Fallen Stock Scheme to use Ian Potter Associates for admin tasks
The National Fallen Stock Company is to privatize its administration and web-based services in a bid to realize savings of about £150,000-a-year for its farmer-members in England and Wales. The savings will be passed back to members through lower membership fees.
The decision to out-source these duties was made following a review of National Fallen Stock Scheme and the Company’s operations by independent consultant Bob Bansback who indicated that significant savings could be made by moving these roles to the private sector.
Following a tendering process run earlier this year Ian Potter Associates was appointed to and will assume responsibility from 1 April 2008. Transition to the new arrangements will commence on 1 January 2008 and is expected to take three months.
Currently the IT and admin needs of the NFSCo are performed by the Rural Payments Agency. In a hint to the scale of the inefficiency of the RPA NFSCo chairman Michael Seals said the potential benefits amounted to more than just cost savings.
The benefits
“The new arrangement will reduce staffing levels, improve productivity, provide a better service to farmers and collectors and deliver significant cost savings,” said Mr Seals.
“It is a logical move for NFSCo to team up with a firm who understand livestock farmers. Ian Potter Associates excels at dealing with farmers, and we believe we have picked the best partner to take NFSCo and the NFSS forward.”
Mr Seals cites the fall in membership fee from £28 a year to £18, this December, as evidence of the firm’s commitment to reducing the cost of disposing of fallen stock. The new rate will be applicable on renewing membership.
Under the new arrangement Ian Potter Associates will recruit and manage the staff to run the scheme. NFSCo will continue to be chaired by Mr Seals and managed by general manager, Jason King, with the office and staff managed by Joanne Sowter, of Ian Potter Associates.
And what of Mr Potter?
Ian Potter himself will have a role in sourcing the new IT equipment and staff training during the transition period from 1 January to 31 March, and thereafter in monitoring performance and as an interface between Ian Potter Associates and NFSCo.
He will not, however, be involved on a day-to-day basis and will continue to run his quota and entitlement trading business.
On being awarded the contract Mr Potter said: “It is a very good fit with our existing business. The IT equipment for NFSCo is basically the same as we use for IPA and the people skills are similar too. We will bring the same standards of service we have established on quota, to dealing with fallen stock.”
Mr Seals added: “We are conscious that the livestock sector cannot afford to bear heavy costs for fallen stock, and the unnecessary hassle and bureaucracy that can go with it.”
“NFSCo is continuing to work to reduce these. We also recognize that farmers want both a quality service and flexibility to deliver new schemes in the future. Those are the prime reasons we moved away from the RPA to the private sector.”
The new arrangements will not affect the way farmers deal with fallen stock, and the telephone, fax number, email address and website for NFSCo will all stay the same. Recruiting for the new positions has started.