DIRECTORATE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS
ADMINISTRATION
By: R J P Hayes
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Administration and Organisation

The Headquarters staff is organised in 4 groups - Forward Planning, Current Engineering, Field Services and Administration. The Administration group consists of 40 administration and typing staff who are employed in 5 sections as follows:

Finance and Accounting
Purchasing
Customer Requirements
Staffing
Training

1 Finance and Accounting

This section

a. co-ordinates the Directorate's estimates and financial affairs generally. It ensures that the various returns required by the Home Office Finance Department in respect of income and expenditure in the current year, in the following year, and (for the purposes of the Public Expenditure Survey Committee) over the neat 5 years, are submitted at the appropriate time;

b. prepares the financial submissions on telecommunications to the Common Police Services Committee including the detailed schedules of depot running coats. It also provides the necessary information for the apportionment of costs among the various customers who use the Directorate's services;

c. in consultation with the Home Office Finance Department, assesses the various rentals for telecommunications equipment and keeps them under review to ensure that they are economic. The basis of calculating rental charges is designed to ensure that the capital cost of equipment plus that of any sets required to be held at Depots as maintenance reserves is recovered, together with interest on the investment, within a term of years representing the average expectation of useful life in service. An allowance is also included for minor modifications and expenditure on maintenance components throughout the period;

d. keeps under review all other charges made by the Directorate for the sale of equipment and provision of manpower to meet emergency or other requirements;

e. deals with the ordering, progressing and accounting of Post Office telephone, telegraph and other facilities for all Home Office services.

2 Purchasing

This section is responsible for the procurement of all telecommunications equipment required by the Directorate. It places orders direct for equipment and spares costing less than £1,000. For orders over that amount the formal government contract procedure is followed. The section co-ordinates the evaluation of tenders received which takes into account all relevant factors - for example, price, delivery date and conformity with technical specification. It is often necessary to obtain models and field trials are sometimes conducted before a final decision is made and the contract placed. The section progresses a11 deliveries, approves invoices for payment and keeps records of the financial and delivery situation of all contracts.

Expenditure on equipment and spares is expected to amount to £2,500,000 during the current financial year.

Source: Home Office DOT Exhibition 1971 Papers

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