TWO Gwent councils which share a chief executive are set to spend more than £111,000 on a joint IT system.
Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent borough councils will commission Cardiff-based firm iCoTech to develop a computer system to keep track of council projects and programmes, including how they are performing against agreed targets.
The “cloud-based” systems will replace a combination of spreadsheets and other tools that haven’t been designed to work together.
The firm, which specialises in making best use of Microsoft 365 technology that Torfaen council already uses, has already demonstrated how it could work with the councils during May and June and the contract is below the threshold for Public Contracts Regulations meaning it can be awarded directly.
A search and evaluation exercise also identified iCoTech as the top-ranked supplier able to meet all key requirements within the budget.
A decision report for Torfaen council noted staff and managers will have to be trained to use the new system to avoid inconsistent use to ensure it provides the full benefits.
The system will also have to recognise each council’s own priorities and targets while a common risk scoring matrix and escalation path will ensure a “red” risk carries the same meaning in both organisations and can feed into a combined risk overview when needed.
Torfaen’s cabinet is due to agree it should provide 50 per cent, or £55,750, of the £111,500 total costs from its digital reserve, with Blaenau Gwent having confirmed meeting the balance is acceptable.