Contact: Simon Cramp, ext 6723

1. Summary

1.1 The following decision is sought:

That approval be given for an increase in the budget for Emsworth Railway Station in the sum of £30,650, and for the award of the contract to the lowest tenderer, Mackley Construction.

2. Reason

2.1 To enable award of contract and completion of scheme.

3. Other Options Considered and Rejected

3.1 Reduction of quality of materials and reduction of scheme extent - rejected as they would not achieve programme objectives.

4. Conflicts of Interest Declared by the Decision Maker or a Member or Officer consulted - Not Applicable.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - Not Applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the Matter being dealt with if Urgent - Not Applicable.

Approved by: Date:

Councillor K B Estlin

7. Introduction

7.1 Funding for improvements at Emsworth Railway Station was set aside in the 1997-99 and 1999-2001 Regeneration of Older Urban Areas (ROUA) programmes. The County Council's investment of £85,000 has been matched by £50,000 from Railtrack and £5,000 from Havant Borough Council. A £20,000 contribution from the operator cannot be confirmed because the future of the franchise remains in doubt. Officers are working to secure this contribution for future improvements at the station.

7.2 The development of the scheme, as reported to Members previously, has been delayed by a number of factors, including:

(i) the knock-on effect of the transfer of responsibility from British Rail to Railtrack;

(ii) lack of resources at Railtrack to consider and enable progress of the scheme; and

(iii) uncertainty about the status and role of the operator.

However, progress has now been made.

8. Current Situation

8.1 A contract has been let for the repainting of the station buildings in a traditional colour, and this is due to commence in September. Tenders have been received for the main works to the frontage. However, the lowest tender of £147,850, plus 10% contingencies, is £30,650 in excess of the remaining budget of £132,000. The lowest tender is also more than 10% in excess of the pre-tender estimate of £124,750.

8.2 The reasons for these discrepancies are:

(i) The cost plan for this scheme was set three-and-a-half-years ago in April 1998. This figure was based on a broad concept only of the improvements and costings prevalent at that time.

(ii) The construction industry is currently very busy and scarcity of resources and pressure of work reflect in higher prices.

(iii) All contractors had to be approved by Railtrack and this placed a limit on who could be invited to tender.

(iv) The site is small and affected by various constraints requiring the contractor to undertake special protective measures.

However, the lowest tender from Mackley Construction still represents value for money.

9. Conclusion

9.1 The ROUA programme maintains a contingency sum in order to provide some flexibility in responding to changing circumstances on individual projects. This facility is particularly important when the programme is working on complex projects where it is difficult to determine all the factors at the outset and the cost plan has been set before detailed proposals have been developed.

9.2 Approval is now sought for an increase in the budget for Emsworth Railway Station in the sum of £30,650, using the available contingency funding within the programme, and for the award of the contract to the lowest tenderer, Mackley Construction.

6673/SC