Vertex bags a £40m Brum Council deal

Birmingham City Council has extended a contract with Vertex for call centre services in a deal worth £40m.

The contract with Vertex, which was originally struck in 2002, has been extended to until 2012. The extension comes immediately after a joint venture between Birmingham City Council and Capita - called Service Birmingham - was contracted to oversee call centre services provided by Vertex and supported by 300 staff.

That contract, which was awarded late last month to Service Birmingham, is worth £110m over the next eight years with an initial value of £52m for the next four years. Now Service Birmingham has retained Vertex's services as a part of the handover.

The move is focused on bringing the call centre in line with a council initiative called the Customer First transformation programme, which seeks to provide simpler and easier ways for citizens to access council services through channels that are most convenient.

Birmingham City Council deputy leader Paul Tilsley said in a statement: "Improving the quality and standard of contact with our citizens is a vital aspect of our Customer First programme. Service Birmingham will ensure that the contact centre operation is fully integrated with our overall business transformation initiative."