Consideration was given to recommendation CE 24/34 of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of 11 September 2024 in respect of consultant use at the Council.
Cabinet had due regard to the views of the Committee, the financial and value for money considerations and the legal implications and noted that some of the external support provided had resulted in cost savings and efficient project delivery, which would not have been possible without external experts.
With regard to recommendation (6) of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee regarding consultancy spend in excess of £40,000, Cabinet felt that further consideration was needed to ensure that this did not lead to delays in delivery and increased cost.
RESOLVED: That
(1) the information provided in the summary of consultancy spend at Annex 2, be noted;
(2) further detail about consultancy spend on specific projects be provided to a future meeting of the Committee, with questions to be provided in writing to Officers to enable responses to be prepared;
(3) the Council be requested to continue to closely manage future use of external experts and an ongoing review of consultant use at the Council be reported to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on an annual basis;
(4) officers be requested to continue to look for opportunities to collaborate with other councils; and
(5) the Council maintain its effectiveness at retaining specialist talent, to reduce the need for external experts going forward.