Issue - meetings

Key Decision

Portfolio Holder

Councillor Kier Barsby – Portfolio Holder for Environmental Improvements, Corporate Communications and Cross Portfolio Support

RESOLVED that

a)    the decision of Mansfield District Council to not renew the Legal Shared Service arrangement beyond the current service level agreement termination date of 31 October 2022, be received and noted;

b)    approval be given for the provision of in-house legal services on termination of the shared service;

c)    delegated authority be granted to the Director of Legal and Governance (and Monitoring Officer), in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Environmental Improvements, Corporate Communications and Cross Portfolio Support to agree an early termination date with Mansfield District Council if appropriate.

Cabinet was updated in respect of the shared legal service (arrangements originally put in place in November 2012) and the decision of Mansfield District Council to not extend the arrangements beyond the current service level agreement termination date of 31 October 2022. The report also sought

approval to provide the legal service in-house on termination of the shared service and for delegations to enable an early termination of the agreement if appropriate.

Members considered the alternative option of agreeing to the service being provided by the private sector or other providers but this was not recommended as it would be more costly than an in-house provision.   The option of looking to attract another shared service partner was also not feasible, partly due to the short time frame in which to achieve this prior to contract termination, but also due to the fact there has been little immediate interest shown for sharing services.

RESOLVED that

a)    the decision of Mansfield District Council to not renew the Legal Shared Service arrangement beyond the current service level agreement termination date of 31 October 2022, be received and noted;

b)    approval be given for the provision of in-house legal services on termination of the shared service;

c)    delegated authority be granted to the Director of Legal and Governance (and Monitoring Officer), in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Environmental Improvements, Corporate Communications and Cross Portfolio Support to agree an early termination date with Mansfield District Council if appropriate.

Reasons:

1.    Mansfield District Council (MDC) has served notice on Ashfield District Council (ADC) confirming it does not intend to renew the Legal Shared Service beyond the existing agreement term of 31 October 2022. As such, the Council must decide how it will obtain legal advice and support following the termination of the shared service.

2.    Following consideration of alternative delivery options for the provision of legal services, it is recommended that the most efficient and cost-effective option is for the service to be provided inhouse, obtaining additional external legal expertise as necessary.

3.    The Council has significant demand for legal support and advice, such as for environmental enforcement work, contracts and land transactions and this demand is set to increase further in light of the Towns Fund projects over the next 5 years.

4.    In early discussions with MDC, and due to a large number of vacancies within the current establishment largely caused by the uncertainty of the shared service ending, it is likely an early termination date will be desirable in order to ensure ongoing, satisfactory and sufficient legal support.