Commercial arrangement for planning

TOWN Hall bosses at Warrington will be urged next week to carry on discussions with a major independent consultancy over a possible commercial arrangement for the delivery of planning services in the borough.
The recommendation will be put to the borough council’s executive board by Coun Bob Barr, executive member for planning and regeneration.
It follows a “call in” by Labour members of the council which led to scrutiny chiefs deciding the principles of good decision making had been breached.
Scrutiny chiefs decided to advise the executive board that all appropriate information be appended to all future reports on the matter and that a consultation exercise be conducted with all service users.
In addition, the decision to enter into a commercial partnership be reviewed and that a further report be submitted to scrutiny chiefs on the outcome of consultation and the review of the commercial partnership before any further decisions were taken.
Coun Barr said all appropriate information would be fully available to all council members.
Consultation with service users would take place, although he thought to include general public consultation would be excessive.
No decision had yet been made to enter into a commercial partnership and the final decision should not be made until a future meeting of the executive board.
Coun Barr said a further report to scrutiny chiefs was unnecessary as all relevant information would be put to a future meeting of the executive board and all members of the council would have sight of it.
The council has already started talks with major consultancy Capita Symonds.
Opposition councillors have expressed concern over an alleged lack of consultation with service users and staff and have also claimed there are financial risks because the fact that only one company has expressed an interest could indicate the market was not proven.
Council chiefs say a commercial arrangement to provide development control and building control services could save £150,000-a-year – nine per cent of the total cost of the service.