In 2010 St. Clare’s was ranked 1st in the Oxfordshire league tables for IB/A-Levels and 11th among English independent schools.

Case Study:

Download a PDF copy of the case study.

Left to right: Nick Beaumont-Jones, Auditel Consultant; Lucy Blake, Financial Controller and Nick Paladina, Bursar, St Clare’s College

Based in 26 sites spread across North Oxford, St Clare’s College presents an interesting challenge when it comes to cost and purchase management.

Nick Paladina, Bursar at St Clare’s, received a cold call from Auditel Consultant, Nick Beaumont-Jones in Autumn 2009.

Having worked with cost consultants before, he was already aware of the potential benefits and Auditel’s contingency fee approach was particularly appealing.

“We got on well at our initial meeting and I was impressed by the range of services Auditel could offer – and, at worst, that it would cost us nothing.” Auditel was engaged in February 2010, initially to investigate the College’s spend on electricity, gas, water and fixed line communications.

“Our utilities, spread across 26 different locations in North Oxford, were a mess. We just didn’t have the time or the necessary expertise to sort them out. So it was a huge relief to hand it over to Nick [Auditel]. He handled everything with the minimum of disruption and I was impressed by the quick turnaround.”

He was even more impressed when Auditel delivered savings in the first year which totalled over £42,000. Of these, savings on electricity amounted to £31,250, including a rebate for past overcharges of £24,100. £6,400 on Gas from historical overcharges going back 3 years and equivalent to 9% of St Clare’s total gas spend and £4,200 (21%) on fixed line communications.

In addition to the successful management of St Clare’s costs in these areas, Auditel have provided significant levels of day to day management support in monitoring consumption levels, liaising with suppliers on metering problems, advising St Clare’s on the most appropriate charging structure, the resolution of gas supply anomalies, the provision and analysis of telephone billing data to enable the client to assess usage more effectively and arranging for new connections and disconnections on the client’s behalf as and when required.

Nick is delighted, “We see Nick as a very valuable resource for St Clare’s. We have come to rely on him and know that if he doesn’t know something, he doesn’t pretend he does, but instead turns to other Auditel specialists for help.”

Savings Achieved:

Electricity – 9% £31,250 Saving
(Includes overcharges rebate of £24,100)
Gas – £6,400 Saving
(Rebate for historical overcharges)
Fixed Line Telecomms – 21% £4,200 Saving

Download a PDF copy of the case study.

O2, Britain’s largest single mobile phone operator, is applying for a financial services licence to allow its customers to text each other money.

The move means that O2 has become the first UK mobile operator to prepare an application for the new e-money licence.

• Its broadband TV service, BT Vision, won 40,000 new customers, compared with 24,000 in the previous three months.
• The numbers were released with BT’s third-quarter profits.
• BT’s revenues dipped, but its pre-tax profits more than doubled to £441m in the third quarter to 31 December thanks to restructuring and cost-cutting.
• BT’s chief executive Ian Livingston said: “These results show that we are making progress on a number of fronts. There is always more to do, but our performance underpins our outlook for this year and the period to 2012/13.”
• Telecoms analyst Mark Giles pointed to the 3% fall in revenues in its biggest divisions, Retail and Global Services.
• But he added: “BT Retail continues to post impressive broadband subscriber additions… while the stronger quarterly growth in BT Vision subscribers was also encouraging.”
• “BTGS is still the biggest of the four divisions and a powerhouse for the group, and BT highlighted some large multinational contract wins,” said Mr Giles from consultancy Ovum.

BT’s shares rose 3.6%

Blogger’s comment: We understand that BT Openreach, the division which handles new line installations, is quoting a minimum of 7 weeks to install a new line due to the increased workload of their engineering staff. Let’s hope they invest some of their increased profits in boosting manpower.

A new energy saving product has been tested on the UK market in the hope that it can help consumers reduce the energy use of their home appliances.

The process involves drilling horizontally into shale formations far underground, then using  small explosions to fracture the shale – followed by a slurry of water, sand and chemicals to free the trapped gas.

However, the BBC reports that perhaps shale gas isn’t entirely without its drawbacks and quotes a recent report which says the UK government should put a moratorium on shale gas operations until the environmental implications are fully understood.

• The Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research report comes amid reports a firm has found reserves in Lancashire.
• In the US, officials are investigating claims that shale gas drilling has polluted water supplies.
• However, UK ministers have rejected a moratorium, saying that drilling for shale gas does not pose a threat. “We are aware that there have been reports from US of issues linked to some shale gas projects,” a spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc) told BBC News. However, we understand that these are only in a few cases and that Cuadrilla (the firm testing for shale gas in Lancashire) has made it clear that there is no likelihood of environmental damage and that it is applying technical expertise and exercising the utmost care as it takes drilling and testing forward.”
• The Tyndall report was commissioned by The Co-operative, an institutional investor in oil firms. It is pressing firms not to invest in shale gas until further studies have been carried out into the effects of pumping chemicals underground to help release the gas trapped in shale rocks.
• The Co-operative is concerned that Decc pronounced shale gas safe last week before the end of a consultation into the technology by MPs on the Commons energy and climate change select committee. Paul Monaghan, head of the organisation’s social goals, said: “There should be no fracturing of rock for shale gas until legislation can catch up. We are aghast that government accepted the assurances of industry on this while their own consultation had not even finished. There was a shale gas rush in the US and now they are looking into the implications – we need to do it the other way round.”
• The Tyndall report also expresses concern that the exploitation of shale gas is bringing new greenhouse gas sources into play. It says: “This will further reduce any slim possibility of maintaining global temperature changes at or below 2C (3.6F) and thereby increase the risk of entering a period of ‘dangerous climate change’.”

The US was gearing up to import gas, but experts suggest that the shale reserves may provide the nation with gas supplies for 100 years.

Large deposits of shale gas are expected to be unearthed in China, Europe and South America too.

Experts say the technological breakthrough increases energy security worldwide and reduces the diplomatic power of gas-rich nations, such as Russia.

But there have been reports of problems with the technology in the US, such as cattle dying after drinking water from the fracturing process that found its way to the surface.

In Pennsylvania, some residents can now set fire to their drinking water after methane leaked into wells. They are blaming shale gas extraction.

The Tyndall report says that gas drilling in Lancashire will give rise to a range of local concerns including noise pollution, high levels of truck movements and land use demands.

The Decc spokesman said: “We support industry’s endeavours in pursuing energy sources (like shale gas), provided that tapping of such resources proves to be economically, commercially and environmentally viable.

“All onshore oil and gas projects, including shale gas exploration and development, are subject to a series of checks, including local planning permission before they are able to move ahead with drilling activities.”

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, chip manufacturer Freescale announced the availability in the USA of Watt Saver, a system that eliminates the “vampire” power draw of wall chargers for mobile phones and other small electronics.

Even when wall chargers are no longer plugged into phones, the chargers still draw a small trickle of electricity, ranging from less than a watt for efficient chargers to over 5 watts. The Freescale system can detect when a phone’s battery is full or when it’s been unplugged and cut the power draw to zero.

Watt Saver adds three components to a traditional wall charger, which are typically made by third-party companies rather than electronics manufacturers themselves.

There is a micro-controller which detects when a phone has been unplugged, a capacitor to power the microcontroller, and a relay to shut off power. The additional components add about $1 more to the charger’s cost at retail.

It’s designed for wall chargers that have a USB output, but the technology can be used to eliminate vampire power in different power packs, according to Freescale.

On an individual level, the dollar savings from cutting the vampire draw to zero is not very significant–perhaps less than one dollar over the course of a year, Freescale Director of Consumer Segment Marketing, Glen Burchers, said. But in aggregate, the energy reductions make a big difference, given that there are 4 billion mobile phones already being used and another 1.4 billion sold a year.

Freescale estimates that vampire power from cell phones is about 1,200 megawatts, which is the output of a large power plant. It plans on giving 1 percent of the proceeds from sales of the Watt Saver to a nonprofit dedicated to preserving natural resources.

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20026972-54.html#ixzz1AejxSZJx

Major power firms including Eon, RWE, Alstom and Drax are working on a project which could eventually turn Christmas trees into more viable biomass.

The research, which focuses on making plant matter easier to store, transport and process via a roasting procedure known as torrefaction, is being led by the University of Leeds.

If current experiments can be scaled up, the researchers say biomass could replace coal more easily at existing thermal plants.

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council is funding the project.

Have a prosperous and healthy New Year.

Ofcom are concerned about the confusion which surrounds these charges and have released the following information:

Non-geographic calls are those made to 03, 05, 070/076, 080, 0845, 0870, 083/4, 0871, 09, 116 and 118 numbers. People use these numbers to call businesses and Government agencies, to get information, make payments for services and vote on TV shows.

How does Ofcom regulate them at the moment?

Ofcom decides how these numbers can be used. For most numbers, there is a limit on how much BT can charge for calls. Other providers are not restricted as to how much they can charge, but in many cases the landline providers set their call charges around BT’s prices. From mobiles, charges are typically much higher.

In 2009, consumers paid around £1.9 billion for calls to these numbers. They accounted for around 12% of the total call traffic volume, and generated 10% of the total revenue.

The current system does not work for consumers

Consumers face problems when making calls to these numbers including:

Confusion about the price. People are confused about what these numbers mean and how much calls cost. As a result, they lack confidence and trust in these services.

Consequently, consumers make fewer calls and sometimes go to great lengths to contact organisations in other ways, possibly at higher cost or inconvenience. The lack of scrutiny by consumers means that phone companies can set prices with less concern about the impact on consumers.

Impact on low-income households. The cost of calling these numbers is generally significantly more from mobiles. The impact of the higher cost on mobiles is particularly pronounced for people on lower incomes who are more likely to live in mobile-only households, and use their mobile to call essential services on these numbers; such as some benefit offices, councils, utility services and doctor surgeries.

Call charges are not clearly advertised. Under the current system, those providing services via a non-geographic number can not easily advertise the price of calls to their service (since the price varies between phone companies). This leaves consumers unsure, and prevents competition between providers from working as well as it might.

Wide-ranging changes to benefit consumers

We are consulting on options for wide-ranging changes to the current regulation of non-geographic numbers, and we have set out two sets of proposals today:

• Simpler numbering ranges: The aim of this is to make non-geographic numbers and their prices more intuitive. For example, making calls to 0800 numbers (Freephone) free from mobiles as well as landlines; encouraging the use of 03 (which is charged like 01/02 numbers and usually included in call bundles) through removing the less consistently charged 0870 range, and changing the role of 0845. We also propose to make the division between number ranges clearer.
• Standardised charges phone company charge and service provider charge: Our preferred option to address many of the current problems is to split the charges paid to the phone company and the charges paid to the service provider so that consumers can see exactly how much they are paying, and to whom. We think this could help ensure that consumers will be able to compare phone company costs for calls to non-geographic calls. In addition when call costs are advertised, for example on a TV show, it will state clearly the amount charged to call the service (which would be added to the amount charged by the phone company). For example: “This call will cost £1.50 per minute plus your phone company’s charge.”

We are also considering the alternative of maximum prices for each number range applying to all phone companies. While this has some attraction, we do not consider that it fully addresses consumer issues.

These proposals can only be implemented if planned changes to the Communications Act occur (these are currently being consulted on by the Government and expected to be introduced in May 2011). Subject to these changes taking effect, and once we have considered the responses to this consultation, we intend to implement our proposals over the next two years.

The new rankings are based on the most comprehensive energy complaints data available and will be published every quarter. The performance guide, which is based on a star rating, has been compiled after analysing complaints received through Consumer Direct, Consumer Focus and the Energy Ombudsman.

Consumer Focus has devised a model to award stars based upon a weighted score given to each of the ‘Big 6’ energy companies. This score is based on how many complaints the supplier received in relation to its market share, as well as the severity of each complaint. For example, a complaint is weighted more heavily if a consumer spent a lot of time getting their problem resolved, such as repeatedly contacting their supplier or contacting an independent organisation for advice and support.

During the last financial year, the ‘Big 6’ energy suppliers received around 4.6 million customer complaints. In Consumer Focus research, nearly half of consumers said that having information to compare how companies handle complaints would be useful when deciding whether to switch provider.  With switching on many customers’ minds due to price rises and cold weather, Consumer Focus is advising people to weigh up what is the best deal for them, using the new complaints table and a price comparison service accredited by the watchdog’s Confidence Code.

The rating gives Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) a weighted score which earned it four stars.  At the other end of the scale, Scottish Power, EDF and npower were awarded just two stars for their performance between July and September this year.  The table only gives data for the ‘Big 6’ suppliers who make up over 99% of the domestic market. Consumer Focus aims to publish a similar league table for smaller suppliers in April next year.

Supplier Rating

SSE                                                         4****

British Gas                                          3***

Eon                                                        3***

Scottish Power                                  2**

EDF                                                        2**

Npower                                                2**

Mike O’Connor, CBE, chief executive at Consumer Focus said ‘We know energy companies are rooted at the bottom of our consumer trust survey. They have got a lot to do to win the respect of their customers and getting a firm grip on customer service and complaint handling should be a priority in the boardroom of these companies. They should all be aiming to be a five star service.

‘Scottish and Southern Energy are the clear leaders, but the difference between energy suppliers is stark when they all sell an identical commodity under the same market rules. Having three suppliers languishing on just two stars is a pretty miserable state of affairs. Good service is really important to customers and people want the truth about complaints so they can make informed choices when deciding whether to switch.’

For more information click on http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/news/consumer-focus-helps-consumers-by-publishing-energy-complaints-data

• Telecommunications revenue in the UK is dropping – 3.1% between 2008 and 2009, in line with the rest of the world. This is due to a number of factors, not least of which is the move from fixed line to mobile phones although 84% of the UK population still have a fixed line
• Only 5% of the population here use VOIP whereas some countries, such as France and the Netherlands, have uptake as high as 26%
• The UK is by far the largest user of Blackberry operating systems at 19%. This is three times Blackberry’s market share in other European countries
• In the UK, Apple’s i operating system is used in 21% of smart phones, whereas it’s 30% in France
• The UK has the fastest smart phone uptake of the countries surveyed with an increase in subscribers of 70% in 2009
• The UK has the highest uptake of online shopping (at 19%) with Poland second at 14% and the other countries far behind
• The same applies to digital TV where the UK and Spain lead the way with 91% take up
• Digital radio also has the UK far ahead with 31% take up

This seems to suggest we are leading the way in new technology take up at user level. It’s a shame then that we are well behind in introducing 4G technology where 55 countries will introduce commercial services by 2012 but the earliest 4G will be introduced in the UK will be 2014, possibly later.