Message from Duncan Whitfield
Southwark - Investing For The Future
“Over recent months, Southwark has been undertaking a fundamental review of the finance structure. We have been building on strengths and developing new capacity in the finance team to help steer the Council through some of the biggest financial challenges and opportunities in local government.
We have recruited to more than 30 positions at all levels. We have enhanced our audit, risk and governance functions, created new resources to support major projects and entirely reconfigured our procurement team. We have significantly reduced our reliance on agency provision and enhanced our trainee programmes through both CIPFA and AAT. We have created a more robust establishment where we can grow and develop our own staff with confidence in their commitment, ability and responsiveness to what is a rapidly changing environment.
We are now into the second wave of recruitment under the leadership of our new Chief Executive – Annie Shepperd. In particular, we will be realigning our procurement function and creating new structures to support the Children’s Trust and the recently combined Environment and Housing departments.
We will be working ever more closely with our service managers. Not only will we be supporting major regeneration projects and our vast capital programme, we also have critical services to deliver. This will be under increasing scrutiny at what will be an exciting and demanding time for all in Local Government finance.
More widely, the transformation of Southwark over the past 10 years has been remarkable. The river front has been given a new lease of life. The Globe, Tate Modern and Borough Market in particular have attracted essential private finance into the area.
Further south, estates like the North Peckham - once synonymous with crime and decay - have been replaced with a mixture of social and private housing, improved education facilities and work and training opportunities. Challenges remain, but the direction of travel remains ambitious and rewarding.
Elsewhere in Southwark, the Elephant and Castle regeneration scheme is one of the largest and most complex in Europe. In the next few years, the neighbouring Heygate Estate and the Elephant shopping centre will be demolished. It will be replaced by a new town centre, more than 5,000 new homes, new shops, open spaces and landmark buildings, a tram route and a new civic heart for Southwark. Over the coming months, our development partner will be selected and the work will start in earnest.
Work around Bermondsey Spa is bringing new energy and purpose to this area. Southwark is also leading an exciting regeneration programme at Canada Water that will deliver a major new centre for the Rotherhithe Peninsula. This will include a state of the art cultural facility due to be opened in 2010.
Working in partnership with government, the Council is poised to embark on the process of procuring a Local Education Partnership (LEP) involving the biggest single investment in school buildings for more than 50 years. This will involve investment in excess of £200m.
Waste management in the borough is going to be transformed as a result of the Council’s £500m+ PFI project for a waste treatment and recycling centre, a contract due to start in Autumn 2007.
Southwark Council is leading the management of land, property and other developments amounting to billions of pounds. At the same time it manages essential front line services turning over more than £1.2bn a year. The scale of the task and the opportunities presented are enormous.
To be part of the finance team delivering these services and projects presents a unique opportunity to us all. For my part, I feel honoured to be part of this story in such an open and diverse environment. The Southwark experience is exhilarating, fulfilling and professionally rewarding. I hope that you are as inspired by the idea of working with us and will take this opportunity to join me and my colleagues as we continue on a remarkable journey.”
Visit the home page of the site and select a department to join us.
Duncan Whitfield
Finance Director
- Delivering Real Change tells the story of Southwark Council in recent years – our achievements as well as some of the challenges we still have to meet.
