Buckinghamshire County Council Devolved Services
Expert Support Provider List
Introduction
The County Council have established a list of individuals and organisations to provide facilitation and business
planning support to both individual parishes and clusters of parishes to support them in considering the Council’s
offer to take on devolved urban transport services. The providers are taken from the New Futures provider list,
and also include local organisations who have a specific remit to support parish councils or community and
voluntary sector groups. Support is available for:


Up to 5 days facilitation and business support per cluster (the scope to be worked up with the cluster) to help
them build the cluster, develop their delivery model, identify and plan to address weaknesses, governance
and business plan
Half a day facilitation for individual parishes to help them think through the pros and cons of the proposal,
whether they want to opt in and next steps
This support is offered free to towns and parishes. Parishes will select who they wish to work with from the
provider list. This support will be available to parishes until December 2015. In addition, parishes could use some
of the pump priming which BCC is making available to each parish or their own resources to purchase further
support if they wish.
Parishes and clusters will need to register with BCC which individual provider they wish to use, for how many days
or part thereof and to agree for what purpose. We will place a purchase order with the provider and pay the
provider upon invoice and confirmation from the parish/parish cluster that the work had been delivered as
agreed.
The kinds of work involved may include governance and legal structure of a cluster, managing formal and informal
relationships, options for delivery models, managing complaints and resident queries, human resources, business
planning, performance managing, financial administration or volunteer management.
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Contents
Organisation
Page

Artefii Ltd

Buckinghamshire & Milton Keynes Association of Local Councils

Collaborent

Community Impact Bucks

Enchanted Marketing

Gazella HR Ltd

Green Apple Consulting Ltd

New Meaning

North Harbour Consulting

Stephen Low
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Providers
Company
Artefii Ltd
Stephen Huggett
Director
Description of
services
Approved Provider
Support Packages
offered
Contact Details
Stephen@artefii.com
www.artefii.com
01993 882990
Artefii’s mission is to maximize the potential of small and medium sized commercial and not for profit organizations.
Combining our cross-sector experience from the commercial, public and not-for profit sectors, we can help not-for profit organisations develop the
right skills and tools to rethink and develop their strategies for effective working, helping them reach their target audiences with the right messages
and services.
Finance and Income Generation
Strategy and Planning
Financial management
Business planning
Trading and selling services
Change management
Fundraising
Community engagement & development
Bid writing/grants
Project management
Other – Finance advice and support
Project costing
Service user involvement
Strategic foresight
Strategic planning
Other - Managing contractors
Additional information
I qualified as a chartered accountant in 1982 and from 1984 to 1987 I worked for the Audit Commission which was the auditing body for local authorities in England and Wales.
While at the Audit Commission I participated in the audits of London Boroughs, Districts and Parish Councils and worked on Value for Money studies in a variety of areas of
local government spending. Between 1987 and 1995 I worked in the consultancy team at Hacker Young, a medium sized firm of chartered accountants, where I worked for
several public sector clients including central government departments, before joining the Civil Service.
Since I was made redundant I have worked on my own account doing business planning and project management assignments. Since 2010 I have also volunteered through a
panel run by Community Impact Bucks carrying out business planning and financial planning assignments for a number of local organisations including charities, voluntary
organisations and the community gardening team at CIB.
I enjoy working with local organisations with whom I can make a difference for local communities. I am a careful and patient listener and my approach is to spend time with a
client to understand their objectives and their constraints before working with them to produce something which is relevant to their situation and useful in their work,
whether that is a document, or a plan, or a series of meetings as is appropriate to that client’s needs at that time. I am keen to have recurring contact with clients to help with
the development of a project and to revise documents and plans as appropriate while a project is developing and changing.
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Company
Buckinghamshire &
Milton Keynes
Association of Local
Councils
Description of
services
Contact Details
balc@bucksalc.gov.uk
01296 383154
BMKALC is one of 43 County Associations representing the interests of 9,500 Local Councils in England and Wales. We serve Town, Parish and
Community Councils as well as Parish meetings throughout the whole of the County including Milton Keynes providing support and guidance for
Clerks and Councillors.
Additional Information:
BMKALC has the governance, legal advice and business planning skills to provide clusters and parishes with the tools and techniques in order to capitalise business, logistical
and communication skills, to equip the parishes with the capability to proceed with the BCC devolution offer.
BMKALC can provide advice on the legislative powers, planning, governance and in particular engagement with elected members which is critical. Knowledge and contacts
throughout all levels of the County Council are on limits, knowledge at regional and national level through Ministerial meetings is ongoing as is the ability to implement a
communications strategy and effective contacts to look at legislation to enhance this initiative and thus more powers, given the National Government is placing the
voluntary sector and in particular Parishes right at the heart of delivering on the “Big Society” agenda. “
Carole Burslem: From 2011-present Clerk to Medmenham Parish Council and Councillor, Downley Parish Council. April 2011 – present Parish Council Adviser, specifically
advising and guiding Parishes in day to day procedural matters. Leading on training. Holds the section 7 General Power of Competence Training from the SLCC and
completed the CiLCA course with portfolio to submit. Leads on parish Clerk CiLCA training with the SLCC and is approved to train.
John Gibbs – July 2010-present. CEO at BMKALC responsible for staff supervision and overall responsibility for office function, operations, treasurer and external
partnerships. Responsible for marketing, web site, income generation, member relations and recruitment, recruiting seven new members. Chartered Marketer.
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Company
Contact Details
Collaborent
Grant Heywood
grant@collaborent.co.uk
www.collaborent.co.uk
Description of
services
Collaborent works with charities, businesses, social enterprises, public and educational bodies to open up and facilitate new opportunities that
develop their organisations, people and services through creative and powerful cross sector collaborations.
Grant Hayward has extensive senior level experience in the private sector, combined with more recent work in the voluntary sector; Collaborent has
developed a clear understanding of the needs of each, and the ability to recognize and create mutually beneficial partnerships.
Working in the areas of responsible business and social business/social enterprise, Collaborent also has experience and expertise supporting and
encouraging charities and social enterprises to understand the value of what they have to offer, and develop this into valuable services.
Services include consultancy, training and facilitated workshops, as well as providing valuable signposting and introductions to a well-developed and
diverse network.
Finance & income generation
Trading and selling services
Fundraising
Bid writing/grants
Other:
• How to build relationships with the private sector
• How to recognise the value of your services and develop them to generate income.
Approved Provider
Support Packages
offered
Additional Information:
Founder and director, Grant Hayward, developed a career in the private sector over 30 years in various roles up to board level with a national trading company. Extensive
experience has been gained in all areas of business, specializing in business development and operations, with responsibility for budgets of up to £50m and the direction and
development of large teams.
This included the development of strategic plans as part of the board, along with regular analysis and management of financial performance and planning. Operating in a
mature and competitive market necessitated constant evolution and significant periods of managing change.
Following a subsequent change in direction seeking more personal fulfilment, work in the voluntary sector for CVS’s in Oxfordshire and Wiltshire, fired up a passion and
expertise for creating and developing mutually beneficial collaborations across sectors. This includes work to help charities understand and develop a more commercial
offering and work supporting and encouraging social enterprise.
Contracts are currently being delivered successfully for Oxfordshire County Council and Oxfordshire LEP, including a current role as “Network Navigator” for Social Enterprise,
supporting and encouraging the development of it across Oxfordshire.
A deep understanding has been gained of the differences between the sectors, but importantly, the opportunity for organisations from each to develop an understanding of
the ways in which they can work together for mutual benefit. As less funding is available from the public sector, requiring charities and community groups to develop new,
more effective and creative ways to generate income, these skills and experience has been honed to help organisations enable this.
Services include consultancy, training and facilitated workshops, as well as providing valuable signposting and introductions to a well-developed and diverse network.
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Company
Contact Details
Community Impact
Bucks
info@communityimpactbucks.org.uk
Description of
services
Community Impact Bucks can support parishes through the stages to decide, whether or how to take on devolved services, how they could work
with others, and who those partners could be to increase viability and reduce risk and to support the group or cluster to decide the structure,
delivery model and legal requirements necessary.
Additional Information:
We can offer: Support sessions and action planning with parishes to help them explore what devolved services they are interested in and develop an action plan for steps they need to
take in order to investigate and take these services on. This would be facilitated by one of our Community Development Workers Carol Nutkins or Suzie Devanney or Ian
Hopper, Service Manager – Communities.
 Support session and action planning with groups that have already decided what developed services they want to deliver and need help to set up a legal entity, and put a
governance framework and business plans in place to do this. This would be facilitated by Sara Greenwood, Sustainability Manager – Governance and Funding.
 To facilitate workshops with groups of parishes who are considering working as a cluster to take on services. Ian Hopper, Service Manager – Communities.
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Company
Enchanted
Marketing
Tina Marshall
Director
Description of
services
Contact Details
Type of Organisation
tina.marshall@enchantedmarketing.co.uk
www.enchantedmarketing.co.uk
07810 352446
Freelance Marketing Consultancy
Enchanted Marketing operates with integrity, honesty, and a scope that has been discussed and agreed in advance. Our client’s desired outcome
becomes our desired outcome, as we become an extended member of your team.
Marketing is a process. Enchanted Marketing works with clients to bring the fundamentals and basics of marketing back to life. The launch of a
product, service or business requires a full situational analysis, including the market, competitors, customers and of course, your business and
product. Time well spent here, will allow you to really get to know your customers, thus enabling you to talk and communicate with them in the
language needed to enchant them.
Approved Provider
Support Packages
offered
I have over 15 years experience within the marketing sector with skills and experience ranging from a Product Manager to a Global Marketing
Manager. This has given me strategic insight and the ability to manage a very diverse crowd. I have also worked for smaller companies with no
marketing
Strategy and Planning
Marketing and Communications Governance and Legal Structures Marketing and Communications
Community engagement & Marketing and Communications
Contracts
Communications/marketing strategies
development
Communications/marketing
Governance review
Copywriting
Project management
strategies
Governance documents and Data protection
Strategic foresight
Copywriting
structures
Intellectual property
Strategic planning
Event management
Intellectual property
Design and print
Website development (content Recruiting
and
developing Event management
only)
trustees
Market research
Writing and editing
Setting up an organization
Membership schemes
Setting up a trading arm
Press/public relations
Other Charity and company set Social media
up
Website development (content only)
Recruitment of patrons
Writing and editing
Other Building in Evaluation
Website structures
Communicating for Equality and Diversity
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Company
Gazella HR Ltd
Roger Davies
Description of
services
Contact Details
Type of Organisation
roger@gazellahr.co.uk
http://www.gazellahr.co.uk
01865-339411
07813-994556
HR Consultancy
We deliver and coach people-focused HR into small-to-medium sized businesses and organisations in a way that meets your needs whilst respecting
the rights and requirements of the individuals, the organisation and the stakeholders.
We work in all areas of HR, from handbooks and contracts through to helping organisations to put in place the building blocks for growth and
change. Our aim is to help charities and voluntary organisations to move through each phase of their development with the right employees,
volunteers and trustees in place who are doing the right things. We help leaders to minimize the impact of change and release employees’ and
volunteers’ energy and enthusiasm for the journey ahead, protecting your people, your organisation and your brand. We’ll talk straightforward HR,
not HR for HR's sake.
Strategy and Planning
People, HR and Employment
Approved Provider
Change management
Conflict management
Support Packages
Project management
Employment law overview
offered
Equality and diversity policy and practice
HR Benchmarking
HR mediation
HR strategies/processes
Leadership development
Staff and volunteer surveys
Staff recruitment, management & dev
Safeguarding
Vol recruitment, management & dev
HR and procurement (TUPE)
Additional Information
I can bring practical and pragmatic advice and experience in all areas of human resources and employment law. I have a good understanding of local Government, having
worked directly, for example, with District and County Council teams during the transition of a local museum from District Council to standalone charitable Trust status, and
more recently engagement with Central Government and Civil Service on a large Government contract.
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Company
Green Apple
Consulting Ltd
Huseyin Djemil –
FCMI, AIC
Director
Contact Details
hdjemil@greenappleconsultingltd.co.uk
www.greenappleconsultingltd.co.uk
07815 726471
07815 726471
Description of
services
Green Apple Consulting aims to simplify the complex, do simple things properly, and add real value to the people & organisations we work with.
Both Green Apple Consulting and its director Huseyin Djemil have an excellent reputation for delivery against a wide variety of projects and in a
broad range of settings.
Green Apple Consulting Ltd is a specialist substance misuse consultancy working mainly in the UK criminal justice & drug treatment sectors. We
develop a bespoke response to client need and use good practice from among our network of contacts available to us. We work with charities, social
enterprises, commissioning bodies and private companies; our services include:
Strategic assessment and planning, drafting and developing service specifications, tender writing, management & evaluation, operational planning and
implementation, interim management, individual service and process reviews, contract and performance management, mentoring and coaching of key
managers, research and business development.
Finance and Income Generation
Strategy and Planning
Governance and Legal Performance
Approved Provider Procurement and public service delivery
Business planning
Structures
Improving
organisation’s
Support Packages
Bid writing/grants
Change management
Governance review
effectiveness
offered
Community engagement & development Governance
documents Monitoring and evaluation
Project management
and structures
Performance Benchmarking
Project costing
Quality
Service user involvement
Defining organisation’s VfM
Strategic foresight
Strategic planning
People, HR and Employment
Marketing and Communications
New ways of working
Conflict management
Copywriting
Collaboration
Leadership development
Social media
Procurement
Staff recruitment, management & dev
Website development (content only)
Public services/bidding for
Vol recruitment, management & dev
Writing and editing
contracts
Additional information
Green Apple Consulting Ltd is a small consultancy with a simple aim i.e., “improving the condition of our clients, and therefore improving the lives of the people around
them”. We do this by listening to what you need, planning a simple course of action, reviewing those plans with you and then implementing the agreed plan.
Our process is collaborative meaning that we work with you to develop the skills, competency and resilience you need after we’ve gone. We also provide a degree of
challenge to ensure the best and simplest version of the ideas we help generate make it through to action.
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Company
New Meaning
David Letts
Contact Details
david.lett@newmeaning.co.uk
Description of
services
New Meaning is a growing social enterprise consultancy and a pioneer in attitudinal development, community enterprise and social innovation. Our
aim is to enable:
 People to take the initiative in shaping meaningful lives and earning their own living
 Communities to grow from strength to strength by working together to develop community assets
 Organisations to shape meaningful (fulfilling and successful) places to work
 New social enterprise businesses to develop tomorrow's social action pioneers
Additional Information:
• I have already developed, deployed and are maintaining a devolved in scheme in Stewkley, delivered by a social enterprise I established
• I managed a cluster project that has resulted in 5 Parish Councils agreeing to work together to deliver a common devolved services agreement with BCC - this has been
pioneer project for BCC
• The Stewkley Enterprise Agency project has been accepted on to the DCLG Our Place programme and a national role model for localism, co-production and communities
working together at a local level to manage local service needs
• I am working with Manchester University who are willing to help in the development of Social Return on Investment capture tools and also Cost Benefit Analysis
frameworks.
• I have provided a toolkit that other Parishes will be able to reference when shaping their own devolved service plans (this is based on the Stewkley model)
• I have worked with over 12 town and parish councils over the last five years and each of the projects focused on creating social enterprise vehicles to manage/maintain
community assets
• I have direct experience of:
o Work scheduling and budgeting
o Training programmes and health & safety risk assessments
o Hiring the appropriate people
o Managing a workforce and work plan
o Parish Council and Community liaison work
o Tracking the Social Return and Cost Benefit Analysis
o Procuring assets
o Creating required processes, policies and systems
o Identifying required assets and purchasing them
o Quality assurance and customer feedback
o Social media approaches and benefits
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Company
Contact Details
North Harbour
Consulting
John A D Palmer
johnpalmer@northharbourconsulting.co.uk
www.northharbourconsulting.co.uk
02392 386 951
07967 023 005
Description of
North Harbour Consulting works with voluntary organisations and their public sector partners on social research, service development, business
services
planning and change management.
North Harbour Consulting provides services for the voluntary and community sector and its public sector partners. We adopt a collaborative
approach, working alongside our clients to help them develop their organisations and meet their communities’ needs. Our services can be delivered
in a number of different ways: social research; service reviews and organisation health checks; strategic planning; modernisation/diversification of
services; community engagement and diversity; developing partnerships and consortia; due diligence and mergers; business plans and change
management; confidential investigations.
Strategy and Planning
New Ways of working
Research & Evidence Gathering
Approved Provider
Business planning
Collaboration
Research methods
Support Packages
Change management
Merger
Conducting research
offered
Community engagement & development Consortia
Presenting research
Project management
Procurement
Report writing
Project costing
Public services / bidding for contracts
Other: questionnaire design, interviewing techniques etc
Service user involvement
Shared services
Strategic foresight
Other: Due diligence
Strategic planning
Other: Option appraisal
Additional information:
John Palmer has a varied background in local government, academic institution, government agency, housing associations and consultancy. Since 1996, he has worked as
principal consultant and managing director for North Harbour Consulting. North Harbour Consulting specialises in three main areas of work: social research; strategic
policy, commissioning and service development; and management consultancy. The company has completed more than 170 commissions (see
www.northharbourconsulting.co.uk).
John has worked with town and parish councils in a number of contexts: as a team leader in Hampshire planning department; in the course of a commission from the Isle of
Wight Local Strategic Partnership and the Rural Community Council to develop a community engagement statement and toolkit in which town and parish councils were
actively involved; and as lead consultant in the Home Office ChangeUp programme where he mapped community and voluntary sector organisations, carried out surveys of
front line groups’ support needs, and developed business plans for service development in collaboration with local authorities, town and parish councils, CVSs, RCCs and
front line groups in Oxfordshire, Surrey and the Isle of Wight. John has extensive experience of working with organisations that have responsibilities for or wish to develop
new services in fields such as community centres, information and advice, community transport, sport and leisure, facilities management, shared back-office services and
group buying clubs. These commissions included writing service specifications, option appraisals, business plans, budgets and tender packs.
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Company
Contact Details
Stephen Low
Consultant
stephen.jc.low@gmail.com
Description of
services
I retired early from the senior civil service having previously worked in a range of accountancy roles. I now work with clients to help them
improve their business and better achieve their aims, particularly where they are in the voluntary or charity sector.
My areas of work include:
 business planning including analysis of the current position of an organization; deriving or reviewing strategic plans; identifying gaps between
plans and reality; illuminating where change is needed and designing programmes of change; creating action plans, timetables and reports and
other documentation as appropriate.
 Writing business plans, tailored to appropriate audiences and purposes. Preparing financial projections as necessary.
 Project management.
 Working closely with Trustees, managers, employees, volunteers and stakeholders to engage all those involved with the organization, supporting
and helping them to participate fully in the business planning including leading workshops; conducting interviews with internal and external
stakeholders; analysis and reporting.
Finance & Income Generation
Strategy & Planning
Governance & Legal Structures
Financial management
Business planning
Contracts
Asset managament
Change management
Governance review
Procurement & public service delivery
Community engagement and development
Governance documents and
Trading & selling services
Project management
structures
Fundraising
Project costing
Setting up a trading arm to sell services,
Bid writing/grants
Service user involvement
or products
Strategic foresight
Strategic planning
Performance
Research & evidence gathering
Improving your organisation’s effectiveness
Research methods
Monitoring and evaluation
Conducting research
Performance Benchmarking
Presenting research
Quality
Report writing/incorporating it into business planning
Defining your organisation’s value for money
and strategy
Approved Provider
Support Packages
offered
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