The overspend for the Business World redesign project

1) Please provide individual details of the overspend for the Business World redesign project that was delivered around two years later than originally scheduled in April 2023 (final cost was £4,237,842)? Details to include a breakdown of all overspend that occurred in each aspect of the project delivery, including third party spend and confirmation of how and when this overspend was approved, and by whom.

In December 2019, the council's Executive approved the Business World ERP System Re-design Project.

The estimated cost of the project was £1.8m with an expected completion date of April 2021. With Covid restrictions in place from March 2020 through to July 2021, this significantly impacted on the cost and delivery timeline of the project, from enforced remote working through to staff originally commissioned to be deployed not being available when required.

Where planned resources were not available when required, this resulted in additional costs being incurred from external suppliers.

A breakdown of all costs for this project have already been provided. The Executive also approved in December 2019, 'that the Executive Director - Commercial, in consultation with the Leader of the Council and the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT, be delegated authority to take all decisions necessary to ensure the entering into of the above arrangements, to include the final form and entering into of all contracts and other legal documentation with Hoople Limited and other third parties'