Report reveals Birmingham City Council ignored warnings on its failed Oracle Fusion IT project, potentially until 2026.
The auditors’ report is 66 pages long and explains how the IT switch went wrong. The project was meant to save money, but instead, it led to bankruptcy. The council tried to make the new system fit old ways and launched it despite staff concerns, when they should have done the opposite.
Contractors approved the system before launch, despite big problems. Reports showed optimism at high levels, but risks were hidden in supporting details. The report found pressure to show “good news,” which lacked transparency in the project.
City elections put pressure on officers who needed to report progress, not problems. Bad news was not welcome within the council. Also, The Commonwealth Games created other demands. The report comes from staff interviews and uses data analysis.
Another report exists on contractors, but it’s legally protected and not included. Auditors found weaknesses in project management, and high staff turnover made it worse, as nobody took responsibility. Council members didn’t grasp the risks.
Councilors said they lacked skills to scrutinize and relied on officers who downplayed issues. Chances to challenge this view existed, but they missed them. These failures meant the council lacked a financial system for over two years.
Reliable financial reports were impossible to produce, so income and spending were unreliable too. This contributed to the 2023 bankruptcy. These problems may continue to 2026. The project should have taken 17 months and cost £18.7 million.
The plan hoped to save £26.9 million. By 2021, costs rose to £38.7 million, and savings estimates fell to £10.9 million. Final costs are uncertain, maybe £200 million, and launching the system in 2022 was a severe error.
Before launch, problems arose, and critical finance system errors were noted. Testing was incomplete, and staff feared launching an unstable system. Suppliers confirmed launch despite those risks, and on launch, support calls flooded in. Over 8,000 issues arose within six months.
Security flaws let staff alter data, and payroll caused hundreds of queries. Staff felt bullied by the system, and checks on staff and absence were not working. Finance had profound transaction issues, which affected financial reporting.
Staff fought fires daily and hired temporary staff. The council’s relation with Evosys worsened, and support shifted to Version One. The council issued completion certificates anyway, but in November 2022, a review found more risks.
This result created a stabilization plan. Later, the council challenged Evosys, stating the system had failed for a year. Evosys proved they had the sign-off. Council leader John Cotton acknowledged the mistakes.
The council claims to learn from the failures. They are fixing the system and working to strengthen governance. He states that this is crucial to the council’s operation. The report was debated March 11.