The Chairman will mention a range of recent items of news which may be of interest to Members
Minutes:
Alderman Frank William Lewis MBE JP
The Chairman informed the Council of the death, on Tuesday, 24 September 2013 of Alderman Frank William Lewis MBE JP who was a Member of the County Council between May 1977 and May 2013 and represented the Lichfield Rural West County Electoral Division.
Mr Lewis was awarded an MBE in 2006 for his service to Local Government. During the 36 years he was a Member of the County Council he served on a wide range of the Council’s Committees including Policy and Resources, County Farms and Agriculture, Development Services Group, Highways and Transportation, Waste Disposal, Public Protection, Planning and Regulatory Committees.
Mr Lewis was also a Member of the Staffordshire Police Authority and the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Fire and Rescue Authority. He was elected Chairman of the County Council between 2011 and 2012 and, following his retirement from the Council in May, was awarded the status of Honorary Alderman in July 2013.
Members paid tribute to Alderman Lewis and then stood in silence in his memory.
APSE Service Awards 2013
Members were informed that the County Council won the “Best Partnership Working initiative (Public/Private Partnership Working)” category in the 2013 Association of Public Service Excellence Service Awards in recognition of the work of the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership. The Partnership brought together expertise from the public and private sectors to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on the County’s road network. It worked to raise awareness about road safety, to monitor vehicle safety issues and to encourage safe and responsible road use.
The County Council was also short-listed in the following three categories of the Awards:
· Best Employment and Equality Initiative
· Best Local Democracy Initiative
· Best Service Team of the Year (Highways, Winter Maintenance and Street Lighting Service)
Chartered Institute for Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) Supply Management Awards
The Chairman also informed Members that the County Council had won the "Best Public Sector Procurement Project" award at the 2013 Chartered Institute for Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) Supply Management Awards for the Education Support Services (ESS) Joint Venture Procurement. These awards were the most prestigious awards for procurement, covering the private and public sector. The project involved a spend of £4 Billion, the letting of a 20 year service delivery agreement with Entrust, and the protection / TUPE transfer of around 5,000 Council employees to the Joint Venture Company.
Federation of Small Businesses Award – Best Small Business Friendly Procurement Policy
The Council noted that Staffordshire Procurement had also recently received an award from the Federation of Small Businesses for having the Best Small Business Friendly Procurement Policy. The award was given based on the work undertaken by Staffordshire Procurement to increase SME access to, participation in and win Council tenders. The work was not project based or a one off, but an on-going commitment to supporting SMEs in bidding for and winning SCC contracts. This was the second consecutive year in which Staffordshire Procurement had won this award.