Basingstoke and
Deane Borough Council Deploys spotlightonspend for Greater
Transparency on Public Spending
spotlightonspend enables Council to publish and compare
spend data over £500 against standardised metrics in line with
Government's transparency plans
Newbury, Berkshire – 15 November 2010 –
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has deployed spotlightonspend, an
online transparency platform, designed to radically improve the
accessibility, relevance and value of Government spend information
to the general public. In line with the new 'Programme for
Government' requirements on public spending and transparency, which
come into effect in January 2011, the Council can now provide easy
access to its residents and business ratepayers about how it spends
its annual resources via the council's new 'Your Right to Know'
page on its website on a monthly basis, specifically focusing on
all transactions above £500 in value.
In addition to this, the council's own website will provide data
that makes available all spending with suppliers over £1,000 for
the last financial year (2009/10).
Cabinet Member for Finance and Property Cllr James Lewin said,
"We offer a wide range of services and some of our residents may
not be aware of exactly what is involved in providing these. Using
these tools we are able to present our spending figures in a clear
and open way and we are happy to share this information with our
residents to demonstrate that we provide value for money
services."
The Council's transparency is made possible through the
deployment of Spikes Cavell's spotlightonspend - an
innovative online platform, designed to radically improve the
accessibility, relevance and value of Government spend and related
information to the general public and open data community. Spikes
Cavell has undertaken to adapt the spotlightonspend platform to
facilitate access to the Council's wider transparency agenda, which
will enable access by the general public and open data community to
these new classes of data.
Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local
Government, said, "I'm really excited about the opportunities of
transparency and it's something this Government is utterly
committed to. spotlightonspend demonstrates that, when innovative
businesses work with far-sighted public bodies, we can inform the
public, reduce costs and improve democracy both locally and
nationally."
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council's financial data will be
available to search and view via its website www.basingstoke.gov.uk/go/yourrights.
It will contain information on how much the Council pays external
suppliers of services such as street cleaning and housing. Other
early adopter customers include Guildford Borough Council, Cherwell
District Council and RBWM, to name but a few, with additional
councils due to go live in the coming weeks.
Luke Spikes, CEO of Spikes Cavell & Co, which operates the
spotlightonspend service, added, "We are thrilled to be working
with Basingstoke and Deane, yet another example of a forward
thinking and innovative Borough Council that is prepared to harness
technology to help push local government openness which will
improve visibility and accessibility of information, providing its
residents and business owners with value add."
spotlightonspend cuts costs, eliminates complexity and reduces
risk
spotlightonspend is a managed service that is comprised of
everything necessary to cost-effectively facilitate publication of
the spend and related information public bodies elect to make
available to the general public.
spotlightonspend is designed to:
- enhance the information a public body publishes to improve its
accessibility, relevance and value for the intended audience – the
general public and open data community.
- eliminate the complexity of becoming and staying compliant with
policy,
- reduce the risk of inadvertent breach of the Data Protection
Legislation ,
- cut costs by removing the need to add to the workload of a
public body's current staff or increase headcount.
http://www.spotlightonspend.org.uk/
spotlightonspend is powered by Spikes Cavell. Spikes Cavell
equips decision makers in the public sector with the data, online
tools and analytical insight they need in order to transform the
way they procure goods and services. Since 2003, our spend analysis
and spend management solutions have underpinned the efforts of more
than 800 organisation's to deliver cash savings, measure progress
and manage compliance. http://www.spikescavell.net/
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For further information, please contact:
Hayley Wienszczak
Spikes Cavell & Co
Tel: +44 (0)1635 556970
Email: hayley.wienszczak@spikescavell.net
Vanessa Land
Devonshire Marketing
Tel: +44 (0) 7768 693 779
Email: vanessa@devonshiremarketing.com
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