Council signs contract with ENGIE for a new property and facilities partnership

​Date:13/09/2016

Ref: PR8346

A new contract has been signed by Wakefield Council which heralds the start of one of the biggest changes to the way it delivers services.

From 31 October, a new partnership between Wakefield Council and ENGIE, a leading energy and services company, will deliver facilities management, building services, property and asset management, building cleaning, school meals and buildings related architectural design and related services.  

Cllr David Dagger, Cabinet Member for Corporate Services said: “We believe this contract will deliver benefits for staff, residents and the Council.

“The new partnership will help secure local jobs for local people and enable staff, customers and services to benefit from private sector expertise and investment.

“It is a significant change in the way we work, but a change that will bring improvement, sustainability and growth for these services as well as protecting jobs and providing new opportunities for staff.”

Around 800 staff will transfer to ENGIE under TUPE regulations. As part of the contract ENGIE has guaranteed to invest £1.5m in staff training, create 130 apprenticeships and 500 days of work experience, as well as setting up a social enterprise to deliver employment and training to the disabled community and ensuring that 60% of procurement is with local SME companies.

The new partnership will also deliver major savings for the Council, through a more efficient and commercial approach.

Cllr Dagger said: “The scale of the financial challenge facing this Council is huge. Over £119m has already been cut from our budget. We need to save another £27m this year and the Government has already said that our budget will continue to be cut until 2020.

“It is essential that we find innovative and sustainable new ways to deliver services in the future. This partnership will deliver significant savings over the length of the contract, not just through efficiency but by providing high quality services that open up opportunities for growth and investment.”

Wilfrid Petrie, CEO of ENGIE UK & Ireland added: “ENGIE already has 15 major partnerships with cities and local authorities; spanning facilities management, energy management, infrastructure services and ‘smart government’.

“Through our experience of working with these organisations, we are ideally positioned to bring significant benefits to the people of Wakefield. We look forward to working closely with our new partners and realising the opportunities this new relationship presents.”

In preparation for the contract start date, ENGIE and Wakefield Council are working with all the staff and customers involved in the partnership to ensure a smooth transition.