Sunday, September 24, 2006

Council buys 'thinking caps' to aid cost cutting

A council faced with budget cuts has spent almost £2,000 to issue staff with "thinking caps" and puzzles to help them come up with money-saving ideas.

Officers are being asked to wear the baseball caps at "brainstorming" meetings and compete to come up with thrift schemes.

The Isle of Wight council has bought 250 caps, with the words "thinking cap" across the front, and 3,000 cube puzzles which can be made into the word "think".

The headwear is the idea of the new chief executive, Joe Duckworth, who implemented a similar scheme at Westminster city council.

The move has been ridiculed and criticised by some councillors and staff but a council spokesman described it as "innovative".

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