Issue - meetings

Report of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Affairs and HR is attached.

Councillor Tahir Rafiq, Cabinet Member for Corporate Affairs and HR, presented the report which set out proposals to join the Greater Manchester framework and extend the Council’s use of iTrent, the Council’s current HR and Payroll Management System, for three years with the option to extend for a further two. During this period, officers will continue to explore and pursue opportunities for improvement and efficiencies in the use of the system to support the Council, enabled by the integration of Payroll and HR services into a single Service as previously agreed by Cabinet.

Members discussed the idea of, in principle, sharing HR services with other Authorities and it was noted that this was not the intention at the moment but it would be the natural first step for any such arrangements. These would be complex however, as different Councils would use different versions of the iTrent system, or use them in different ways.

Decision:

Cabinet:

1.    Approved Bury’s continued use of iTrent for an initial period of three years (August 2027) with the option to extend for a further two (August 2029);

2.    Approved the direct award to MHR through the Greater Manchester Framework; and

3.    Delegate the finalisation of the terms of the direct award to the Director of People and inclusion and Cabinet Member for HR and Corporate Affairs

Reasons for the decision:

Continuing to utilise iTrent and engaging MHR via the GM Framework allows the Council to continue to take advantage of the investment made in this product over recent years as well as the efficiencies available through the GM Framework.

Other options considered and rejected:

The alternative option would be to pursue a full re-tender process. This would take approximately 18 months and require significant additional capacity.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Corporate Affairs and HR is attached.

Councillor Tahir Rafiq, Cabinet Member for Corporate Affairs and HR, presented the Part B report which set out the full financial details.

Decision:

Cabinet:

1.    Approved Bury’s continued use of iTrent for an initial period of three years (August 2027) with the option to extend for a further two (August 2029);

2.    Approved the direct award to MHR through the Greater Manchester Framework; and

3.    Delegate the finalisation of the terms of the direct award to the Director of People and inclusion and Cabinet Member for HR and Corporate Affairs

Reasons for the decision:

Continuing to utilise iTrent and engaging MHR via the GM Framework allows the Council to continue to take advantage of the investment made in this product over recent years as well as the efficiencies available through the GM Framework.

Other options considered and rejected:

The alternative option would be to pursue a full re-tender process. This would take approximately 18 months and require significant additional capacity.