How much is that doggy in the window? The myth of the One Barnet capita savings

When I was a small child, my favourite song was "How much is that doggy in the window?" I heard the song on the radio last night, first time for many years. Coincidentally I was reading Mr Reasonable's latest blog about the myth of Capita savings. As what Mr Reasonable has to say is so important, I reproduce it here (read the original here - http://reasonablenewbarnet.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/one-barnet-and-why-capitas-75million.html)

One Barnet and Why Capita's £75 million Doesn't Add Up

We have been told repeatedly that the Capita One Barnet Contract will save residents millions of pounds. The two main contracts and the forecast savings are as follows:

NSCSO (now called CSG)
Baseline (at December 2012) costs £38.8 million
Forecast costs savings £7.01 million
Procurement savings £4.69 million
Improved council tax collection £0.84 million
Total guaranteed saving £12.54 million
By my reckoning this means that Barnet should pay £26.26 million per annum
(Source: NSCSO Business Case Cabinet Meeting 6 December 2012)

DSG (now called Re)
Baseline (at June 2013) costs £14.2 million
Forecast cost savings £0.53 million
Increased income £3.38million
Total guaranteed savings £3.9 million
By my reckoning this means that Barnet should pay £10.3 million per annum
(Source: DSG Business case Cabinet Meeting 24 June 2013)

So if we look at the figures above this means that we should be paying Capita £36.56 million assuming they deliver all of the guaranteed savings. It may therefore surprise you that in the year 1 July 2013 to 30 June 2014 Barnet paid Capita £75,008,840.49. Yes £75 MILLION,  £38.44 million more than we should be paying.

Even setting aside the £16 million of up front investment Barnet have paid to Capita (which should be factored back into the annual cost savings)  that still means we paid £59 million when the cost of providing the service before outsourcing was only £53 million. Also bear in mind that Barnet have shelled out millions in redundancy payment, £8 million on Agilisys/iMpower, millions for agency staff as well as causing distress and heartbreak to hundreds of families that have suffered redundancy to push through these contracts.

At tomorrow night's Council meeting, Richard Cornelius will once again be selling the myth that Capita are saving Barnet residents a fortune in his response to a question from Alison Moore. I hope some of the Councillors present start asking whether these figures are real or just smoke and mirrors. The number don't add up Cllr Cornelius.

So you may ask what all this has to do with doggies in the window. Well the question in the song is "How much?" When it comes down to any transaction, the key phrase is how much? The council spends a small fortune on accountants. They produces figures that are avaialable to the public (if you know the process) which allow us to see "How much". With One Barnet, the deal was that the council would export hundreds of jobs to Capita and other parts of the  country and in return Capita would save us money. In the process Capita would make a hefty profit. This money is our money and we are entitled to know "How much" We are entitled to know if Capita have delivered the promises savings and if they haven't we are entitled to an explanation.

However the only figures we've seen are from Mr Reasonable and we've heard nothing from Richard Cornelius, the leader of Barnet Council who signed and delivered the contract. So once again, the Barnet Eye asks the question "How much". If Mr Cornelius has done us a good deal, his army of highly paid accountants suely can produce the figures. If the deal has been a good one, having run for a year, Mr Cornelius should be shouting about what a marvellous job he's done. He should be inviting the Barnet bloggers up to his Ivory Tower, giving us a cup of tea and the figures which vondicate his decision and say "There's the figures, I was right no Feck off and write that up in your blogs". And we would all come back and acclaim Richard as a genius and spend the rest of our lives telling you to vote Tory. That is what would happen if Richard had the figures to make a case.

What has happened in reality? The Sounds of Silence. No invitation around to the Cornelius mansion in Totteridge for tea and humble pie. So there is only one thing we can conclude. I wonder if the answer to the question "How much is that doggy in the window?" was "Give us your bank account details, we'll charge you what we like every month and at the end of the year, you can tot up the cost" whether you'd be taking Rover home? If you wouldn't do it for a lovable pet, why on earth would you let councillors do it with your hard earned cash to run the council?

Guest Blog - PREPARED STATEMENT TO THE BARNET GROUP BOARD, REGARDING YOUR CHOICE BARNET (YCB) - By Tony Solomons

I SPEAK AS THE PARENT OF MY 41 YEAR-OLD SON, WHO IS CLASSED AS HAVING PROFOUND AND MULTIPLE LEARNING DISABILITIES (OTHERWISE KNOWN AS PMLD) AND WHO HAS BEEN A SERVICE USER OF YCB AND ITS PREDECESSORS FOR OVER TWENTY YEARS.

MAY I START WITH A POTTED HISTORY OF YCB, AS I SEE IT. I PROMISE TO KEEP IT BRIEF.

YCB’S CREATION WAS ESSENTIALLY BASED ON IDEOLOGY AND QUESTIONABLE MORALITY. EVEN IF WE SET ASIDE THE ETHICAL ISSUE ABOUT A COMPANY HOPING TO PROFIT FROM SEVERELY DISABLED PEOPLE - WHICH MOST REASONABLE INDIVIDUALS FIND PRETTY DISGRACEFUL ANYWAY - WE JUST CAN’T IGNORE THE FLAWED ASSUMPTIONS ON WHICH THE ORIGINAL YCB PLANS WERE BASED.

YCB WAS GOING TO BRING NEW BUSINESS TO BARNET - WHERE WAS THE EVIDENCE? “CUSTOMERS” (SO-CALLED BECAUSE WE WERE NOW IN A COMMERCIAL MARKETPLACE) WERE GOING TO SWITCH IN DROVES TO DIRECT PAYMENTS - WHERE HAS THIS HAPPENED? AND WHO ASKED THE QUESTIONS REGARDING WHAT THE BOROUGH OF BARNET WAS PREPARED TO FUND AND WHAT IT WASN’T (FOR EXAMPLE NO-SHOWS.) THE ASSUMPTIONS WERE INADEQUATELY THOUGHT THROUGH AND NOT PROPERLY COMMUNICATED.

AND, AS A RESULT, WE HAD A BUSINESS PLAN AIRILY COBBLED TOGETHER BY A TROOP OF NUMBER-CRUNCHERS WORKING IN THE DARK.

MANY WISE AND COMPETENT PEOPLE PRODUCED TELLING EVIDENCE THAT THE PLAN WOULD NEVER WORK. AND - JUST TO PROVE THE POINT - AT A VERY EARLY STAGE IN THE PROCEEDINGS, YCB FOUND ITSELF HAVING TO BORROW £1M FROM BARNET HOMES. THE CHICKENS HAD COME HOME TO ROOST FROM THE VERY START.

HAD YCB BEEN STITCHED UP BY THE COUNCIL? PROBABLY, BUT WHAT’S SO POIGNANT IS THAT IT MAY WELL NOT HAVE BEEN CONSCIOUSLY. I’M PREPARED TO ACCEPT THAT NEITHER PARTY WAS AWARE OF THE MINEFIELD AT THE TIME. I KNOW SOME WILL DISAGREE, BUT WHEN IN DOUBT I USUALLY GO FOR COCK-UP OVER CONSPIRACY.

THAT’S THE BRIEF POTTED HISTORY I PROMISED. I DARESAY IT’S  KNOWN TO EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM, BUT IT CAN’T BE REPEATED TOO OFTEN.

SINCE THAT DISASTROUS OPENING, YCB HAS BEEN IN A STATE OF DENIAL. THEIR HEADS ONLY EMERGED FROM THE SAND WHEN IT BECAME ONLY TOO APPARENT THAT THE FINANCIAL NUMBERS WOULD NEVER WORK. SOMETHING HAD TO GIVE. SO INSTEAD OF SUCCESSFULLY ARGUING FOR THE NECESSARY INCREASED  FUNDING FROM THEIR COUNCIL MASTERS, THEY WENT FOR THE SOFT UNDERBELLY OF THE ORGANISATION - THE CARE STAFF.

WE KNOW WHERE THIS HAS LED.  STAFF TERMS AND CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN DOWNGRADED, AGENCY WORKERS HAVE REPLACED GOOD AND EXPERIENCED STAFF MEMBERS, AND - UNLESS SOMETHING NEW AND POSITIVE HAS EMERGED FROM TODAY’S ACAS TALKS - STAFF HAVE SUFFERED A 9.5 PERCENT PAY CUT. NO WONDER THEY HAVE CHOSEN TO STRIKE, THEIR PATIENCE FINALLY EXHAUSTED.

AND THE STAFF ARE OF COURSE NOT THE ONLY VICTIMS. MY SON, AS A SERVICE USER (OR CUSTOMER, THE PREFERRED MARKETPLACE TERM) AT THE ROSA MORISON DAY CENTRE, HAS BENEFITED HUGELY OVER THE YEARS FROM THE SKILL, COMMITMENT AND DEDICATION OF THE TRULY AMAZING STAFF, WHO HAVE OUR FULL SUPPORT IN THEIR CURRENT ACTION. AND ALL THIS IS NOW PLACED IN JEOPARDY, OUR SON’S FUTURE WELLBEING AND QUALITY OF LIFE COMPROMISED THROUGH THE PAST MISMANAGEMENT BY EVERYONE CONCERNED.

THE COUNCILLORS (IN MY VIEW THE ULTIMATE VILLAINS OF THE PIECE) WON’T BUDGE. NEITHER WILL THE OFFICERS, EXEMPLIFIED BY BARNET’S CEO, WHO, I UNDERSTAND, REFUSES TO GET INVOLVED. IT SEEMS THE YCB CARE WORKERS WILL HAVE TO KEEP TAKING HAIRCUTS. MEANWHILE CAPITA LURK IN THE WINGS, WAITING FOR MELTDOWN, LICKING THEIR GREEDY CHOPS.

AS A PARENT, I SINCERELY WANT TO BE ABLE TO HELP BREAK THE DEADLOCK, BUT I FEEL MARGINALISED AND IMPOTENT. IT’S A DESPERATE SITUATION, AND I’M HOPING AGAINST HOPE THAT YOU, THE BOARD, HAVE GOT SOME REALISTIC PLANS IN PLACE, WHICH ARE FAIR TO THE CARE WORKERS, AND WILL HELP GET US OUT OF THIS UNHOLY MESS. THANK YOU.

TONY SOLOMONS

22 SEPTEMBER 2014

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Tony Solomons is a Barnet Resident and a parent carer. Guest blogs are always welcome at the Barnet Eye

Barnet Council - Tories yet again exposed for their hatred of Football

So what is our national game? What is the game that most boys would play out of choice at school? The answer is Association Football. There are many sports played in the UK, but football is head and shoulders above the rest in terms of levels of participation, interest and affection for our young people. It is a sad fact that there is one place where this is not the case. That is here in the London Borough of Barnet. We used to have two clubs with famous histories and traditions in the Borough. Sadly both have been shafted by Barnet Council. Barnet FC were forced out of the Borough by Council intransigence and hostilty. The club now play in the London Borough of Harrow at the Hive, having finally given up on trying to get the Council to cooperate. For Hendon FC, it is even sadder. The team now groundshare with Wembley, their ground being sold to a property developer of £20 million. 

It seems that the Council have no clue about the vital role of having a local team to inspire youngsters. It goes deeper than that though. Barnet has a reputation for poor maintenance of pitches in the Borough for youth teams. I recently visited Burnt Oak lesuire centre and was dumstruck to see the state  of the youth football pitch. The season has only just started, but the pitch is in a highly dodgy state. The number of playing fields that the council has concreted over in the Borough or left to fall into rack and ruin is scandalous. Within a couple of miles from my house we've lost Pavillion Road and the Mill Hill Sports club in recent years. There now seems to be a massive question mark over the future of Mill Hill Village FC, a club which has been around for over 100 years. It seems that there are issues with the lease on the ground. There is a suspicion that the council sees such sites as prime real estate.

For some reason, whilst Barnet Council hate local football clubs, they love rugby. Now I personally have no issue with Rugby, I've been to Saracens RFC a few times. I am however appalled by the double standard. Saracens RFC have had a huge subsidy from Barnet Council in the form of  a "sweetheart deal" on their Copthall ground. Now the ground clearly was decrepid before the Saracens development and they've done a great job, but given the lack of previous ties to the Borough, one has to point out the double standard.

The latest example of anti football bias is revealed in a press release on the Barnet Council website. It seems that any sport is encouraged in Barnet apart from football. I was pleased to see a press release on the Barnet Council website announcing funding from Sport England to get young people off their backsides and into a sport (http://www.barnet.gov.uk/news/article/591/sport_england_funding_helps_barnet_young_people_get_in_shape) which is clearly a step in the right direction. Then I read what the press release and I was horrified. It seems that any sport except football is encouraged.  Read these snippets

The Sport England money will be combined with additional funding from Barnet Council’s Public Health and Children Services departments, the Saracens Foundation and Middlesex University to create a £3000,000 project fund.Young people will be able to take part in a range of coaching sessions in sports and activities including basketball, rugby, boxing, athletics, self defence and dance. They will also have the chance to take part in a number of ‘come and try’ days.

 It goes on

Councillor Helena Hart said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive funding from the Community Sport Activation Fund which will allow us to develop our sport and physical activity offer to 14 to 25-year-olds.We will offer a selection of sports and physical activity sessions ranging from self-defence, athletics, basketball, Tai Chi and much more. Young people will be able to have their say about how they can get into sport and I am sure it will encourage them to come back for more.”

As you can see no mention at all of football. Now of course all of these sports are great things to get involved with and all should be encouraged. We have to wonder why in Barnet there is such a bias against our national game? Now it may very well be an oversight. It may well be that there is money in the pot for football (we sincerely hope so) but how could you fail to mention it. It would be like setting up a Battle of Britain museum appeal and not mentioning the RAF.

I've raised this seeming blindspot on serveral occasions with Barnet Tory Councillors. They've all assurred me that there is no "anti football" policy, but not a single one has ever been able to quote a single example of anything where Barnet Council were promoting our national sport. Once again, I am throwing down the guantlet to Barnet Council. Get behind our national game. Tell us what you are doing for young footballers to help and encourage them. We'd be the first to promote any scheme which was good for football in the Borough so tell us about it. My son plays under 15 football for a local club, Watling Youth FC. Guess what the council did to their clubhouse/centre? You've got it. The Watling Boys club building was recently demolished for "new homes". What I see every week is dozens of parents taking excited youngsters for what is the highlight of their week. Like me they stand for a couple of hours at the side of the pitch, come rain or shine. I've seen the boys in the team grow up and I've seen the dedication and hard work they put in. Is it too much to ask for a bit of support from our local Council.

Guest Blog - Is an in house option really on the table for Your Choice Barnet by John Sullivan

By John Sullivan,

 Your Choice Barnet, for those of you who don't know, is the organisation which provides care for adults with social care needs in the London Borough of Barnet. It is a Private company, which was created by the London Borough of Barnet. The London Borough of Barnet owns all the shares. You may wonder why a local Authority would go to such lengths. Could it be so that they could implement swinging cuts in local care with no political fallout? How would you go about doing this? Maybe set up a company with a completely flawed business plan, that is doomed from day one. Then there is  a "cast iron financial case" for deeply unpopular cuts with no blame at all for the puppet masters. But who would agree to set up a company under such false pretences?

The truth is that Your Choice Barnet was born of a lie in as much nobody was afforded any choice.  Our Tory masters and their lacky officers decided to call it Your Choice, in an Orwellian, minstry of truth style attempt to pretend that this was something that was "opted in to".  By the time any concept of truth regarding the policy that was finally named Your Choice became a reality, it had been replaced with obfuscation, misinformation and downright lies. Truth, transparency, integrity, concern for clients and staff had taken a back seat, and was replaced by the false promises of huge profits hewn out of the care from the most disadvantaged in our midsts. Local Conservative councillors were blinded by promises of massive profits at the expense of severely disabled  YCB clients. An attitude that any decent person would consider immoral and repugnant took precedent. It seems that despite the Tories being the party of business, none of them bothered to study the business plan.

So as YCB has been a lie from the start,  with massive losses presented as "planned losses" (who sets up a company to make losses), there is no need to list the dishonest rhetoric of YCB directors or local councillors on the subject of YCB, because there has been no truth from day one. Therefore anything you hear from them on this subject you can reasonably assume is  obfuscation, cover up or plain old fashioned porkies.

Now we are told that the Council is "looking at" and "In House option". It is one thing to promise an in house option will be considered, but how well funded will the preparation of an in house model be?  Will it be allowed sufficient time to do a thorough job , after all we are talking about the quality of people's lives? Who will prepare the bid and what will their brief be? Will all parties clients, parents, family carers, front line staff and others at the front line for the very first time be consulted. Or will they all as has been the case to date be ignored by both local Conservative and Labour councillors. In short will thed people who receive the care actually be given a choice?

 Any reasonable person could see from the outset that the original YCB business plan was never going to work - you remember the plan that needed a £1 million bale out within a year, any more than the second business plan is working. YCB are currently in hock to Barnet taxpayers for a figure in excess of £1  Million  (the so called planned debt).

However the business plan was never intended to work, the intention from the outset was to drive YCB into debt , which could be used to justify an attack on the  highly skilled staff to force them out and replace them with cheap labour. Those members of staff not forced out initially with the use of every despicable tactic at the disposal of YCB board and their Tory puppet masters, were always going to be subjected to massive life changing wage cuts to prime the business known as YCB , by minimising the quality of service provision and quality of life for YCB clients and staff and sell off to the highest bidder probably Capita.  This is all necessary in order to wipe their hands of the responsibility for YCB clients, which has always been the aim of our local Conservative masters.

Are our local conservative councillors serious about giving an in house option for YCB a fair hearing and the funding and time to prepare a bid? The suspicion is that they are yet again playing games with the lives of YCB clients and their family carers.

I would suggest the latter is the intention simply because and I repeat Your Choice Barnet has been a lie since day one and it continues to be a lie, and one thing is for sure local Conservative councillors will fight tooth and nail to avoid the service being brought back in house. No matter how deceitful underhand and dishonest they have to be, which will only be to replicate the deceitful, underhand and dishonest activities they engaged in to set the lie that is Your Choice Barnet up to fail in the first place.

Whilst I hope to be proven wrong , I seriously have my doubts the right wing detester of the disabled sick and poor,  namely our 'smiling' Conservative leader Cornelius will pull out all of the stops to deny YCB clients any choice at all. Do the sick, the diabled and the infirm not deserve a quality of life and a safeguarded long term future of quality service provision . To stop this service being brought back in house, which is the only way the long term future of service provision can be guaranteed is to deny more than choice. It is to deny the basic needs of a human being to have a life without fear.

There is one final thing which must be said about the whole YCB debacle. It is time for the local Labour Party to stop being the Tories merkin. At every turn they have lost their cojones and voted to go along with the Tory cuts and outsourcing, giving the Tories a legitimacy they do not deserve. Let me put this in simple terms. If the local Labour Party do not stand at the forefront of the fight to bring Services in house, then I will ensure that every reader of the Barnet Eye and every carer in Barnet knows and come the election in 2015 they exercise their vote in the knowledge of what Labour have done, not what they have promised. Because if the local Labour party can't oppose the Tories, then what possible reason is there to deserve our votes?
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John Sullivan is a Barnet resident and carer for his daughter Susan aged 50