Business processes firm Capita has been provisionally awarded a £320million contract to run Barnet Council’s back office services over the next ten years.

The outsourcing giant was chosen ahead of telecommunications company BT to take control of the authority’s New Support and Customer Services Organisation (NSCSO) contract, which includes the provision of customer services, HR and IT support.

Barnet Council has been guaranteed savings of £125.4million over ten years but jobs will be outsourced as far away as Carlisle and Sheffield.

A total of 514 positions will be put under the control of Capita, which plans to move almost 200 roles to some of its specialist centres across the country.

The contract is the largest within the authority’s much-publicised One Barnet programme, under which it is looking to outsource more than £700million of services to save cash.

This afternoon’s announcement marked the provisional award of the contract, though the decision will not be ratified until December 6, following a cross-party scrutiny meeting on November 29.

Speaking after the announcement this afternoon, Barnet Council leader Richard Cornelius said: “I’m pleased we have got to this stage.

“We have to lose jobs but it means we don’t have to find £120million of savings elsewhere. If this money was not saved, people really would see cuts.”

Capita is contractually bound by annual performance indicators and major reviews in years three and six and will be financially liable for any drop in standards.

However, the announcement is stark news for almost 200 council staff currently working within the affected services, who will see their jobs transferred within the next 12 months.

Of 83 customer services staff, 61 will be moved to Darwen, in Lancashire, while 109 of 126 employees in the Revenues and Benefits department will be shifted to Bromley or Blackburn.

A total of 26 out of 75 roles in Human Resources will be outsourced to Banstead, Belfast or Carlisle and six IT staff face moving to Chippenham or Chertsey.

Of the 514 jobs transferring to Capita, just 468 will be left at the end of year one, and by 2023 there will only be 339 posts under the contract.

Councillor Cornelius said staff facing redundancy would be offered alternative positions within the council and Capita where possible.