In the first three months of the year, the Local Democracy Reporting Service has found a total of 65 companies have been paid at least £1m by the Edinburgh Council.
Data obtained through Freedom of information legislation shows that the firms took in £198.4m in total, a significant portion of the council’s more than £342.6m outside spend in that period.
The council’s finance convener said all local authorities use contractors, and are secured through ‘robust procurement processes and frameworks.’
She added that the council aims to provide best value to the city when procuring contracted services, while prioritising local businesses, fair work values and sustainable processes where possible.
Contracting outside companies for various tasks is a normal practice for local authorities across the UK.
Most of the 65 firms are involved in construction, information technology, health and social care and housing.
1. McLaughlin & Harvey Construction Limited – £14m
The Belfast-based construction firm received £14,023,406 from the council in the first three months of this year.
It has been contracted by the council to build and renovate a number of schools in the past, including the new Wester Hailes high school and works at Trinity Academy.
It has also contributed to the £1.3bn renovation of the Granton waterfront, including the landmark Gasholder park in the development.
2. CGI IT UK Ltd – £10m
Edinburgh Council has partnered with the Canadian multinational, which delivers most of the city’s IT infrastructure, since 2015.
In the first three months of this year, the council paid £10,049,791 for its services.
The partnership had a rocky start, with rollout of parts of the council’s IT system being delayed by 18 months as of summer 2017.
In addition, at the time, the council faced a ‘critical’ failure, such as an outage of email service, occurring once a week, and promised £6m/year savings were not being achieved.
But the contractor’s services have become more reliable with time, with the council agreeing to a contract extension in 2020.
3. CCG Scotland Ltd – £9.8m
The Glasgow-based construction firm has partnered with the council for a number of years on various projects, and drew in £9,771,528 in the first three months of this year.
It has recently done work on the Granton Waterfront redevelopment, and is also working on several housing developments for the city.
The firm recently joined a £350m housebuilding framework launched by the council, as part of the city’s effort to build large numbers of new housing units.
4. Axiom Education Edinburgh Ltd – £8.8m
Some £8,579,155 went to the body in the first three months of the year, which makes up the private part of a public-private partnership (PPP) between it and the council.
It won a contract in 2007 to build, maintain and manage eight city schools, in exchange for ongoing payments from the council to the body.
Axiom Education Edinburgh is made up of a number of private companies who are involved in upholding the schools contract.
5. C-Urb 6 Ltd PSL – £7.7m
The Edinburgh-based firm provides housing for homeless people on behalf of the council, with C-Urb 6 providing housing and the city paying the rents.
It took in £7,766,064 in the first three months of this year. The firm acts as a letting agent, and manages private properties which the council places tenants in.
Landlords working with the firm get the benefit of having consistent rent guaranteed for a period of time when they start working with the firm.
6. Balfour Beatty Construction Limited – £7.7m
The London-based multinational is involved in projects all over the world, and has a long history of working with Edinburgh Council in various forms.
In the first three months of this year, it took in £7,682,513 for its construction operations.
It is heavily involved with the ongoing renovation of North Bridge, which has seen delays and cost overruns as the extent of the works needed on the structure became clear.
Edinburgh Council’s leader announced late last month that the bridge would be fully open sometime this month, in time for the summer festivals.
It has also been involved in a range of other projects recently, including the ongoing City Centre to West End Link active travel project and the new Liberton High School.
Finance convener and Labour councillor Mandy Watt said: “Like all local and national government bodies, we rely on contractors to help deliver essential projects and services to the people of Edinburgh.
“These contracts are secured through robust procurement processes and frameworks, and our Sustainable Procurement Strategy aims to deliver best value to the city while prioritising fair work values, sustainable practices, and local businesses where possible.”
Local governments in Scotland do not have the ability to carry out a number of practices in-house, such as housebuilding or IT management.
Much like companies, they instead contract for areas of work they can’t complete themselves.
Repetition in the list below is due to some firms running multiple different entities they control, which is done for a variety of legitimate reasons.
Full list of payments recipients
McLaughlin & Harvey Construction Limited: 14,023,406.13
CGI IT UK Ltd: 10,049,791.58
CCG Scotland Ltd: 9,771,528.20
Axiom Education Edinburgh Ltd: 8,579,155.49
C-Urb 6 Ltd PSL: 7,766,064.34
Balfour Beatty Construction Limited: 7,682,513.89
Allpay Limited – Pre Paid Card: 7,447,437.83
The Edinburgh Schools Partnership Ltd: 7,125,695.73
Pertemps Recruitment Partnership Limited: 5,706,537.35
Hillcrest Homes: 5,527,222.84
Harmony Fire Limited: 4,714,889.33
FCC (E&M) Limited: 4,528,806.31
My Homecare Edinburgh: 4,183,501.73
Cameron Guest House Group: 3,890,565.59
Call In Homecare Ltd: 3,746,194.98
Wheatley Homes East Limited: 3,650,858.87
Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering Ltd: 3,611,205.28
Leonard Cheshire Services CIC: 3,478,718.25
Marston Holdings Limited: 3,100,865.25
The Action Group: 3,052,537.69
Home in Scotland Ltd: 3,031,617.25
Skanska Construction UK Limited: 2,917,029.24
Edinburgh Leisure: 2,859,034.81
Graham Construction t/a: 2,783,237.79
Totalenergies Gas & Power Limited: 2,714,110.19
Cruden Building (Scotland) Limited: 2,576,432.01
Pinsent Masons LLP: 2,503,685.87
Cardo (Scotland) Limited: 2,497,731.85
Morrison Construction: 2,463,868.25
Capital Theatres: 2,406,037.23
Sanctuary Scotland Housing Association Limited: 2,283,755.45
Building Finishing Services UK Ltd: 2,252,062.56
Capital City Partnership Ltd: 2,181,539.94
Mitie Technical Facilities Management Ltd: 1,821,697.96
Drummond Grange: 1,803,099.84
C-Urb 6 Ltd: 1,745,071.55
Robertson Partnership Homes Limited: 1,739,512.91
AtkinsRealis PPS Limited: 1,726,445.52
Autism Initiatives UK: 1,681,197.61
Carr Gomm Scotland Ltd: 1,618,103.35
The Thistle Foundation (ISF Payments Only): 1,612,802.81
Richmond Fellowship Scotland: 1,581,907.57
Voyage 1 Limited: 1,459,926.53
Castle Rock Edinvar Housing Association Ltd: 1,393,271.24
Victoria Manor: 1,387,914.57
CF Services Ltd: 1,325,545.16
Henry Brothers Limited: 1,273,407.94
Ark Housing Association Ltd: 1,270,644.47
James Gillespies Campus Subhub Ltd: 1,262,047.54
Centennial Property Ltd: 1,235,851.48
Sysco GB Limited: 1,232,896.86
Care Support Scotland Ltd: 1,230,319.68
Easylet Scotland Ltd: 1,228,721.70
Maple Leaf Guest House: 1,226,918.97
Quality Care (SC) Limited: 1,213,706.59
ASA International Ltd: 1,202,925.00
AtkinsRealis UK Limited: 1,173,742.10
Blackwood Homes and Care: 1,173,067.59
QHS DBFMCO Limited: 1,156,260.50
Action For Children: 1,121,619.27
Active Healthcare Services: 1,109,497.01
Aon UK Limited: 1,100,665.09
Community Integrated Care: 1,096,083.16
The Thistle Foundation: 1,028,086.02
Gilmerton Care Limited: 1,014,956.20
By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter
