New era for council services in Great Yarmouth

The move sees a joint venture between Great Yarmouth Borough Council and Norse Commercial Services - which has been running since 2003 - replaced by what is known as a Local Authority Trading Company called Great Yarmouth Services Limited Ltd (GYS).

GYS will be responsible for a number of services the council provides, including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, public toilet cleaning and maintenance, buildings cleaning, grounds maintenance services, vehicle maintenance, arboriculture, leisure, burial services and pest control.

Chris Silverwood, GYS managing director, said: ''We have been working hard over the past 12 months to  make sure the transition to the new company was completed smoothly and  seamless for people in the borough.

''Residents will not notice any disruption and we are optimistic the move gives us the opportunity to improve the quality of the services we provide for people.''

GYS is wholly owned by the council and staff have transferred from the previous business into the new company which was created after the council took a decision in December 2021 not to renew its existing arrangements with Norse.

The transfer of staff involved detailed consultation over the past few months with employees and trade unions. And, in agreement with unions, all terms and conditions of employment are protected at the point of transfer and existing rates of pay, sick pay, annual leave and continuity of service all continue and will be subject to a review within the first six months of operation, existing pension membership for all staff continues.

Mr Silverwood said: ''The new branding for the company has been rolled out on vehicles, uniform and all staff issued with new uniform, while existing unbranded PPE equipment is being re-used and the Great Yarmouth Borough Services/Norse branded uniforms will be sent for recycling.

''We are excited by the move because the opportunity to redesign the services we offer gives us a better opportunity to improve efficiency and improve service quality for our residents."