Agenda item

Report of the Chamberlain.

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Chamberlain providing an update on the recent activity of the IT Division. The Chamberlain reported that the previous year’s activity had been in preparation of the service improvements due to take place in 2017/18. There were six reasons to have confidence in the department’s ability to enact change. The first was the strong leadership team which was in place, and the recruitment of the new Director and Deputy Director providing a clear organisation structure. The second was the development of the draft strategy which had seen strong support from both Members and Senior Officers. The third was the budget uplift which had been agreed for the current year and 2017/18. There was a recognition that there had been under investment in the past. The next reason was the greater understanding of the departmental risk and the mitigation measures that would need to be put in place to mitigate it. The strengthening partnership within the team and between Members and Senior Officer was a further reason, and the last was felt to be the positive results seen in the performance statistics for this quarter.

Despite the positive results, it was acknowledged that the division could not be complacent, however it was anticipated that the service would see a significant improvement by the end of 2017. In response to a query from a Member it was confirmed that the additional £8.1-8.4 million predicted would cover phase 1-3 of the improvement works. It was likely the final figure would be approximately £10 million as first predicted.

Members undertook to provide a breakdown of workforce numbers of the previous years, including the levels pre- Agilisys for comparison to the current levels. The current Agilisys workforce would also be provided. It was noted that although it was useful to compare with past actions the current situation was unique and the past should not be dwelt upon.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.