Slough borough council has signed a deal with outsourcing company Arvato to take on a range of its services, taking in revenues and benefits, payroll, finance, HR and logistics.
The company said that under the deal it will invest £3.8m into transforming the services, and that Slough is expected to achieve savings of £26.5m over the next 10 years.
It involves transferring staff from the four service areas to a new shared service hub, the Thames Valley Transactional Service Centre, to be based in the town. It will offer services to other public and private sector organisations in the area.
The company has also guaranteed the creation of 100 apprentice positions.
Councillor Rob Anderson, leader of Slough borough council, said: “Our collaboration represents an innovative approach that will safeguard local jobs, maintain high service levels, and secure new investment into the local economy, as well as providing our staff with a fantastic opportunity to develop their careers.”
Rainer Majcen, managing director, public sector, Arvato UK and Ireland said: “Slough is a strategic location for our business, and we believe the joint development of the shared service with the council is an important move forward in how public sector organisations can start to take the lead in delivering service excellence.”
The partnership between the two is scheduled to go live on 2 April 2012.
Source:http://www.guardian.co.uk/government-computing-network/2011/dec/16/slough-council-arvato-outsourcing-contract?newsfeed=true
