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Golden Bull awards

The Golden Bull trophy The Golden Bull trophy The Golden Bull trophy


  • Cheshire, Warrington and Wirral NHS Commissioning Support Service

Nominated by: anonymous

A unique factor of the NHS Cheshire Warrington and Wirral Commissioning support organisation is its systematised methodology for project and programme management of small, medium, large service re-design and implementation…Building in equality and risk impact assessments the options are taken through a process to arrive at the content for an output based specification and benefits foreseen as a result of the implementation.

The service is inclusive of full engagement with Clinical Commissioning Groups who direct at decision-making points how they wish the proposal to be deployed (re-commmisson, de-commission or changes to current services/providers), and lastly an implementation team who see the service redesign through to evaluation and benefits realisation.

  • The Children’s Mutual: Investors’ Report December 2011

Nominated by: Alex Ball for a report that contained the following:

UBS believe that the ‘New Normal’ economic environment of relatively low growth means that the ability to differentiate between secular and cyclical growth opportunities becomes more important and that for the foreseeable future the main driving influence on market sentiment will be the structural adjustments and the political capital required to help mitigate the contractionary influence of low growth.

What this means for portfolio construction is that in a low growth, low return, capital constrained environment, competitive advantage favours a combination of income generative, conservatively funded, self sustaining businesses - groups that UBS class as “dividend aristocrats” and who are experiencing secular growth. This leads UBS to their long-term core investment objective of being invested in high quality businesses.

  • Close Brothers

Nominated by: John R White for a letter about the Close Beacon Investment Fund which contains the following paragraph:

With swing pricing, a single price is issued, and all clients buy and sell at this price. To calculate the dealing price, the fund’s administrator calculates the net asset value (NAV) for the fund before consideration of subscriptions and redemptions and then adjusts (“swings”) the NAV by a pre-determined amount. The direction of the swing depends on whether the fund is experiencing net inflows or net outflows on the dealing day, while the magnitude of the swing is based on pre-determined estimates of the average trading costs of the underlying investment. Whether or not a swing is applied to the single price will depend on whether net subscriptions or net redemptions on a particular day exceed the threshold (if any) stated in the Prospectus.

  • NHS Norfolk and Waverney

Nominated by: Richard Bacon MP for a letter explaining NHS fee structures. It included the following explanation:

The concern regarding the lower base fees in 2010 cannot supported by the evidence gained from national research or the use of evidence and experience of a national review of costs undertaken by OLM.

The PCT is obliged, via the NHS Operating Framework 2012/13, to apply a negative financial uplift to the out-turn value of all our supplier contracts in the sum of -1.8%. This is to reflect the pressures on the health care system as a result of the national economic situation and the normal efficiencies that suppliers are expected to deliver.

The contract outlines the new fee structure. All care homes fees need to be adjusted, deducting -1.8% and then adding 1.25% as an advanced payment for CQUINs. A further 1.25% can be achieved at the end of each quarter if CQUINs are met; this further payment will be made by NHS Norfolk & Waveney.

  • Transport for London

London Road User Charging Registration Terms And Conditions

Nominated by: Gloria J McLaren-Green for these clear explanations:

Billing Day means a day falling no earlier than 5 Working Days after the last day of that Billing Period or such other day as Transport for London may in the particular circumstances of the case determine on which Transport for London shall take the automatic payment under paragraph (8) of the Scheme Order.
Billing Period in relation to CC Auto Pay means a period of 1 month or such other period as Transport for London may determine and specify on its Congestion Charging website in each case beginning with the day on which Transport for London accepts an application for the Registration of a CC Auto Pay Account or such other day as Transport for London may in the particular circumstances of the case accept. First Billing Period may be shorter than 1 month dependent on what day of the month is selected for statement generation.
  • The NSG Group

Nominated by: Jan Walsh for a letter to Members and Pensioners of the Pilkington Superannuation Scheme which contained the following explanation:

Where PSS benefits are indexed by specific reference to the Retail Price Index (‘RPI’) these will continue to be so indexed. This means that if and when the financial state of the Scheme allows for non-statutory increases to pensions in payment (including to pre-1997 accrued pension in excess of Guaranteed Minimum Pension) under the terms of Clause 19 or 17 of the Trust Deed these will still be referenced to March/March RPI (subject to a cap).
  • NHS Litigation Authority produced this explanation for rejecting an application to open a pharmacy at Madeley Surgery.

Nominated by: anonymous

The Committee concluded, having regard to the totality of the factors considered above that choice could not be given significant weight and that there was not currently a gap on the spectrum of adequacy sufficient to conclude that the provision of pharmaceutical services is not currently secured to the standard of adequacy. Accordingly the Committed concluded: The application was neither necessary nor expedient to secure the adequate provision of services in the neighbourhood, and therefore dismissed the appeal in this respect.

Lisa Hughes, Appeals Manager, NHS Litigation Authority sent us the following response to the award.

"It’s a fair cop - we humbly accept the award and promise faithfully to not not try harder in the future! On a serious note we do take very seriously our role in effectively communicating our decisions. We understand that the award nomination arose from a decision issued in September 2011. We have changed our approach to communicating decisions recently and although we cannot rewrite historical decisions to make them clearer, we will be working hard to ensure that all our communication is in plain English."

  • Enfield Council

Nominated by: Dr Duncan Bell, Kay Wright and Sean Ellis for a letter about the change of use of a building.

NOTIFICATION OF THE MAKING OF ARTICLE 4 DIRECTION (REF: Art 4/HMO) RELATING TO HOUSES IN MULTIPLE OCCUPATION

I am writing to inform you that on the 15th October 2012, the London Borough of Enfield made a direction (reference: Art 4HMO) under article 4(1) of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 as amended.

The direction relates to development consisting of a change of the use of a building to a use falling within Class C4 (houses in multiple occupation) of the Schedule to the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 from a use falling within Class C3 (dwellinghouses) of that Schedule, and removes permitted development rights for this type of development from the date when the direction comes into force.

  • NHS Tayside

Nominated by: anonymous for a governance dashboard discussion paper with this introduction:

NHS Tayside Board has asked the Executive team to develop a dashboard approach to performance reporting and assurance. It is increasingly recognised that high quality information presented through a dashboard approach is a key driver in promoting a performance and improvement culture within organisations by providing a balanced and intuitive view of improvement and performance.
  • Department for Communities and Local Government

Nominated by: Councillor Mike Boulton, Radstock Town Council for the Department’s "Localising Support for Council Tax" document.

Should legislation permit the council tax base (TP) for each of the items A-E listed above for billing authorities and F and G for major precepting authorities to be calculated including or excluding localised council tax support reductions (new item Z in the draft regulations)?
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