economy, but the poor condition of the site was seeing bookings worth £800,000 per annum being lost The Inter national Tennis Tour nament is worth £65,000 in room lettings
Representatives of the two councils collecting their iESE award
per year but faced future risk without investment It is believed that the investment will protect 250 jobs, whilst the project has generated 250 construction jobs and will secure a further 25 permanent jobs
Each council already has its own housing company and together they have established a jointly-owned venture, Aspiration Homes Established at a £20m cost to each council, the company is designed to take advantage of ‘Right to Buy’ receipts and other available grants Treasury retur n on debt is 4 5 per cent The first development by Aspiration Homes –12 apartments - is under construction
A number of other investments and other incomegeneration initiatives show the JTP to be forward-thinking and innovative in the ways it seeks to secure the financial future of both councils This includes, for example, Devonshire Park Catering, an in-house operation which also supplies exter nally A public house has been purchased to extend the scope of this operation The service has a £1m tur nover with a retur n of £100-£150,000 net profit per annum
Harper stressed that while the award submission listed many investments, the partnership had been very careful with its decisions "You have to be very aware of your local economic climate and your local community needs Just going out willy-nilly and investing in shopping centres and retail parks isn't always going to be the answer, you have got to think about the direction of your local economy and how can you contribute to that in a constructive way and in a way that will work because not every investment is going to pay off
"We have been very careful and, although we have been prepared to take risks, those have been very carefully calculated by weighing up the potential and using the advice of experts to make sure we are making good decisions," she said
As well as innovative thinking, Harper believes another big success has been how the JTP has sought partnerships In Lewes, Newhaven Town Centre is benefitting from regeneration through a partnership between Lewes District Council and the Capital Local Enterprise Partnership, for example
A Spotlight on Public Sector Apprentice Talent
The Public Sector Apprenticeship Targets Regulations 2017 require public sector employers in England with at least 250 employees to ensure an average of 2.3 per cent of their staff employed between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2021 are apprentices - a rule which is already having the desired effect
ew apprenticeship legislation is already having the desired effect in local government In 20172018, we saw around 46,000 bright new minds starting public sector apprenticeships and 20 per cent of these were in local government, accounting for 1 5 per cent of the UK's public sector workforce
To showcase some of the incredible talent emerging in the public sector here we look at the joint-winners of The Public Services People Managers Association (PPMA) Apprentice of The Year 2019 The PPMA is an association for professionals in public service It is at the forefront of meeting unprecedented demands on our public service workforce due to political and economic change and strives to enhance, promote and raise the standards of people management and development within public services
“The Apprentice of the Year is our foundation programme and was created as an antidote to the often negative publicity about what is was like to work in the public sector and create an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the world-class young talent that we have working in all areas of public service,” said Leatham Green, Interim Executive Director of the PPMA
“This year we experienced our strongest field to date with 16 fantastic finalists So much talent radiated from the two days of coaching and competition at Warwick Business School that our judging panel were unable to differentiate between two outstanding future leaders, Daniel John and Kirsten Moore We were blown away by their individual talent and truly inspirational personal stories On a whole, I can confidently say that many of the delegates we had the pleasure of working with at the final are destined for very successful careers ”
DANIEL JOHN – Joint-winner of the PPMA Apprentice of the Year 2019
Daniel John is a Participation Apprentice in the Children and Adults Health Department at South Gloucestershire Council At the start of his apprenticeship there was a period of time when John, who is autistic, found himself struggling and so to overcome his difficulties he created a presentation on autism to raise awareness of his own needs and the needs of autism in general His exceptional work in enhancing awareness of autism in the workplace, which is now rolled out across the entire council, was one of the main reasons South Gloucestershire Council encouraged John to apply for the award
“I knew from my experience of being a young facilitator for the charity Kids that I wanted to continue to work with young people and capture young people's voices, which is why I applied for the apprenticeship in Children and Adult Health services,” he explained
Driven by the desire to help people and make a difference, John has found the attitudes of individuals working in the public sector to be extremely positive and supportive “Development is at the heart of everything we do As a public sector apprentice, you are given so many opportunities to lear n and grow There is also added flexibility in terms of how you want to do your job, where you aren’t drilled into doing things in a particular way, but rather use your own initiative,” he said
Despite the work already done and the success of the JTP, Lewes and Eastbour ne recognise they always have more to lear n about har nessing commercial approaches It continually reviews best practice and this constant striving for innovation was also key to its Council of the Year win
“We weren’t the first two councils to bring our staff and services together, but what makes us unique is the fact that we were doing three things at once –we were bringing the two councils together, we were implementing a new operating model and style of working and we were moving towards this much more commercialised approach to the way we ran our business,” said Harper
She added that she would encourage other councils to apply for the iESE awards in future years “I think every council has amazing and innovative things it is doing just to survive in the current climate Don’t necessarily think everyone else has done what you are doing already – maybe they haven’t, maybe you are doing things others can lear n from ” n
Kirsten Moore is a Business Administration apprentice working as a Project Support Officer for the Stop Smoking Service at Central Bedfordshire Council Moore has been in her apprenticeship for nine months and has been involved in several exciting projects which motivated her to apply for the award
“Kirsten has surpassed all our expectations from the day she started with us and has become a very popular and important member of the team Kirsten’s work is always to a very high standard and we look forward to watching her continue to fulfil her potential Kirsten is definitely very worthy winner of the PPMA apprentice of the year award,” said Martin Manly, Public Health Practitioner at the Stop Smoking Service at Central Bedfordshire Council After withdrawing from university, it was completing a fundraising inter nship at the charity Child Bereavement UK where Moore decided she wanted to work in the public sector “The overarching aim to want to help others was a big motivator for applying for the public sector apprenticeship, rather than the sole goal being to tur n a profit,” said Moore “The team have been so welcoming and supportive of my lear ning and development With the nature of an apprenticeship you are not moulded into an academic mindset with the same education and the same feelings, instead you are encouraged to be individual and use your own voice," she added n
KIRSTEN MOORE – Joint-winner of the PPMA Apprentice of the Year 2019
Daniel John and Kirsten Moore receiving their PPMA award
How Scotland is mapping the way in geospatial data
Geospatial data is a hot topic right now and with the Government pledging £80m over two years to the cause - which is estimated to unlock up to £11bn for the economy every year - it is clear why
the end of 2017, the Chancellor announced the creation of the Geospatial Commission to maximise the value of all UK gover nment data linked to location Location data is increasingly relevant for sectors including finance, transport, housing, retail and many more Decisions about public and private investment and services increasingly make use of geospatial data to create a holistic view and, as such, many organisations are willing to pay for this valuable information
The Geospatial Commission draws together six public bodies which have rich datasets These are: HM Land Registry, the Ordnance Survey, the British Geological Survey, the Valuation Office Agency, the UK Hydrographic Office and the Coal Authoritycollectively known as the Geo6
Iain McKay, who is Head of the Spatial Information Service at the Improvement Service in Scotland, suggests that local authorities in England and Walesof which there are nearing 400 - would together have more spatial data than some members of the Geo6 "You can't do anything to land or property without the local authority knowing about it," he points out McKay has been instrumental in getting the 32 Scottish authorities to agree to provide their geospatial data to the Spatial Hub - a resource which now gives a single point of access to quality-assured Scottish local authority spatial data in a consistent format It currently gives access to 26 datasets, such as car parking, green belts, planning applications, vacant and derelict land, to name a few, but has identified around 70 potentially valuable datasets The basis of charging for commercial usage of the Spatial Hub data is in respect of the value add in making the data available, not for each council's individual datasets
There are many benefits for both the local authorities and those requesting the data It chiefly saves local authorities and data seekers time and money by removing the need for each local authority to respond to requests individually under the Freedom of Information Act It standardises the data and puts it all in one place, allowing those seeking data not only to view it but use it in their own applications too In addition, it means Scottish local authorities can easily comply with their requirement under the EU Directive INSPIRE to make environmental information available to outside parties
The Improvement Service is a company, limited by
guarantee, funded through the Local Gover nment grant settlement, with 34 members - 32 councils plus the Society for Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE) and COSLA, the voice of Local Gover nment in Scotland As such, it puts any profits from commercial requests for geospatial data back into the system to improve spatial data quality in Scottish local authorities This has included training days for data custodians, working with schoolchildren to get them to understand the role of geospatial information and its possibilities for future careers and it also hopes to start sponsoring a graduate apprenticeship in data science
"Authorities have well-documented funding shortages and are struggling to fund frontline services but they do have an asset in their geospatial data which is kept in silos and not valued," explains McKay "The spatial data is of variable quality across authorities and we are trying support data quality improvement because we believe that there is a real value to the data "
Delivering benefits
McKay said the Improvement Service has just written to Scottish councils at the end of its first year of operating the Spatial Hub to say it is redistributing £250,000 to improve data quality "This is beginning to get noticed We estimate that, with good marketing, we could potentially generate a substantial revenue stream to put back into supporting the councils," he added
When asked what the potential benefits are to public services, McKay says these are clear "As an example, commercial retailers spend a lot of money on data analysis and working out where customer demand lies, they don't just put a pin in the map Effective service provision by the public sector also depends on having good data The better data you have, the better decisions you should be able to make "
Getting the Spatial Hub off the ground was not easy - it took 18 months to get signed agreements from all 32 councils - but, once signed up, the Spatial Hub is intended not to impose any additional burdens upon local authorities in contributing their data "In some authorities it is done through an API [Application Programming Interface], where we access their live data then clean it, whilst other authorities upload their data through the portal," McKay explains
Much effort has been put into getting data custodians in the local authorities on board "We have put store and resources into forming relationships with the people who are doing this work on a day-to-day basis and paid to run training courses and workshops for custodians We are helping to raise the profile of their jobs and, to this end, they are more likely to co-operate with requests "
Could the same be achieved in England and Wales with its nearing 400 local authorities? McKay is in discussion with the Geospatial Commission to talk about what has been achieved in Scotland "I don't know how easy it would be to recreate at a national level," he admits, "but you could probably achieve it in regional groups "
For its part, GeoPlace – a joint venture between the Local Gover nment Association (LGA) and Ordnance Survey, which already collects address and street data from councils in England and Wales – is also interested in the concept of the Spatial Hub Claire Holloway, Head of Corporate Services at the LGA and Chair of the GeoPlace Board, said: “Whilst cleaning such spatial data from nearly 400 councils would be a much bigger endeavour than in Scotland, it’s something we’re keen to investigate further, in order to consider it fully ”
Dominic Cuthbert, Scottish Public Sector Manager for Ordnance Survey, which has been supporting and working with the Spatial Hub for the last 18 months, added: “The recognition of the importance of geospatial data has never been higher, with public and private sector organisations across Great Britain using accurate, maintained location data to support products, services and deliver efficiencies and value to their organisations and customers
“The UK has a reputation as a global geospatial leader and the work of the Improvement Service Spatial Hub and Geospatial Commission will reinforce this position, as well as unlocking further value in geospatial data and increasing economic growth and productivity ”
And if approached to join a project, why should local authorities in England and Wales consider participating? "The main benefit to Scottish authorities has been support in terms of resources into improving the quality of geospatial data, which in tur n improves their own ability to make better decisions," McKay concludes n
Shining the spotlight on excellence
Our new Certificates of Excellence scheme aims to reward innovation and transformation throughout the year. We have awarded five certificates since the scheme started, with the first five given at our Local Government Transformation conference last November In this issue we highlight two of our winners - The Kent Public Service Network Govroam and South Staffordshire District Council
The Kent Public Service Network (KPSN) Govroam
The KPSN Govroam project - short for Gover nment Roaming - gives roaming Wi-Fi services to public sector staff across 16 organisations in Kent The original aim - to give seamless, secure connectivity to approximately 30,000 staff across the county - was met in July 2017 The project has since continued to grow, with other organisations in the county adopting Govroam in partnership or alongside KPSN, including universities and NHS Foundation Trusts Govroam is a national service co-ordinated by Jisc
Each authority or federation is responsible for its own implementation, with Jisc making Govroam a UKspanning network This adds value for signed-up organisations, giving access to a wider network and a supportive community to draw experience from The Jisc Govroam network has around 3,900-plus sites across the UK
Using KPSN Govroam, public sector staff can effortlessly connect at more than 400 sites in Kent, including 100 council buildings, 100 university buildings, 87 libraries, 63 fire stations, 49 children centres, eight youth centres, six hospitals, five adult education centres, four leisure centres, three family centres, one castle and one theatre
Public sector staff can access the Govroam network at any participating organisation using a single, securely-authenticated sign-on managed by their own organisation Visiting staff can therefore access
any Govroam-enabled guest network using their own sign-in credentials, reducing the time spent managing user accounts
There are many other benefits, including allowing staff to work more effectively in different locations because they don't have to worry about connectivity It encourages flexible working across locations, encourages co-location opportunities between public sector organisations, reduces chances of a security attack through vulnerabilities created through multiple separate Wi-Fi configurations and gives procurement confidence to public sector organisations since Govroam meets public sector procurement rules With Govroam in place, organisations can also end maintenance on corporate Wi-Fi networks
to Govroam and where to find the service, including being proactive in distributing promotional material such as leaflets and stickers for sites to promote access to users
KPSN is now looking to expand its Wi-Fi accessibility at other sites, including country parks, care homes, GP surgeries and so on George Rhodes, Technical Projects Officer at KPSN, said:
The service is very popular, replacing corporate WiFi solutions in some areas Figures show that in September 2018, KPSN was authenticating 6,500plus Govroam users per week As of March 2019, this has grown to more than 20,000 authenticated users per week
To enable users to get the best out of the service, KPSN has initiated awareness campaigns and developed supporting documents on how to connect
South Staffordshire District Council
outh Staffordshire District Council has been awarded a Certificate of Excellence in recognition of the work it has done since 2011 to achieve financially stability The council has gone from being an authority with no history of borrowing to invest, to one which now thinks and acts commercially for the wider benefit of the community
The council is proud that 96 per cent of its residents rate South Staffordshire as a good place to live and that it has the fourth lowest District Council Tax in England
The idea of becoming increasingly entrepreneurial was first bor n in 2011 with the launch of a councilwide Transformational Business Plan which generated £2 4m by 2014 The council then worked with an entrepreneur, funded by a Local Gover nment Association (LGA) Expert Productivity Grant, to explore new income generation ideas This led to the introduction of a council-wide Efficiency and Income Plan (E&I), which was noted as an area of strength in an LGA Peer Review in 2018, and is now generating more than £1m annually
In 2017, the newly-appointed CEO implemented a new leadership structure, introducing corporate directors to help drive the E&I Plan and build the council’s entrepreneurial nature and commercial activities
The E&I Plan has so far supported £34m new asset acquisitions and developments, generating more than a six per cent retur n on investment Staff and Member suggestions have also increased, with more than 70 new entrepreneurial ideas put forward, reflecting the cultural change of the organisation The council has also focused on strengthening commercial activity through targeted service re-design and, supporting this, a new virtual sales and marketing team has been created, enabling teams to develop plans with set targets and outcomes Collectively, this is securing a net increase of £100,000 income per annum, while investment in this approach with a £60,000 commercial investment fund is on target to generate a further £250,000 income
"Being awarded a Certificate of Excellence gives recognition for all the hard work our partners have put in to make the projects a success Delivering Govroam is fundamentally partnership work and to be recognised for Kent's dedication and collaboration, and the achievements that collaboration has produced, helps us demonstrate to others that partnership working between public sector organisations can achieve great things
"This is also the first award any Govroam service has won since the Jisc-owned national service went live It is therefore a great opportunity for Kent to stand as an exemplar to all those considering implementing the service and help promote the national Govroam rollout ”
To find out more about the national agenda visit: www jisc ac uk/govroam n
South Staffordshire's Jas
and let out remaining space in its main building to generate income The council has now secured a £9 9m investment to refurbish and extend this building, increasing occupiers and generating additional income The refurbished building – the Community Hubwill encompass a café, library, three tiers of gover nment, wedding and conference venue, retail, GP surgery, small businesses, Police and NHS Trusts This will bring together NHS teams, children’s and social care, housing and benefit teams into an integrated hub environment, enabling service transformation and delivering swifter triage of services for the district’s most vulnerable residents
Staffordshire Business Hub is another example of how the local authority has commercialised its assets, staying true to its public sector principals and generating £300,000 new income annually The Council significantly condensed its office footprint
Jackie Smith, Corporate Director Commercial at South Staffordshire District Council, said: "The culture of the organisation is truly transforming to an entrepreneurial mind-set matched by a public sector ethos to delivering integrated services with our partners to the community, generating new income to create financial stability " n
KPSN's George Rhodes with Dr Andrew Larner
Bhogal and Imre Tolgyesi with Dr Andrew Larner
Benefits include:
• Savings on current specialist placement costs
• Consistency of approach for your staff and providers
• Evidence that your organisation has fairly considered the costs of delivering care
To find out more and to book an online demo, please go to www.iese.org.uk/carecubed-tool
