I am based in the North West (UK) and focus on the North of England but happy to consider work in other parts of the UK

Yes and no. It can reduce costs as a side effect but if the goal is to simply save money or reduce headcount then your teams will not engage. If your goal is to improve engagement and efficiency then saving costs will naturally happen.

No, 99% of the time the improvements are small and often mean doing less of something.

It is but with a greater emphasis on employee engagement