Barnet Council will bring its IT services back in-house at the end of this month after abandoning a last-minute plan to switch the work to another supplier, ending the final chapter of one of London’s most controversial outsourcing deals.
The north London borough had planned to move its IT contract to Ultima Business Solutions from 1 October in a deal worth up to £10m. But council meeting notes from earlier this month revealed that “the council’s preferred bidder sought to substantially increase its submitted bid costs post submission and evaluation”.
The bidder was told it could either stand by its original price or withdraw by a deadline set by the council. It did neither, and the bid was rejected.
A subsequent due-diligence review found financial and service benefits in running IT directly, and the procurement was abandoned. The IT service will instead transfer in-house by 30 September.
The decision closes out the 2013 Capita contract — a 10-year deal signed under the so-called One Barnet programme that handed the business services giant HR, finance, IT, estates, customer services and revenues and benefits. Once hailed as a flagship for the future of councils, the contract became a byword for troubled outsourcing, and in July 2022 members of the council’s policy and resources committee voted to end it.
HR and finance were brought back in-house first, while IT, customer services and revenues and benefits stayed with Capita under an extended deal worth up to £57m. Capita continued to deliver the council’s IT until this month.
Council leader Barry Rawlings said: “We are committed to providing the very best services for our residents that offer value for money and are accountable to Barnet Council taxpayers.” He added: “By returning our IT-service in-house, it allows the council to retain ownership of its technology operations, priorities and decision making, as well as provide clearer accountability and greater control over security decisions, and improved alignment on cyber security.”
“We thank our partners at Capita and welcome the transfer of staff to the council’s in-house team,” he added.
The story was first reported by Computer Weekly, whose reporting cites the council’s own meeting notes. No standalone Barnet Council press release on this decision was found; the council’s 2022 news page on ending the outsourcing contract remains its most recent public statement on the wider deal.
