Barnet Council are on track to bring back in-house another four services currently outsourced to Capita according to the latest contract review information (Finance Performance & Contracts Committee, FPCC 7 Oct).

Outline Business Cases to bring procurement, regulatory services, regeneration and highways back in-house will come to the next meeting of the Financial Performance & Contracts Committee on 23 November.

This follows the removal of the pensions administration service from Capita, which was given to another provider in 2020 after a humiliating fine was imposed on the Council for Capita’s poor data management and collection.

Strategic finance, strategic HR, the safety, health, and wellbeing service and skills, employment and economic development service have all already been brought back in-house from Capita.

Capita will still be responsible for IT, Customer Services, Revenues and Benefits, Planning and Development Control, Building Control and Land Charges according to the latest review report.

The Accounts Payable, Human Resources, Estates and Cemeteries & Crematoria services are still being reviewed.

East Finchley Labour Councillor, and member of the FPC Committee, Arjun Mittra said:

“The Capita contracts have been a disaster, with a £2 million fraud committed by a former member of staff due to appalling financial controls, a fine from the Pensions Regulator, and failure to improve the state of our roads and pavements to list just a few issues.

“Barnet Council has paid Capita £217 million more than the two original contract prices, but the Barnet Conservatives are ideologically wedded to privatising services and won’t bring the whole lot back in-house.

“Barnet Labour continues to argue that these contracts are not fit for purpose and all services should be brought back in-house.“

Ends.
Notes:
  1. A copy of the FPCC Review of Capita report can be found here (Agenda Item 8): https://barnet.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=693&MId=10800&Ver=4
  1. The total cost to date of the two Capita contracts according to the Council can be found here:
Capita contract spend
Capita contract spend
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