Hampshire County Council

Buildings, Land and Procurement Panel Item 8

15 January 2008

Project Approvals

Report by the Acting Director of Property, Business and Regulatory Services

1.0

Introduction

1.1

This report sets out a range of construction-related procurement initiatives, makes proposals on the use of the balance of the capital receipt from the sale of surplus land at Crestwood College and highlights proposals for a Discovery Centre in Basingstoke.

2.0

Recommendations

2.1

That the Buildings, Land and Procurement Panel advises the Executive Member for Policy and Resources that approval be given to:

1. The following procurement arrangements:

· The Castle Complex Engineering Services and Building Maintenance contract

· Winnall Primary School, Winchester - Fire Reinstatement works

· Andover Education Centre

· Wyvern Technology College, Fair Oak

· Consultant Frameworks

· Children's Centres

· The Bridge Education Centre

· Applemore College - Scola re-cladding works and additional funding of £250,000 towards the project

· NDS Modernisation Programme - Specialist Teaching Spaces

· Wildground Infant and Horndean Infant - Scola re-cladding projects

· Queen's Inclosure Primary School, Cowplain - roofing works

2. The use of the balance of the capital receipt from Crestwood College for:
(i) improvement to external areas including netball facilities at Crestwood College;
(ii) contribution to the sports and recreational facilities at Priestlands School, Lymington;

(iii) contribution to Wyvern Technology College, Fair Oak, `J-track' running track.

3. A contribution from Policy and Resources in the financial years 2008/09 and 2009/10 to the Basingstoke Discovery Centre.

4. To allocate the capital receipt from the disposal of the former Stonecroft Children's Home, Havant, to the Policy and Resources Capital Programme and to allocate it to fund a range of Children's Services office accommodation solutions in southeast Hampshire, principally for Children's Services.

3.0

Procurement Proposals

3.1

3.1.1

Castle Complex Engineering Services and Building Maintenance contract

The current engineering maintenance term contract for the Castle Complex headquarters buildings is due to expire on 31 October 2008. It is proposed to tender a new contract which will include the planned and reactive engineering maintenance covered by the current term contract with reactive building fabric maintenance, minor improvement work and potentially, major planned maintenance work. The contract will be for an initial two year period with an option to extend for a further two years, subject to the performance of the contractor and the requirements of the County Council. Prior to deciding whether to extend the contract, the options for incorporating additional facilities management services and devolving further management responsibility to the contractor will be explored.

3.2

3.2.1

Winnall Primary School, Winchester - Fire Reinstatement Works

Following a fire at Winnall Primary School in October 2007, Tew Brothers provided an emergency response under the contract arrangements for Major Incidents, to secure the site and undertake some initial works to allow the school to re-open. A full assessment of the damage has now been undertaken and a Prime Cost contract is being prepared. The cost of the initial emergency response works was £25k and the estimated cost of the further works is £200k. An advance order has been placed with Tew Brothers Limited to enable the erection of scaffold over the Christmas holiday period for health and safety reasons, with the reinstatement works following on in the New Year.

3.3

3.3.1

Andover Education Centre

As reported to the Panel in June 2007, the alteration and refurbishment of the Shepherd's Spring Junior School to provide accommodation for the Andover Education Centre is being procured through the SECE Tier 1 Framework as part of the programme of education projects in Andover. Mansell Construction have already been selected for the project through a mini-competition process and their appointment for the pre-construction period is currently being formalised. To facilitate the opening of the Education Centre in September 2008, it is proposed to let an enabling works contract for initial site set up, asbestos removal, strip out works and security up to a maximum value of £250k, subject to funding approval by Executive Lead Member for Children's Services (Education) on 23 January 2008. The enabling works contract will be let prior to approval of the project appraisal by the Leader on his decision day on 6 March 2008. It is anticipated that the main contract works will commence in early spring. The estimated construction value for the scheme is £1.6 million.

3.4

Consultant Frameworks

3.4.1

Renewal of a number of consultant frameworks was approved by Executive Member Policy and Resources in June 2007. It is anticipated that Contract Notices for the following frameworks will be published by the end of January 2008: Structural Inspections, Structural and Civil Engineering Design, Mechanical and Electrical Services Design, Quantity Surveying; Landscape Architecture and Ecology; Town Planning and Urban Design; Transport Planning.

3.4.2

It is now proposed to establish additional framework arrangements for Building Surveying and Land Surveys which will both be used to supplement in-house resources. The requirements for other consultant services will be reviewed in early 2008 and reported to the Panel in April 2008.

3.5

3.5.1

Children's Centres

Proposals for the procurement of the Children's Centre programme were approved by Executive Member Policy and Resources in June 2007 and the allocation of a number of these schemes were reported to the Panel in October 2007. Allocation of the remaining schemes has now been confirmed with the final allocation as follows:

Contractor

Scheme Location

Estimated

Value

Brazier Construction (via HCC Framework for Major Schemes)

Pennington Infant & Junior

Lee-on-Solent Infant & Junior

Morelands Primary

Neville Lovett Community

Manor Infant

Wickham Primary

Chineham Park Primary

Belle Vue Infant

Readon Close, Petersfield

Elson Infant

Chiltern Primary

St Vincent's College

Waterside Primary

Fordingbridge Infant & Junior

Bursledon Infant & Junior

Wyvern College

£520k

£395K

£750k

£490k

£425k

£385k

£750k

£740k

£545k

£570k

£590k

£550k

£740k

£520k

£550k

£440k

Nolan Davis

Beechdown Pre-School (Children's Centre outreach unit)

Manor Field Infant

Bushy Leaze

£545k

£350k

£610k

R V Dart

Calmore Community Centre

Townhill Farm Community Centre

New Milton Youth Club

Eling Infant

£265k

£190k

£270k

£290k

HP Contracts

Mengham Junior

Norwood Primary

£265k

£700k

Coleborn

Cherrywood Primary

Portchester Community Centre

£580k

£180k

3.5.2

To meet the programme for construction of the Children's Centres being procured through the Framework for Major Schemes, it is necessary to commence the manufacture of the modular units prior to awarding the construction contracts for individual projects. To secure the manufacture of the modular units for the first three schemes, Pennington Infant and Junior School, Morelands Primary School and Neville Lovett Community School, a variation to the pre-construction agreement with Brazier Construction has been issued, in agreement with the Chief Executive's department, authorising the commitment of up to £500k for the manufacture of the units. This variation will be cancelled and superseded by the construction contracts for these projects, prior to commencement of work on site. It is now proposed to use the same approach for the remaining projects being procured through the Framework for Major Schemes, as listed in the table above. A variation will be instructed for groups of projects on a rolling programme, with each variation subsequently being cancelled and superseded by the construction contracts for those projects. The maximum commitment through variation to the pre-construction agreement at any time will be £500k.

3.5.3

Andover Children's Centre at Shepherd's Spring Infant School is being procured through the SECE Framework for Major Schemes as part of the Andover Schools programme of work and the Chase Children's Centre is being procured as part of the wider works at Bordon Infant School. Two mobile Children's Centres will be tendered by Hampshire Transport Management.

3.5.4

It is anticipated that remaining schemes at Haselworth Primary (£700,000) and Winnall Community Centre (£190,000) will be procured through the SECE Tier 3 Framework when this is finalised in the New Year.

3.6

The Bridge Education Centre

3.6.1

It is proposed to procure this project through the SECE Tier 2 framework to allow early engagement of a contractor to advise on buildability and programming issues, particularly in respect of the extensive alteration work which is proposed. The estimated construction value of the project, including PCT funding of £500k for an adjacent health centre, is approximately £2.4 million.

3.7

Applemore College - Scola recladding works

3.7.1

It is proposed to allocate £250,000 of the Dedicated Schools Grant capital repairs funding carried forward from 2006/7 to complete the Scola re-cladding works at Applemore College. It is proposed to add this final phase of work to the re-cladding contract currently in progress on site. This contract is being undertaken by Nolan Davis who won a competitive tender for the Phase 2 re-cladding work in early 2007.

3.8

NDS Modernisation Programme - Specialist Teaching Spaces

3.8.1

A further programme of NDS funded refurbishment of specialist teaching spaces has been identified for implementation during the summer 2008. It is proposed to procure these projects through the SECE Tier 3 Framework which is due to be finalised early in the New Year. Contractor selection will be in accordance with the framework procedures and details of the allocation of individual schemes will be reported to the Panel once the selection process has been completed.

3.9

3.9.1

Scola Re-cladding Projects

Proposals to negotiate Scola re-cladding projects at Wildground Infant, Hedge End, and Horndean Infant schools were reported to the Panel in October 2007. There was an error in the contractors identified for these schemes which are now confirmed as Drew Smith for Wildground Infant and Ralls Builders for Horndean Infant.

3.10

3.10.1

Queen's Inclosure Primary School, Cowplain - Roofing Works

As reported to the Panel in October 2007, this scheme to complete remedial works to roofs and address solar gains issues, is being procured through the SECE Tier 2 Framework. Following confirmation of additional funding, the estimated value of this scheme is now £650,000.

4.0

Land at Crestwood College for Business and Enterprise

4.1

A major project to improve sports and other curriculum facilities was recently completed at the College. The funding source was a capital receipt from the sale of surplus College land for residential development. Consent to this disposal has been obtained under Section 77 School Standards and Framework Act 1998. The consent requires that all funds arising from the land sale must be spent on sports or education related projects at schools.

4.2

Following completion of the sale at Crestwood and completion of the major project to provide a new sports hall, fitness suite, drama studio and all-weather pitch, there remains a balance of £985k available to commit to other projects at the College and other schools in the County that would benefit from enhanced sports developments for students and local communities.

4.3

It is proposed to use this available funding in the following ways:

4.4

Crestwood College for Business and Enterprise

4.4.1

There is an opportunity to further improve facilities at the College by enhancing the external areas provision to include improvement to the netball facilities by enhancing the existing hard play area, vehicular access, additional parking and drop-off, footpaths, landscaping and drainage.

4.4.2

The current estimated cost of these works is £500,000 including fees and it is recommended that they be added to the Children's Services Capital Programme 2008-2009.

4.5

Priestlands School, Lymington

4.5.1

The project to provide sports and recreational facilities at Priestlands School was approved in 2003 when funding included the use of the capital receipt from The Old School House, Cannon Street, Lymington. Most of the funding for the project was from Sport England. The capital receipt from the Cannon Street property was also identified and approved for the Horrill Centre at Dibden Purlieu in October 2006. As the contribution to the Horrill Centre was the most recently approved use of the receipt, the proceeds (around £350,000) have been allocated to that project.

4.5.2

In respect of Priestlands School it is proposed to allocate £350,000 of the surplus receipt from Crestwood to the project.

4.6

4.6.1

Wyvern Technology College, Fair Oak

An opportunity exists for the County Council to contribute to a project to provide a new sports facility at this College. It is proposed to construct a new `J Track' (running track) and jumping complex which will be the first of its kind in the County. This will benefit a number of schools in the Eastleigh and Fair Oak areas, together with the local community. The estimated cost of the scheme is £450,000 and it is recommended that the County Council commits £125,000 of the balance available from the Crestwood receipt. The remaining funding is being jointly provided by the College, Eastleigh Borough Council and the Parish Councils, together with a contribution from Land Fill Tax.

5.0

Basingstoke Discovery Centre

5.1

5.2

The Discovery Centre concept has been introduced by Recreation and Heritage to provide a new image and sense of purpose for libraries in Hampshire. Basingstoke Discovery Centre is to be the next project to following on from the successful Gosport and Winchester Discovery Centres.

Currently it is proposed to refurbish the existing library in Festival Place, Basingstoke. However discussions are currently underway between the County Council and Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council to establish if a more prominent new build scheme could be viable. In particular Basingstoke and Deane are advising on the availability of land that could be used for this purpose.

5.3

Brief

At the core of the Discovery Centre project will be a modern lending and reference library. This will be accompanied by a local studies section, a café, an exhibition area, community facilities, a community radio studio and enlarged IT areas. New facilities for the existing Citizens Advice Bureau will also be included.

5.4

5.4.1

Proposals

The new refurbished facilities will be welcoming, socially inclusive and accessible. A new fully accessible lift car will be installed in a renovated existing lift shaft to improve access. The internal environment will be improved to give a pleasant and comfortable ambience. The combined total area of the existing library and the Citizens' Advice Bureau is approximately 2,600m2 which will make Basingstoke Discovery Centre the largest in the county.

5.2

Funding

5.2.1

Following the completion of a feasibility study, the anticipated project cost is around £3m. A funding proposal could be: £1m from the sale of Recreation and Heritage assets; £1m from capital receipts; £1m from sponsorship; and a contribution from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council. It is proposed that County Council contributions be allocated in equal proportions in the 2008/9 and 2009/10 capital programmes, subject to the approval of the Capital Programme as part of the Council's Budget in February 2008.

5.3

Programme

5.3.1

A detailed project appraisal will be completed once a decision has been made on whether to refurbish the existing library or provide a new-build facility. If the refurbishment option is selected, timescales for a new build option will be subject to further feasibility work to assess the brief, scope and location before fixing target dates. It is proposed to commence work on site in late summer/autumn 2008 and complete in the summer of 2009.

6.0

Stonecroft Children's Home, Havant

6.1

The Executive Member for Children's Services approved the closure of the Stonecroft Children's Home, Havant on 2 April 2007. The Children's Home, which closed in September 2007, is surplus to all County Council requirements and discussions are currently on-going with Havant Borough Council on potential future uses for the building. A further report will be brought to BLPP on the outcome of the planning and marketing exercise.

6.2

It is proposed, subject to the approval of the Executive Member for Policy and Resources, to proceed with the disposal of the former Stonecroft Children's Home, allocate the receipt to the P&R Capital Programme and to use part of it to fund a range of Children's Services office accommodation solutions in the southeast of the county, principally for Children's Services. It is proposed that future disposals of operational buildings across the estate will be considered for inclusion within the strategic review where opportunity exists to improve the efficiency of service delivery through the rationalisation of the office portfolio. Specific recommendations will be brought forward as appropriate.

LINK(S) TO CORPORATE STRATEGY

Yes

No

Hampshire safer and more secure for all

_

Maximising well-being

_

Enhancing our quality of place

_

This proposal does not link to the Corporate Strategy but, nevertheless, requires a decision because: