Kate Ambrosi
Head of Economic Development
Croydon Council
Kate is the Head of Economic Development for Croydon Council having spent many previous years working to improve the education standards and youth unemployment rate of the borough, both in the council and, sometime ago now, as a teacher in local schools. Kate’s team aims to improve the life chances of all residents, by increasing the number of good quality, sustainable jobs, and the likelihood of the residents getting and keeping them. She works closely with the procurement team to ensure that the council maximises the social benefit that can be gained from the hundreds of thousands of pounds it spends. In particular Kate oversees the borough’s Good Employer Charter accreditation, which all large contract holders are expected to have. Good Employer Charter (GEC) accreditation is only possible if the company is paying the London Living Wage; employing, and supporting the employment chances of, Croydon residents; buying from local businesses and being an inclusive and supportive employer. Kate is going to talk about GEC and the Social Value Toolkit being used by the council to maximise the social value gained from the council’s spending power.