Schools hampered by high bid costs

The first change, introduced by new BSF chief executive Tim Byles, is to assess whether the local authority has the necessary procurement skills in place. If it doesn’t, it will not be allowed to proceed.

In a second development, the government has extended the role of architectural watchdog CABE in the design process. CABE enablers, who currently provide strategic advice to local authorities at the briefing stage, will now provide a formal evaluation of designs from all the bidders.

But contractors feel that these changes will not address the fundamental problem that bid costs are too high. One senior contractor source commented: “Tim Byles isn’t listening to us. The procurement process is just too expensive.”

A big problem is that local authorities are asking consortia to provide designs for three or four schools initially. Guidelines suggest two schools only, and although Partnerships for Schools, the government body which runs BSF, says it is enforcing this rule, contractors say it isn’t coming through on the ground.

The introduction of a new EU directive on competitive dialogue means that even more information will be required. “Bids are going to get more and more expensive, which means that firms will be able to go after fewer schemes,” said the source.

Byles, the former chief of Norfolk County Council and chair of the Local Government Task Force, took up his position in November and has admitted that it typically takes 30 to 32 months for a local authority to go from the beginning of the process to financial close. But he said he did not believe that bid costs were too high.

If you missed our Nov/Dec feature “Are we building schools for the future?” you can read it again in our archive at www.construction-manager.co.uk