SCHOOLS’ FORUM
Wednesday 8 July 2015
Schools Capital Investment Programmes
1.
Purpose of the Report
To provide an update on capital projects delivered through the Schools Capital
Investment programme, The School Priority Building Programme and proposed new
school developments in Morpeth and Ponteland.
2.
Recommendation
To note the contents of this report and the benefits to Northumberland schools.
3.
Background
The Council has been awarded capital grant over the past 5 years of £20.3m to address
backlog maintenance in maintained school estate and childrens centres. A further £9.2m
has been allocated for the current financial year 2014/15; this is an increase of £5m on
the previous year’s allocation. This increase is due to funding now being based on our
school building condition need. This has been established through the recent
government’s national building surveys of schools, rather than being based on pupil
numbers as it has been for the last 5 years.
The total backlog maintenance requirements across the whole schools estate are still in
excess of £53m. Consequently, the programme for the past 5 years has been developed
considering only condition aspects of the 3 major building elements (weather tightness of
the building, mechanical installations and electrical installations) that, should failure
occur, will have a severe impact on the Health and Safety of staff, pupils and visitors to
the schools or will have a severe impact on school operations and potentially lead to
unplanned closures.
In 2011 the council successfully applied to have 3 current high schools replaced under
the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP), Alnwick, Bedlington and Prudhoe.
Alnwick and Bedlington are being provided through a PFI scheme, which gives these
schools a financial liability for 25 years. Prudhoe is being built as part of a capital build
batch of schools across the north east of England, this funding route doesn’t place an
on-going financial liability for the school.
Schools Forum October 2014 SCIP update
2
At the beginning of March this year the council’s framework contractor GB Building
Solutions went into administration leaving a number of critical school projects in
construction. Interim arrangements were very swiftly put into place which has ensured
that the time critical school reorganisation projects at Guidepost Ringway and Stakeford
Primary Schools, the extension works to create additional school places at Seaton
Delaval First school and the extension at New Delaval Primary School to provide
childcare places for eligible 2 year old’s are now on programme to be complete for the
start of the new academic year.
1. Procurement
The GB Building Services (GBBS) design and construct framework was due to expire at
the end of October 2015 and officers in Property Services were already working with
Procurement colleagues on a new delivery model when GBBS went into administration.
The new project delivery strategy is to revert to a more traditional model of separate
design consultant (working directly to the Client) and appointing local contractors by
tender. Property Services staff have procured a new design consultancy framework
through which all future SCIP projects will be designed and managed. At the same time,
the Council is recruiting key design positions within Property Services; these officers will
influence and critique the design and specification of new projects. The team is
additionally strengthened with the appointment of a Clerk of Works.
Delivery of the SCIP projects will be carried out by local contractors following a tendering
exercise. Contractors will be selected from Constructionline, which is a central
government approved list of contractors (managed on behalf of the government by
Capita). Contractors on Constructionline need to have satisfied specific health and
safety, technical, financial and other criteria as well as giving references for the
categories of work they choose to undertake. All contractors on Constructionline have
achieved a PAS91 (government construction pre-qualification) pass. Initially, tender lists
are populated from contractors with a Northumberland postcode. If there are insufficient
local contractors able to tender the search is widened to regional post codes.
Projects in the 2015-16 SCIP programme are currently being assessed and packaged
for commissioning through the new design consultancy framework. These commissions
will be issued in early July for projects to be undertaken this financial year.
Schools Forum July 2015 Capital update
3
5.
SCIP Programme Delivery 2014/15
The previous year’s programme is predominantly complete. The majority of projects are
now complete on site and those works that are still in progress are scheduled to be
complete within the next few weeks. Some work will also be completed over the summer
holidays due to access restrictions within individual schools.
The majority of the works were commissioned through the GB Building framework and
the programme was severely affected when GB Building went into administration in
March 2015, leaving many projects either partly complete on site or at the final stages of
pre-commencement. By making direct appointment of a number of GB Building’s own
sub-contractors it has been possible for works to commence or re-start on site to enable
projects to be completed with the minimum of further delay.
A number of projects have been completed outside of the GB Building framework by
adopting a more traditional approach of appointing a designer by competition to develop
detailed design proposals and then tendering the works through a lump sum tender
process.
This process has enabled more direct control of the delivery of the projects and has
helped to inform the future direction for procurement and delivery of capital works
programmes.
The initial intention to deliver the majority of the programme in the 2014/15 financial year
was unfortunately affected by GB Building going into administration, but the programme
when complete will still have delivered almost 30 projects to the value of approximately
£4 million that will improve the quality of the school estate. A copy of the programme and
project status is attached at Appendix 1
6.
SCIP Programme Development 2015/16
As in previous years, each building condition item has been scored and ranked by an
independent building surveyor or mechanical/electrical engineer. The scoring scheme,
as approved by the Executive in October 2011, has been used again in developing the
2015/16 programme.
The programme for 2015/16 has been developed in the same way but has been limited
to a value £4.2m around the same level that has been invested for each of the last 5
years. The additional £5m will be allocated to more strategic capital improvements
projects with this year’s allocation being reserved to address backlog maintenance and
support improvements in the Alnwick partnership school estate, should reorganisation
progress. It is planned that this principle will continue in future years.
A list of priority projects for 2015/16 is shown in Appendix 2. The programme is always
subject to revision as changes in circumstances may require a reordering of the ranking.
The budget is under constant review as project costs are confirmed and any potential for
adding further projects to the programme is considered.
Schools Forum July 2015 Capital update
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7.
Priority School Building Programme
The three PSBP (1) projects have all progressed through the procurement contractual
stages and are all now on site making good progress in the construction phase of the
projects. All 3 schools are on programme to be complete for July/August 2016 ready for
a September 2016 opening..
Expressions of interest were submitted for 6 Northumberland Schools to be included in
the Priority School Building Programme 2. Only one application was successful with
elements of Hexham Queen Elizabeth High School being considered for
replacement/refurbishment . The Education Funding Agency (EFA) are expected to
make an announcement in the Autumn term on the scope timescale for delivery of the
project.
8.
Morpeth and Ponteland joint School and Leisure Developments
On the 25 March 2015 Northumberland County Council published a county wide
blueprint to create access to modern, efficient and joined up services in all of the
county’s main towns.
Two of the town plans those for Morpeth and Ponteland included exciting plans to colocate education and leisure facilities on to a new site. The plans would see both
education and leisure facilities co-located on one site and even in one building, the
scope of the projects would also need to look at the infra-structure required in terms of
highways, cycle and safe walking routes to both of the sites.
Morpeth Brief
The project will involve relocating the town’s two middle schools, high school and
potentially one more first schools. The new education facility would need to
accommodate around 3000 pupils, as well as housing community leisure facilities which
will need to include indoor and outdoor courts and sport grass and all weather pitches as
well as a swimming pool. We are keen for the project to also address the community
aspirations for a shared performance and arts space.
Ponteland Brief
The project will involve relocating Ponteland Middle and High schools and potentially
one more first schools. The new education facility would need to accommodate around
2000 pupils, as well as housing community leisure facilities which will need to include
indoor and outdoor courts and sports grass and all weather pitches for use by the
existing sporting clubs as well as a swimming pool.
A project team has now been established and work has commenced on the
development of outline business cases (OBC) for both projects. The OBC will establish
the scope, the deliverability and affordability of the projects. This work is expected to be
complete by the end of the year, with a decision at the beginning of 2016 on whether to
proceed and if so recommend the procurement option.
Schools Forum July 2015 Capital update