LGSS Law to expand after deal is struck with Northampton

The legal arm of LGSS – the shared service between Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire county councils – is set to expand as part of a wider deal approved this week with Northampton Borough Council.

The borough council passed a resolution at a special meeting on Monday (13 May) agreeing to entering a partnership with LGSS for the following services:

• Legal;
• Procurement;
• ICT;
• Finance;
• Human resources and Organisational Development;
• Revenues and Benefits.

The move will see the TUPE transfer of 230 Northampton BC staff to LGSS. This includes a legal team of 15 FTEs (full-time equivalents), of which 12 are fee-earning staff.

LGSS Law will have close to 100 FTEs as a result of the partnership agreement.

The shared service with Northampton will be established under the auspices of the LGSS Joint Committee.

Quentin Baker, Director of Legal Services at LGSS Law, said: “This latest new partnership arrangement between LGSS and NBC is another step in the development of LGSS and brings with it a group of staff who are highly experienced in the operation of councils at the district level. This further enhances the LGSS offering and its ability to deliver efficiencies through scale.

“In LGSS Law we are really pleased to be welcoming a new team of lawyers and we're very excited about working with NBC client officers going forward.”

Baker said he expected the team would physically relocate to LGSS offices in mid July.