PAPER F

 

 

RESOURCES SELECT COMMITTEE – 7 APRIL 2005

 

MEMBERS ICT

 

REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO HOLDER FOR RESOURCES

 

 

PURPOSE / REASON

 

1.      As requested by the Select Committee at its meeting on the 3rd March 2005, this paper sets out the policy on Members retention of ICT equipment, the plans for addressing Members ICT requirements after the election and the budgets currently available for this.

 

ACTION REQUIRED BY THE SELECT COMMITTEE

 

2.      Members are asked to review the information on Members ICT and to provide guidance and recommendations as appropriate.

 

BACKGROUND

 

3.      Members were first issued with ICT equipment after the last election and take-up and use since that time has varied considerably with some Members making little use of the equipment that was provided and others both making extensive use and asking for enhanced provision.

 

4.      Since that time, the underlying infrastructure within the council has been considerably improved and this means that new offerings are now available. In addition, since some of the equipment is now reaching the end of its anticipated useful life, the forthcoming election offers the ideal opportunity to reassess the ICT requirements of Members and the solutions available to these.

 

POLICY ON EXISTING EQUIPMENT

 

5.      The existing policy requires Members to return their ICT equipment to the organisation when their term of office ends or when the equipment reaches the end of its useful life. A number of Members have expressed concerns about this policy and the Resources Select asked that this be reviewed.

 

6.      The main arguments in favour of Members being able to buy old kit revolve around the suggestion that the equipment has some residual value to them as individuals whereas it would have none to the organisation. The main arguments against revolve around the premise that it should be possible to use equipment which has some residual value elsewhere in the organisation and also that it would be inappropriate to provide Members with the opportunity to procure goods or services which are not also available to the public.

 

7.      Following the request by Resources Select, this policy has been reviewed by the Portfolio Holder for Resources in conjunction with the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive. The Portfolio Holder has subsequently confirmed to all Members that it would be inappropriate for them to buy old equipment for the reasons given above.

 

8.      The ICT Department will make arrangements to recover all ICT equipment from Members shortly before the election to ensure the timely recovery and evaluation of equipment. This will include provision for the transfer of personal data onto CDs before


any existing data is securely erased as well as a ‘health check’ for any equipment to be returned.

 

9.      In order to avoid disadvantaging returning Members who already have equipment nearing its end of life, returning Members will be asked to assess their ICT needs as described below and offered the opportunity to retain or replace their existing kit, as appropriate, within the resources available.

 

10.  Returned kit will be serviced for re-use by Members and elsewhere within the authority as appropriate.

 

ADDRESSING MEMBERS FUTURE ICT REQUIREMENTS

 

11.  Experience over the past four years has shown that Members have a range of different needs in terms of ICT and the intention over the next period will be to provide equipment best suited to those needs.

 

12.  To achieve this, the ICT department will meet with each Member as part of their induction process and will explore their requirements on the basis of the following matrix or similar:

 

Need

Need at Home

Need at C. Hall

Need anywhere

Phone

 

 

 

E-mail

 

 

 

E-diary

 

 

 

Internet / intranet

 

 

 

Word processing

 

 

 

Other applications

e.g. spreadsheets

 

 

 

Ability to print

 

 

 

Ability to fax

 

 

 

Ability to photocopy

 

 

 

Use own PC

 

 

 

Use own printer

 

 

 

Maintain own web pages

 

 

 

Accessibility requirements

 

 

 

Dial-up internet access

 

 

 

Broadband internet access

 

 

 

ICT Training

 

 

 

Technical support

 

 

 

 

13.  The equipment provided as a result of this assessment will vary according to need and resources but is expected to result in a combination of solutions, including:

 

·         Support for use of own equipment at home

·         Support for dial-up and broadband connections at home

·         Provision of hardware including Citrix terminal, desktop PC, laptop PC and handheld personal organiser (PDA), printer, mobile phone etc as appropriate

·         Provision of software as appropriate

·         Training (to European Computer Driving Licence standard)

·         Technical support

 

BUDGETS AVAILABLE

 

14.  A limited budget of £20k has been identified to date. The authority is however committed to providing a quality ICT service to all Members and it is anticipated that it will be possible to find sufficient budget to provide a realistic choice to Members so long as not every member requires the most expensive package available.

 

Contact Point:             David Price, Head of Organisational Development ( 823502

e-mail : [email protected]

 

 

 

REG BARRY

Portfolio Holder for Resources