The council spent £10,900 last year on a scheme that offers staff discounted shopping and theme park tickets.

Richmond Council paid a £2,000 set up fee for Edenred in November last year, along with £5,402 on a licence and £3,500 on “offline communication”, according to the authority’s accounts.

Edenred provides workers access to discounts on more than 240 products and services, including shopping vouchers at supermarkets and leading high street stores.

Staff at the authority can also get tickets to theme parks and other events at a reduced price under the scheme.

Some businesses offer discounts of up to 30 per cent.