Ground-breaking alliance 'will protect council jobs'

By peter smith peter.smith@thepostandtimes.co.uk

MORE than 300 council staff have been assured their jobs are safe, despite swingeing cuts set to devastate the public sector.

Economic analysts have forecast about one million state workers across the country will be forced to join the dole queue as the Government tightens the nation's purse strings.

But Staffordshire Moorlands District Council leader Sybil Ralphs has promised the authority's 320 employees their positions are not under threat.

The Tory veteran admitted the commitment to front line services was only possible because of a money-saving link-up with neighbouring High Peak Borough Council.

The alliance has been credited with saving Moorlands House £1.1 million a year, largely through a shared management team led by chief executive Simon Baker.

"If we hadn't taken this move we would have been in dire straits," Ms Ralphs told the Post & Times. "We would have needed to have a redundancy programme as well as putting up fees, charges and Council Tax – we won't do this.

"We are saving more than a £1 million a year just by working more cleverly – but we can not sit back and rest on our laurels. We still need to find further efficiencies."

The pioneering alliance, formed two years ago this summer, has now been lauded by central Government and financial experts.

The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy suggested collaboration between councils should be considered the norm, not the exception.

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne and communities secretary Eric Pickles have both cited the Leek-based authority as a model for others.

Savings have been made by reducing the number of senior management posts from 37 to 20, saving more than £600,000 a year.

A total of £75,000 will be also saved over five years by High Peak monitoring Leek's CCTV cameras from Chapel-en-le-Frith. Shared services, including environmental health, grounds maintenance and property management, will eventually lead to annual savings of more than £2 million.

Ms Ralphs said: "We were a trailblazer on this. It was a radical idea and it took a bit of courage and a lot of hard work to pull off.

"I was certainly burning the midnight oil making sure people got on with each other but in fact, the officers have been tremendous.

"These professional experts are the people who have helped us to drive this forward. We have made efficiencies but we have also made improvements to the service we offer while keeping our own identity."

However, the alliance will not be immune to the wide-scale cuts announced in Mr Osborne's first Budget, which will slash public spending by a quarter.

SMDC has implemented a recruitment freeze and has asked front-line workers to identify areas where further efficiencies could be made.

Partnerships with Staffordshire County Council, Staffordshire Police and other authorities may also be entered into for procurement.

Ms Ralphs said: "We are going to look at everything from paper clips upwards and will make further efficiencies as and when they present themselves.

"The ultimate judge of the action we take will be the people of the Staffordshire Moorlands. They are not slow to give us their views and we will listen."