Hartlepool Borough Council has indicated it is ready to extend its ICT contract with Northgate Public Services up to 2023.
Its finance and policy committee agreed last week to authorise officers to negotiate with the company on the option to extend the deal from the original termination date of October 2020 to October 2023.
The minutes of the meeting indicate that the council has been satisfied with the level of savings since the contract came into operation in 2013: they have risen from £700,000 in the first year to a projected £1.13 million for 2018-19 and are forecast to total approximately £7.1 million.
It was also reported that Northgate had employed 175 staff in the borough and created 85 new roles over five years.
Hartlepool’s finance and policy director Chris Little was quoted in the Hartlepool Mail as saying: “Renewal of the contract would achieve further savings on top of their successful work in the borough. They have created a lot of jobs since they have been in town, not just for their work with this council but elsewhere.”
Work has already begun with departments in determining an ICT strategy for 2019.
Image by Mick Garratt, CC BY-SA 2.0
