Third city council firm under review
A THIRD city council company’s future is in doubt.
Nottingham Revenue and Benefits is fully owned by Nottingham City Council, and has just under 200 employees.
The latest accounts, for the year ending March 2020, show a moderate profit of just over £350,000, and pension liabilities of just over £10 million.
The move comes after Government Inspector Max Caller told the council that it needed to look into its portfolio of companies, and decide whether some should be sold or brought in-house.
The firm was set up as part of a seven-year contract – now in its final year – with Northgate Public Services (NPS), in which NPS provides the revenue and benefits service for Nottingham residents, with delivery subcontracted to NRB.
Now NRB will be the subject of a “strategic review”. This is after a strategic review of Robin Hood Energy which resulted in the firm’s customer base being sold.
A review is also ongoing into Enviroenergy, which needs a £300 million investment over the next 30 years.
The action is part of the council’s response to the highly critical public interest report into its handling of Robin Hood Energy.
The response, due to be discussed next week, states: “As part of the council’s response to the broader question of council-owned companies raised under Nottingham City Council’s own recommendation and reiterated by the non-statutory rapid review, Nottingham Revenue and Benefits has been identified as a priority for a strategic review in 2021.”
This does not necessarily mean the company will be closed or sold – the review could recommend that it remains operating.
The latest response to the recommendations in the public interest report, and the Max Caller review is due to be approved on January 29.
Council leader Councillor David Mellen, said: “As part of our response to the rapid review, we have committed to its recommendation to take a thorough look at the companies we own to see if anything needs to change in the way they are set up and run.
“These efforts are part of our actions to establish a stable financial footing for the council over the next three years and beyond. We have a clear plan in place to do this and we remain determined and confident in our organisation’s capacity and capability to change.”