NEWPORT City Council will push ahead with plans to set up a property services company later this year, when an 11-year partnership with the Norse Group ends.
The two organisations set up the Newport Norse joint venture in 2014, with responsibilities including building maintenance and estates management.
An initial 10-year agreement was later extended, and will expire on December 31 this year – with the council now keen to take property services into its own hands.
Cabinet members met on Wednesday to endorse proposals to set up a local authority trading company (LATCo), which will be wholly-owned by Newport City Council.
The Norse Group, by comparison, is a LATCo owned by Norfolk County Council, and is reportedly the nation’s largest such company, providing services across Great Britain.
At the meeting, Cllr Rhian Howells, the cabinet member for assets, praised the “successful collaboration” within the Newport Norse joint venture, but told colleagues there was a need for change.
Council leader Cllr Dimitri Batrouni and chief executive Beverly Owen also expressed thanks to the Newport Norse team for the partnership.
Cllr Batrouni said the proposed change “is about updating the model in the face of new times and new challenges”, and is “not a reflection on its staff”.
“We hope to continue working with you in the coming years on some major projects”, he said of the Norse Group.
Ms Owen added the council would “look forward to a bright future working under the new arrangements”.
As part of the cabinet’s approval of the project, the council will loan the new LATCo up to £3 million for “initial operating costs” and will also spend a further £597,000 of its reserve funds on “one-off transition costs”.
