Nomad has spread its wings cross the border to welcome the expansion of the Nomad Network into Scotland.

Like minded Scottish Local Authorities are coming together
to promote best practice and share experiences in developing and using mobile, wireless & flexible working.   

As reflected in England - Nomad Scotland will run its own Forum to disseminate new findings and to share experiences with representatives of all Scottish Local Authorities.

Organised by a Core Group of representatives from a number of Scottish LA's (noted below with contacts) and with support for communications from Cambridgeshire County Council (owners of Nomad) the Nomad Scotland Forum Meetings will occur twice a year. 

These pages will hold notes from the meetings that the core group will hold to help plan the dissemination activity and the agendas for future meetings.

Objectives & Aims of Nomad Scotland.
There have been a number of national (UK) government strategies published increasingly stressing the importance of mobile, wireless and flexible working as being critical to service transformation in the public sector arena. This has been co-ordinated in England under the Nomad banner for the past few years. A number of Councils in Scotland have now initiated similar group in Scotland.

The objectives of the group are to:

• Exchange ideas and information about mobile, wireless and flexible working in local government\public sector in Scotland.
  
• Develop initiatives across local government\public sector to achieve performance and efficiency gains.
  
• Share development, implementation experiences and issues.
  
• Explore the potential uses of mobile, wireless and flexible working.
  
• Investigate ways of working to identify best practice within both the public and private sector.
  
• Research funding opportunities.
  
• Promote greater use of mobile, wireless and flexible working.

Progress to date

• A questionnaire was circulated to all 32 Chief Executive’s in January 2007 to determine a strategic view on mobile working. Only 14 Councils responded.
• A meeting attended by representatives from 15 Councils took place in Fife on 28 February 2007. This meeting concluded that the creation of a Scottish Nomad group was desirable.
• A core group of 7 councils (contact details below) agreed to meet to take this agenda forward and has so far met twice on 21 March and 26 April.
• Discussions have taken place with the Improvement Service and SOCITM to gauge the any involvement from these bodies.
• A national meeting of the Nomad Scotland Forum for interested councils is planned for 28 June 2007.
• Identify and disseminate benefits arising from mobile, wireless and flexible working to local government\public sector.

The Core Group Members for Nomad Scotland are listed below.

Lynne Swan - Nomad Scotland Chair
Glasgow City Council
lynne.swan@glasgow.gov.uk

Scott Carruthers - Nomad Scotland Depute Chair
Clackmananshire Council
scarruthers@clacks.gov.uk

Jim Stapleton
West Lothian Council
jim.stapleton@westlothian.gov.uk

Linda Dawson
Aberdeen City Council
lidawson@aberdeencity.gov.uk

Scott Robertson
City of Edinburgh Council
Scott.A.Robertson@edinburgh.gov.uk

Lee Parry
Fife Council
lee.parry@fife.gov.uk

To express an interest in attending the Forum Meetings please email melanie.reed@cambridgeshire.gov.uk to be put on the distribution list.

You can download forthcoming Nomad Scotland Forum Agendas and Minutes taken at the Forum and Core Group meeting below.