Trading Places!
Go across to Stockport today to meet APSE's main contact Nick Cox. Nick as Managing Director, set up SK Solutions, Stockport Council's arms length trading company.
Nick brings me up to speed with what they are hoping to achieve as a wholly owned council company and sets out their ambitous business growth targets.
He also tells me about why the Council went down this route in the first place and we have a discussion about the suitability of this type of vehicle for service delivery.
I have always been a much stronger advocate of the use of charging powers rather than the establishment of a trading company for local authority service provision, but Nick makes quite a compelling case as to why the latter was the correct solution for Stockport.
We finish of by agreeing a number of activities for the future that will allow Nick to tell the wider APSE membership about what has been established in Stockport.
Promoting excellence in public services
APSE (Association for Public Service Excellence) is a not for profit unincorporated association working with over 300 councils throughout the UK. Promoting excellence in public services, APSE is the foremost specialist in local authority frontline services, hosting a network for frontline service providers in areas such as waste and refuse collection, parks and environmental services, cemeteries and crematorium, environmental health, leisure, school meals, cleaning, housing and building maintenance.
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