Decision details

The Service Director, Community Services provided the Cabinet with the report, which outlined the work that had been undertaken on maximising Community Benefits.

The Service Director spoke of a robust piece of work undertaken by one of the Council’s Graduate Officers to explore options for maximising Community Benefits derived from procurement contracts. Following, the piece of work, it was agreed to trial the proposed recommendation, in order to test the willingness of tenderers to commit to making a financial contribution to a Legacy Investment Fund and/or to commit to another form of contribution as part of their Community Benefits response.

The Service Director referred Members to Section 5 of the report, where the results of the Community Benefits pilot was detailed. The officer was pleased to advise Members that although the documentation made it clear that commitment to a Community Benefits contribution was voluntary, the tenderers were willing to contribute.

The Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, Well-being and Cultural Services thanked the Graduate Officer for the valuable and innovative piece of work. The Cabinet Member also took the opportunity to thank the contractors for their valuable contributions, which would be used for wider community benefits.

The Cabinet RESOLVED:

1.    To approve the inclusion of Community Benefits Clauses in all relevant corporate contracts. This could either be in the form of direct work to be delivered within the community and/or a financial contribution to a ‘legacy fund’;

2.    To approve the establishment of a ‘Legacy Investment Fund’ that will receive the financial contributions generated through Community Benefits to support wider Community Development activities across the County Borough, in line with this Council’s corporate priorities; and           

3.    To commit the resource necessary to continue developments, co-ordinate and mainstream the approach.