“Hambleton and Richmondshire District Councils have been pursuing shared services and shared Chief Executive and management arrangements. I wanted external, objective challenge on our Project Board and hence invited Yvonne in to fulfil that role – which she did exceptionally well. Although working well with the team, it was clear that Yvonne asked the challenging questions required and identified those areas of risks we needed to tackle. Her 6P model for excellence was used as the Business Appraisal model to ensure that we looked holistically at how we may share services which we found extremely useful. This focused our attention at vital aspects to the whole project such as communications, performance and clear measurable outcomes.”
Chief Executive
Hambleton District Council
Civic Centre, Stone Cross, Hambleton, Northallerton, North Yorkshire, DL6 2UU
Telephone: 0845 1211 555
www.hambleton.gov.uk
“Yvonne
Castle from YCChange delivered our very first joint tenant and staff Value For
Money training session. Our tenants felt they had really benefitted from the
training and they had enjoyed being involved in the exercises and debates.
We were very keen to carry out tenant training to enable our tenants to
effectively scrutinise and challenge us. The quality of the session was
excellent as care had been taken in the preparation to ensure that it was
designed exclusively for Cestria, meaning that staff and tenants could identify
with the content. Yvonne had a relaxed style in the delivery which made
everyone feel at ease and willing to get involved. I would definitely use
YCChange again."
Julie Clarke
Head of Finance
Bowes
Offices,Lambton Estates,Chester-le-Street,DH3 4AN
Telephone: 0191 3851400
www.cestria.org
“Interesting,
now I understand VFM much more”
“Very
effective delivery of the VFM subject matter”
“Informative,
gets people working together across different teams”
“Enjoyed
the session especially reflecting on the work we have completed to date.
It was useful in highlighting where we need to focus as a group”
“Lots
to take in, but found it interesting. Also I was able to have lots of
input”
Value
For Money Training with tenants and staff at
Cestria Community Housing
www.cestria.org
"We were tasked by the Audit Commission to develop a VFM Strategy and Action
Plan. YCChange have been absolutely brilliant to work with. Gill picked up the
task in hand and ran with it ensuring that even when the Council officers
involved changed focus, because of the radical cuts facing the sector, the
strategy was seen through to a successful completion. We would definitely
employ YCChange again and have already made enquiries about an additional piece
of work.
Sharon Thomas
Head
of Development
Middlesbrough Council
Town Hall, Middlesbrough, TS1 2QQ
Telephone: 01642 729601
www.middlesbrough.gov.uk
"Irwell Valley needed to embrace VFM across the organisation and make sure it
drove business decisions and service improvements. Yvonne delivered VFM
training for staff across the whole of the organisation and also for the Board.
She also delivered training for the newly established VFM Tenants Scrutiny
Panel, supporting their development in shaping their role and responsibilities.
There was great feedback on the training through the evaluation process and many
new specific examples of how the learning was to be used across the organisation
to make significant VFM improvements and to quantify the cashable benefits. The
YCChange team was professional and engaging and brought the subject matter to
life, and I would not hesitate to use them again.”
Gordon Davidson
Validus
4 Hillpark Way, Blackhall, Edinburgh, EH4 7SS
Telephone: 0131 312 8100
www.validusconsulting.co.uk
"Di Van Ruitenbeek was a real asset to us. She came to work with
us during a period of significant change as we were exploring shared
services across two councils (Hambleton & Richmondshire). Di led on
developing business cases for a shared procurement service and HR
services. In doing so Di had to work with two other councils who were
also keen to explore the shared services opportunity.
Di did a magnificent job in supporting our staff to understand and
engage with the process. She carried out thorough reviews and following
extensive analysis, presented a range of options to us. Di was able to
articulate the best way forward and enabled us to reach robust
decisions quickly. She did all of this professionally and
comprehensively. Di went beyond our initial project requirements. She
was able to work with the senior management team in both councils,
supporting us through the changes and identifying ways we could
strengthen our approach. This was, and is, very much appreciated and we
now look forward to working with Di on a further project around the
senior team. I would not hesitate in working with Di again."
Liz Smith
Deputy Chief Executive (Policy, Strategy and Transformation)
Hambleton & Richmondshire District Councils
Swale House, Frenchgate, Richmond, North Yorkshire
Telephone: 01748 827003
www.richmondshire.gov.uk
