The North West Fire & Rescue Services PFI Project

Information Sheet

Introduction
Working in collaboration, the Fire and Rescue Services of Merseyside, Lancashire and Cumbria have created a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) Project to construct 16 new Community Fire Stations across the North West of England. The Project has progressed through the Competitive Dialogue process gaining approval from each of the three Authorities, the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and H.M. Treasury�s Project Review Group. Balfour Beatty Fire & Rescue are the Selected Bidder who have designed the fire stations, and will build, finance and operate all 16 stations.

A contract will be signed with Balfour Beatty Fire & Rescue in February 2011, with work beginning on the first stations at Kirkdale, Formby, Newton le Willows, Patterdale, Carlisle East, Carlisle West, Blackburn and Fleetwood shortly after. Building work will start at the remaining eight stations on a phased basis after that. All new stations should be operational by mid 2013.

Background
This Project will provide new community-orientated facilities and, in a number of cases, will deliver improved response times by replacing ageing, inappropriate and/or poorly located facilities.

Scope
The Project scope includes the design, construction, funding and facilities management for sixteen community fire stations. The facilities to be provided range in size from single appliance fire stations to multi-appliance stations with additional garaging for special equipment. Some of the sites include training facilities and additional office space. The fire stations are to be constructed on a mixture of new and existing sites, in some cases involving demolition and phased working around operational units or other emergency service facilities. At other sites, complete decant arrangements will be required during the building phase

Financial Value
The capital value of the scheme is currently estimated to be �48m with additional lifecycle and associated service costs, including facilities management.

Project Objectives
The main objectives of this project are:

� To improve fire station design and location in relation to current and future risk response
� To widen community access to fire stations
� To create well designed facilities to a high architectural standard
� To provide a safe and healthy environment and improved facilities for firefighters and other personnel

Locations
The proposed Community Fire Stations are located as follows:

� Cumbria-Carlisle East, Carlisle West, Patterdale, Penrith (including new FRS HQ, Resilience Unit and County Council Emergency Control), Workington
� Lancashire-Blackburn, Burnley, Chorley, Fleetwood (with Optimum Crewing System accommodation)
� Merseyside-Belle Vale, Birkenhead, Bootle/Netherton, Formby, Kirkdale (including ORC), Newton-le-Willows, Southport (shared facilities with North West Ambulance Service) 

The sites range from rural locations with retained crews to busy inner-city locations with full-time crews. One site is within the Lake District National Park. There is a large geographical spread with sites from Carlisle in the north to Birkenhead in the south of the region.

Project Management Team
An Executive Board has been established with representation from each Fire and Rescue Authority at Principal Officer level. The Project Manager (nominated from within Merseyside F&RA) reports to the Executive Board on progress and matters where Board approval is required. Each Authority in turn then has a lead officer responsible for co-ordination of their input to the Project. Along with both external and internal legal, financial and technical advisors, these personnel make up the Project Management Team. After Financial Close, the make-up of the Team will alter to take into account the management of the contract during construction and operation.

Procurement Process and Provisional Timetable
A formal notice in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) was issued in August 2008. Following this, the Project followed the Competitive Dialogue process to determine the Selected Bidder. After evaluation of bids, Balfour Beatty Fire & Rescue were approved as Selected Bidder by the three Authorities, DCLG and HM Treasury in March 2010. Detailed planning applications for each site were then submitted and approved by the local planning authorities. After the Government�s Comprehensive Spending Review in October 2010, and a review of the Final Business Case, the Project was given approval in December 2010 to progress to Financial Close in February 2011, with confirmation of the Government�s support in the form of PFI Credits of �66.4m.

Payment Mechanism
In accordance with the principles of PFI, services have been procured using an Output Specification describing the room sizes, functions and required facilities at each site. This document has since evolved into the Authorities Requirements and Balfour Beatty Fire & Rescue have responded with their Contractor�s Proposals which have now been agreed. These documents will be built into the formal contract. As each station is built, Balfour Beatty Fire & Rescue will be paid on a monthly basis from the acceptance of the facility as ready for use until the end of the term of agreement (25 years from handover of the last fire station to be completed). Balfour Beatty Workplace will provide the facilities management of the stations.

Contact Details 
For further information please contact the Project Manager, Colin Schofield at Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service Headquarters, Bridle Road, Bootle, Merseyside L30 4YD

Colin Schofield - PFI Project Manager
Email: colinschofield@merseyfire.gov.uk
Telephone: 0151 296 4203

Justine Guy � NW Fire & Rescue Services PFI Project Co-ordinator
Email: Justineguy@merseyfire.gov.uk
Telephone: 0151 296 4231

Trade/Supplier Enquiries contact: Keith France (Cost Planning, Mansell)
Email: kfrance@mansell.plc.uk

Links:
www.communities.gov.uk
www.cumbriafire.gov.uk
www.lancsfirerescue.org.uk