The new Public Realm contract is the first really big contract that Brent has had with the Social Value Act in place. I have expressed concerns before about how Brent Council can reconcile the need for financial savings, service performance and the desire for greater "social value" than before.
Despite my skepticism, I have to admit, that the new contract does do a good job of improving environmental outcomes, and goes some way to help economic outcomes by providing apprenticeships and the possibility of the London Living Wage. However, those who see Councils as just a pool of employment are likely to be disappointed as the greater efficiency which is inescapable in the current financial circumstances makes Spanish practices impossible even if they were desirable.
It is also worth noting that the area of greatest difficulty in terms of low pay and lack of career progression is in adult social care contracts, and there seems next to no possibility of there being improvement there.
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