Hertfordshire Contract
Serco signs £200m strategic partnership with Hertfordshire County Council
24th November, 2010
Serco Group plc (Serco), the international service company, announces today
that it has signed a new contract with Hertfordshire County Council to deliver
a ground-breaking strategic partnership which will save millions of pounds and
improve the delivery of services to citizens across the county.
Under this new contract, Serco will transform the Council's internal business
processes, significantly develop customer services and achieve efficiency
savings of at least £25m. The new contract, due to commence in April next year
is valued at up to £200m over an eight-year period, with savings to the council
increasing in line with the total value of the contract.
We will provide a range of front and back office operations including
information, communications and technology services, wider business processes
such as finance, payroll and HR as well support services such as facilities
management, customer contact centres and occupational health. Customer services
will continue to be based locally using Hertfordshire County Council offices.
Over 400 employees are expected to TUPE transfer to Serco as part of the new
service arrangements.
Under the partnership agreement, these shared services and enhanced
capabilities will also be offered to other public sector bodies in the area
including Hertfordshire's ten district councils and the county's police
authority, enabling them to achieve efficiencies in the services that they
provide.
Serco will work in partnership with the Council to enhance and re-define the
role of the contact centre, redesigning processes and introducing a range of
innovative customer service practices drawing on our wider experience in areas
such as transport and business support, to ensure a higher number of enquiries
are resolved at the first point of contact. All service areas will be
considered for inclusion in the approach including Highways, Environment,
Children's and Adults' services. This will allow resources to be targeted more
effectively to maximise service improvement benefits to citizens and
efficiencies for the Council.
In addition, we will deliver improvements to internal services by
re-engineering systems and processes to reduce duplication and bureaucracy, and
by introducing more flexible communications and technology services that allow
staff to be more productive when working away from the office.
The new contract builds on Serco's 18-year track record of successfully
delivering support services to the Council, and is significantly larger in
scope and value than the existing £8m per annum service.
Councillor David Lloyd, Executive Member for Resources at Hertfordshire County
Council, said: "This contract will make it easier for people to access council
services and make a significant contribution to the savings we must make over
the next few years. In total, this new contract will save us at least £25m
during its lifetime, and I trust considerably more.
"The new arrangement with Serco will allow us to make our services even more
efficient and save taxpayers' money by sharing the contractual arrangements
with district and borough councils and the police authority in Hertfordshire.
This means that they have the opportunity to buy into the contract should they
wish to do so and share services such as IT, payroll, HR and call centres."
Christopher Hyman, Chief Executive of Serco Group plc said: "I am delighted
that we have been selected to deliver this ground breaking partnership with
Hertfordshire County Council. We are committed to delivering substantial
improvements in these important services which will bring benefits for the
Council and local communities across Hertfordshire. This decision reflects our
strong track record for innovation in the delivery of high quality and
efficient services for Hertfordshire and our customers around the world."
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For further information please contact Serco:
Jill Sherratt, Interim Head of Investor Relations T +44 (0) 208 334 4122
Dominic Cheetham, Director of Corporate Communications T +44 (0) 208 334 4334
Marcus De Ville, Head of Media Relations T +44 (0) 208 334 4388
About Serco
Serco is a FTSE 100 international service company, which combines commercial
know-how with a deep public service ethos.
Around the world, we improve essential services by managing people, processes,
technology and assets more effectively. We advise policy makers, design
innovative solutions, integrate systems and - most of all - deliver to the
public.
Serco supports governments, agencies and companies who seek a trusted partner
with a solid track record of providing assured service excellence. Our people
offer operational, management and consulting expertise in the aviation, BPO,
defence, education, environmental services, facilities management, health, home
affairs, information and communications technology, knowledge services, local
government, science and nuclear, transport, welfare to work and the commercial
sectors.
More information can be found at www.serco.com
About Serco in Local Government
Serco's local government business delivers services that range from children's
services to business process outsourcing, property management to procurement,
economic development to facilities management and information communications
technology to environmental services. The business supports local authorities
to deliver services to millions of UK citizens daily. In the last two years
Serco has signed shared service contracts with a number of local authorities
including Enfield Council, Derby City Council and Peterborough Borough Council.
More information can be found at http://www.serco.com/markets/localgov/