Government Business 30.2

How

Making

Another Hunt budget

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt recently published his spring budget, including further help with energy costs and extended provision of childcare.

Missing from the budget was any statement on public sector pay or any big announcements on the NHS. However, funding was announced for pot holes, which will be welcome for many in local government and the public at large.

The chancellor also announced funding for leisure centres and swimming pools, which as you will see in our energy feature on p. 72, have been struggling for some time now. Many across the country have been finding innovative ways to keep their heads above water.

Our waste management section looks at ways that savings can be made on local bin collections and how electric refuse vehicles have been rolled out around the country.

We also cover a lot on facilities in this issue, including cleaning, fire safety and asbestos management.

Finally several event previews are included throughout the issue, providing an overview of the best events for facilities management, fire safety, health & safety and security, which you can visit in the coming months.

Polly Jones, editor

P ONLINE P MOBILE P FACE-TO-FACE

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A well-planned lighting solution can overcome many challenges and enhance the environment in measurable ways. With LOGIC and Schréder’s EXEDRA it’s possible.

Schréder’s EXEDRA is an advanced lighting management system that remotely controls your luminaires to monitor, meter, and manage in a lighting network. This supports to reduce operational and maintenance costs and increase energy savings, whilst contributing towards Governments’ drive to NetZERO by 2050.

Contents Government Business 30.2

07 News

Hunt unveils budget; Cultural venues to get £60 million funding; Transport network investment plans announced

13 IT

In November, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, published “Greening government ICT: annual report 2021 to 2022”, which sets out the progress made in making digital services and technologies in government more sustainable. GB investigates

18

Cyber Security

Chris Dimitriadis, chief global strategy officer at ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association) on how public sector organisations can protect themselves from cyber threats

21 Cleaning

Jim Melvin, chairman of the British Cleaning Council, on the role of cleaning and hygiene staff in keeping buildings clean

22

Facilities Show

The Facilities Show is taking place at ExCel London on 16-18 May

25 Fire Safety

The Fire Industry Association on the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 and what it means for local authorities and housing providers

31 Fire Safety Event

The Fire Safety Event is coming to NEC Birmingham on 25-27 April

35 Asbestos

The UK Asbestos Training Association (UKATA) highlights the importance of worker safety in asbestos removal

41 Health & Safety Event

The Health & Safety Event will take place at NEC Birmingham on 25-27 April

48 Workplace Event

An evolution of The Facilities Event, The Workplace Event on 25-27 April brings together workplace professionals from facilities, HR, technology, real estate, transport, design, and architecture to share best practice, expertise and ideas to create effective working environments

51 Waste Management

All local authorities are struggling with rising costs at the moment and savings need to be found. On top of this, many people still do not recycle as much as they could. With recent bad weather also affecting bin collections, is there a way to make bin collections more efficient?

63 Waste Management

Bin collection is, by nature, quite a dirty task. However, councils around the country have been working on making collections cleaner by using electric vehicles

71 EV Charging

The recent Geospatial Commission report identified how better use of location data can help overcome four key challenges to siting chargepoints: modelling future demand, finding suitable sites, creating a seamless consumer experience and tracking rollout. Ellie Skinner, senior policy advisor at the Geospatial Commission, explores these four points

72 Energy

The energy crisis is squeezing a lot of budgets right now and this of course includes local authorities. One of the highest energy costs for local authorities is the local swimming pool and this may be one of the areas that takes a hit when times are hard. GB takes a deep dive into what pools across the country are doing to stay afloat

77 Security

Christian Schneider, hostile vehicle mitigation (HVM) advisor, explains how HVM can be integrated into towns and cities and address other problems besides security

83 Conferences & Events

There are several things to consider when picking an event venue and some things you may not think of. Have a look at our guide before you make a booking, to make sure you get a venue that suits your event

89 G-Cloud 13

Heather Cover-Kus, head of central government programme at techUK takes a look at some of the pros and cons of the G-Cloud 13 framework

97

G-Cloud 13

G-Cloud 13 went live on 9 November, after a slight delay. The latest iteration replaces G-Cloud 12, provides cloud computer services to the public sector and lists 5,006 suppliers

109 Recruitment

With very high vacancy rates across the public sector, what can be done to fill these gaps?

110 Green Spaces

Ali Morse, water policy manager at The Wildlife Trusts explains some of the Trusts’ projects and how they are benefitting the local area

Sponsored

Sponsored

Hunt unveils budget

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has shared the contents of his budget.

The budget includes the extension to the energy price cap that had been unveiled earlier, along with £200 million to bring energy charges for prepayment meters into line with prices for customers paying by direct debit.

£63 million will be made available for leisure centres to help with swimming pool heating costs and energy efficiency.

As anticipated, free childcare has been expanded, with 30 hours of free childcare available for working parents in England with one and two-year-olds, in a bid to encourage people to work more.

There will also be 12 new Investment Zones, across the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, the North East, South

Funds awarded through Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme

Nearly £2 billion of funding has been announced, intended to help more than 115,000 homes across England to get upgrades to improve their energy efficiency and save residents money on their bills.

The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and Home Upgrade Grant will be used to fund energy-saving measures, including from loft insulation and new windows. An additional £1.1 billion in match funding for social housing provided by local authorities, providers of social housing and charities will bring the total investment to £2.5 billion to upgrade social and private homes in England.

The money will go towards improvements to vulnerable households and off-gas grid homes with an EPC rating of D or below and it is hoped this could save tenants between £220 and £400 a year on energy bills.

It is anticipated that the schemes could support around 20,000 jobs in the construction and home retrofit sectors.

£409 million has been granted through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to help public sector buildings such as schools and hospitals drive down their carbon emissions.

144 public sector organisations responsible for schools, hospitals, leisure centres, museums and universities will benefit from this support.

Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, East Midlands, Teesside and Liverpool.

The Chancellor also announced £200 million in local regeneration projects across England and £161 million for mayoral combined authorities and Greater London, with £400 million available for new “levelling up partnerships”.

£8.8 billion over the next five-year funding period has been set aside for the second round of the city region sustainable transport settlements. There will be £200 million for pot holes.

Finally, there will be 320 million funding for the Scottish government, £180 million for the Welsh government and £130 million for the Northern Ireland executive.

Devolution deal signed for West Midlands DEVOLUTION

Levelling up secretary Michael Gove and Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street have signed a devolution deal for the West Midlands, giving local authorities more power over transport, regeneration, skills and culture.

The deal also includes a regeneration package worth up to £160 million.

New measures that have been agreed include: a new long-term funding settlement, including the right to retain 100 per cent of business rates for 10 years; a partnership with Homes England, with a commitment to work towards investing £400m in the West Midlands by 2026; further support for regeneration and infrastructure with £100m of brownfield funding and £60 million of investment in the metro line extension from Wednesbury to Brierley Hill; and Levelling up zones, backed by 25-year business rate retention, to generate jobs and investment.

The deal also includes plans for greater control over public transport with a new rail partnership with Great British Railways and the devolution of the payment of the bus service operators grant; the establishment of a transport ‘sandbox’ to put the West Midlands

at the forefront of transport innovation, with additional commitments to a new Strategic Innovation Partnership and better access to finance for local businesses; more oversight and control over adult skills funding and more responsibility over developing and delivering careers advice; and devolution of funding to retrofit buildings, to bring down energy bills for households across the West Midlands.

Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said: “Visionary local leaders like Andy Street understand the needs of their areas better than decision-makers in Whitehall - that is why it is vital that we put more power and control in their hands.

“This deal goes further than we’ve ever gone before. It will give the Mayor unprecedented power to spend on local priorities and more control over transport, skills and housing – the things people truly care about.

“Today marks a bold new frontier in devolution in this country, and it’s fantastic to see the West Midlands right at the forefront.”

PAUSE. BREATHE.

Picture yourself underneath a tree. Feels good, doesn’t it?

Trees provide us with a sense of wellbeing and calm, and a vital connection to nature.

But in many British coastal towns and cities, these environments are under threat.

IT’S TIME FOR CHANGE. TREES CAN BE A CATALYST FOR THIS CHANGE.

Trees breathe new life into a town.

Trees help to regenerate health and wealth for today and tomorrow.

We want our coastal towns and cities to experience this transformational power.

HOW CAN TREES BREATHE NEW LIFE INTO YOUR TOWN?

Find out how to get involved at treesforcities.org/breathe

BCC Economic Forecast: Economy to shrink in 2023 before rebounding

BCC expects the UK economy to avoid a technical recession but shrink by 0.3 per cent in 2023, before returning to growth in 2024; inflation will slow to 5 per cent by Q4 2023.

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) forecasts the economy will not return to its prepandemic size until the final quarter of 2024.

The rate of UK inflation is expected to continue slowing throughout 2023, hitting 5 per cent by Q4.

The economy will shrink in 2023, by much less than previously expected, but the recovery will remain weak with predicted growth for 2024 revised down.

In the immediate term, the BCC is now expecting the first quarter of 2023 to see GDP fall, before three quarters of flat or weak growth - leading to an overall contraction of 0.3 per cent for the year. This is a slightly

Funding announced for zeroemission buses in Leicester

The government has announced £3 million for 18 new zero-emission buses in Leicester. The new buses will be manufactured in Northern Ireland by Wrightbus and operated by First Bus.

This latest investment means all diesel buses at the operator First Bus’s depot in Leicester will now be replaced with 86 electric buses funded by the Zero Emission Buses Regional Areas (ZEBRA), making Leicester home to one of the first bus depots in the UK to transition to fully electric. In total, Leicester has benefitted from nearly £22 million funding from the ZEBRA scheme to support 114 electric buses.

This comes as the government announces a new Bus Centre of Excellence, backed by £815,000 in government investment, which will bring together expertise from local government, bus operators and industry to boost skills and diversity in the bus sector.

Hosted by the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation, the centre of excellence will provide training opportunities, direct access to resources and industry experts, as well as networking events to uplift the capacity and capability of the whole sector, working to encourage people to get back on the bus.

Roads minister Richard Holden said: “Buses are the backbone of our transport network, providing affordable travel for commuters, families, and pensioners, and providing an economic lifeline for towns and cities around the country.

“This multimillion investment for Leicester’s clean transformation, coupled with the new Bus Centre of Excellence, will help drive the country’s bus sector recovery and provide passengers with cleaner, more affordable buses that run on time.”

READ MORE

more optimistic outlook than either the OBR or Bank of England’s predictions. The BCC also expects the economy to grow in 2024, at 0.6 per cent, compared to the BoE’s forecast of 0.25 per cent shrinkage.

The expectation for 2023 has been revised upwards from -1.3 per cent in the BCC’s last forecast, due to a more resilient economic performance at the end of 2022. Household spending held up well, despite a fall in real disposable income due to rising energy costs, inflation outstripping wages, frozen income tax allowances and higher mortgage payments.

Exports were also stronger than expected in the second half of 2022, in part due to fuel and machinery demand, and also trade in precious metals – likely seen as a safe harbour in uncertain times. However, this trend is not expected to continue with a 4.5

per cent decline in exports predicted across 2023. BCC research also shows that while overall export values have held up, many smaller companies are not reporting any improvements in their trading conditions. Despite a big drop in business confidence in Q3 2022, this now appears to have stabilised albeit at a lower level. Business investment has now returned to prepandemic levels, although it was not performing well then. With an expected rise in corporation tax coming down the tracks, alongside a business rates revaluation in April, and higher interest rates, this is likely to lead to flatlining investment in 2023 at 0.2 per cent.

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Wales plans to tackle pollution for healthier future AIR QUALITY

A bill has been introduced to the Welsh Senedd, which would give the Welsh Government extra powers to tackle air and noise pollution.

The Environment (Air Quality and Soundscapes) (Wales) Bill is part of a package of measures intended to improve air quality in Wales.

The bill would give the Welsh Government powers to introduce new long-term targets for air quality under a national framework taking account of the latest scientific knowledge including the World Health Organisation Air Quality Guidelines.

The bill will help create low emission zones on Welsh Government trunk roads where needed and will give local authorities more power to tackle vehicle idling.

Climate change minister Julie James said: “Our Programme for Government sets out a commitment to introduce a Clean Air Bill for Wales and I am delighted we have reached the first stage in our legislative journey which will lead the way to a cleaner, healthier and greener future.

“By introducing this Bill, our ambition is to further improve air quality and soundscapes by bringing forward new measures to reduce the impacts of air and noise pollution on human health, biodiversity and the natural environment.

“The scale and scope of the Bill reflects our commitment to improving the quality of our air environment at a Wales-wide level, at a local and regional level and throughout society.”

There will also be an obligation on ministers to introduce a national soundscapes strategy, making Wales the first nation in the UK to make this commitment.

As a result, policies will tackle unwanted noise, but also protect sounds that matter to people, like birdsong.

The soundscapes strategy is in response to emerging science on the impacts of sounds on health and well-being.

READ MORE

Cultural venues to get £60 million funding

include museums, cultural venues and public libraries.

The aim is to improve people’s access to the arts, support local economic growth through culture and safeguard vital local collections for future generations.

The money will be used to transform, upgrade and create arts venues.

60 cultural venues are set to receive a share of £58.8 million funding. Those set to receive money from the Cultural Investment Fund

Basildon Borough Council is to receive £4.4 million to turn empty properties in the town centre into a creative facility for screen and immersive digital industries. Bradford, which is UK City of Culture 2025, is set to receive £4.9 million to redevelop the intercultural arts centre Kala Sangam and other cultural assets, to establish a network of local arts hubs and support the successful delivery of its year as the culture capital and beyond.

NET ZERO TRANSPORT

Transport network investment plans announced

The transport secretary has announced that more than £40 billion will be invested in “transformational transport schemes” over the next two financial years.

The funding is intended to help level up and grow the economy.

The funding includes continued investment in HS2 and £8 billion investment for major roads.

Transport secretary Mark Harper said: “We know the power of transport as an engine for sustainable economic growth. That’s why – even in this tough economic climate – this government sees transport investment as a down payment on the country’s future and is committing £20 billion over each of the next 2 years to improve the UK’s transport network.

“But we can’t ignore the current realities. Putin’s war in Ukraine has hiked up inflation, sending supply chain costs rocketing. The responsible decisions I’ve outlined today will ensure we balance the budget at the same time as investing record sums in our transport network to help halve inflation, grow the economy and reduce debt.”

The press release from the Department for Transport also announced that several projects have been delayed “in recognition of inflationary pressures and to help balance the nation’s books” and due to “challenging economic headwinds following Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and supply chain disruption as the global economy recovers from the pandemic, which have made project delivery difficult”.

Delayed projects include The A27 Arundel Bypass and A5036 Port of Liverpool Access and the Lower Thames Crossing.

“Culture helps us create lifelong memories with our families and friends, provides entertainment and joy, and allows us to explore the world around us in new and exciting ways. It can also boost tourism, support local business and drive local economic growth.

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Welsh Government publishes plans for net-zero jobs

promoting opportunities for early years and young people to realise their potential; a cross-government and partnership approach to meeting the skills commitment; and a just transition.

Economy minister, Vaughan Gething said: “The Welsh Government is determined to ensure we build a Stronger, Fairer, Greener Wales, where no one is left behind. We’ve committed to creating a Wales where individuals of all ages can receive a highquality education, with jobs for all and where businesses can thrive in a net zero economy that champions fairness and equality.

The Welsh Government has published a plan explaining how it will ensure that children, young people and workers have skills to be able to work in Net Zero industries that don’t exist yet.

The Stronger, Fairer, Greener Wales: Net Zero Skills Plan sets out a long-term vision of how the Welsh Government, businesses and industry, the education and skills sectors and trades unions will work together to upskill the people of Wales to work in the net zero jobs of the future.

The announcement is part of plans to create a stronger, more competitive Welsh economy by narrowing the skills divide and tackling inequality.

The plan has seven key areas of action including gaining an understanding of the current skills position for each emission sector; building a shared understanding of net zero skills across the country; strengthening the skills systems and growing a skilled workforce to meet net zero commitments. The other priority areas are

“The Net Zero Skills plan I am unveiling today is designed to ensure today’s children and workers will have the skills they’ll need to work in the jobs of tomorrow; jobs that will become the cornerstone of the new industries of the future that are either in their infancy or don’t yet exist.

“The publication of the new plan is just the start of this process. Government cannot tackle the challenge alone. A Team Wales approach is the only way we can drive forward these changes and meet our net zero commitments. Everyone needs to take responsibility and play their part in taking action to improve practices, investing in people and communities to innovate and build a more resilient economy.

Issue 30.2 | GOVERNMENT BUSINESS MAGAZINE 11

Innovative solutions by Philips monitors for modern institutions

Philips monitors provides solutions for a range of working environments for improved productivity and sustainable technology

Over the past couple of years, working environments have been rapidly changing to adapt to flexible work practices. Government institutions are no exception to this trend –as remote working brings benefits in various settings, during health-related absences, emergencies in remote locations and more. Furthermore, flexible workstations, where staff can work on any of the available PCs on the premises, are becoming more and more common, allowing an increased number of workers in the same physical space just on different or more shifts.

The recently launched B1U monitors from Philips monitors’ business portfolio offer a wide array of features to ensure convenience for video conferences and multi-monitor installations. Available in three sizes and a range of resolutions, the 24” Philips 24B1U5301H (Full HD), 27” Philips 27B1U5601H (QHD), and the 34” ultrawide Philips 34B1U5600CH (UW-QHD) aim to cover all the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s workforce in flexible environments.

Particularly practical, each of these monitors are equipped with a 5 MP webcam, noise-cancelling microphone and dual 5W speakers. This not only spares the expenditure for additional hardware, it thus also ensures a clean communication during video calls and conferences, which is crucial in today’s workflows in any sector, including government institutions. Flexible connectivity is prioritised in these models as well, which come with an integrated onecable USB-C docking station. This means, laptops and tablets featuring a USB-C port (with DisplayPort Alternate Mode) can be connected with just one single cable to extend the laptop/tablet display, while those devices can be charged up to 100 W (90 W for the 24” model) simultaneously. What is more, there is no need and extra cost required for separate laptop-specific docking stations.

To improve security, the integrated webcam features Windows HelloTM facial recognition, allowing users to log in to their sessions without typing their password. With a physical switch to block the webcam’s field of view, concerns about privacy and confidentiality, which are crucial in governmental environments, are not forgotten.

In Philips monitors’ wide range of business portfolio, the higher-end 27” Philips 27B1U7903 delivers maximum performance for more demanding users thanks to its state-of-the-art technologies. Aimed at professionals working on graphics, video

editing, as well as CAD and 3D applications, this 27” IPS monitor features a razor-sharp 4K resolution, a MiniLED backlight with 2304 dimming zones an exceptional contrast ratio and VESA DisplayHDR 1400 certification for a wide dynamic range. High colour accuracy (DeltaE below 1) is ensured with a wide colour gamut (1.07 billion colours) thanks to the Quantum Dot technology that delivers rich and vibrant colours.

Another highlight of the 27B1U7903 is its ThunderboltTM 4 connectivity, which makes the monitor capable to fully support and accompany many computer ecosystems. With the Thunderbolt 4 connection, this model currently features the highest bandwidth of data transfer compared to similar USB-C equipped models, and it features an impressive 90 W power delivery to charge devices as well.

For institutions considering upgrading their equipment, one aspect is crucial: sustainability. This is also one of the key aspects at Philips monitors. Adhering to the latest common regulations and certifications, the models feature EnergyStar 8.0, EPEAT, and TCO Certified Edge. All the above models are also equipped with the PowerSensor, which enables up to 70-80 per cent energy savings by sensing the absence of the user to reduce the backlight when the display is not being used, as well as ergonomic stands to enable a healthy working environment. In 100 per cent recyclable packaging, the products are developed with sustainability in mind in their whole lifecycle from mining materials to recyclability.

As part of a pilot project in Nigeria, MMD, the leading technology company and brand

licensing partner for Philips monitors, also demonstrated how defective monitors can be recycled in an environmentally friendly and economical way. This pilot project from PREVENT Waste Alliance, an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is further supported by Closing the Loop and TCO Development, global organisations leading in the sustainability areas, as well as transnational and local partners in Nigeria. At the beginning of this project, there was hardly any experience in the recycling of flat screens. Employees of the recycling partner were therefore first trained in the manual dismantling of flat screens. Over 5,500 monitors that were no longer usable were collected by the partners for the project. At the end of the project, the recycler was able to dismantle flat panel displays in a very safe and efficient way, reducing the costs required to do so by more than half and returning raw materials to the cycle. This proven collaboration shows that procuring futureproof, sustainable Philips monitors becomes an easy and conscious decision to make for institutions which need to improve their impact on the environment.

By upgrading to Philips monitors in government institutions today, civil servants and public employees can directly start enjoying the benefits of improved productivity and collaboration, enhanced security, and sustainable technology!L

Working towards greener IT

In November, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, published “Greening government ICT: annual report 2021 to 2022”, which sets out the progress made in making digital services and technologies in government more sustainable. GB investigates

Defra is not who you would expect to be writing a review on government ICT, but Chris Howes, Defra chief digital information officer, points out the sustainability responsibility of the department: “Our services protect the planet from people through helping comply with regulation and advice on emissions etc. But we also protect people from the planet – and prevent the spread of food or animal borne diseases across our borders. Helping mitigate the impacts of climate change by providing flood warnings, providing data to support investment on flood alleviation and helping people take action to prepare and respond.

“We’ve committed in our own Defra Sustainable Tech Strategy to measuring, reporting, and reducing the negative impacts associated with our technology, not just on climate change but also encouraging a circular economy and social sustainability.”

DEFRA started reporting on emissions from government technology more than ten years ago, recognising the role technology and tech teams play in supporting the sustainability objectives of the organisations they support.

DEFRA is the lead government department for sustainable information and communications technology and the department recognises that the carbon footprint of ICT worldwide is on a level with the aviation industry – and it is expected to rise.

Howes said: “And we’ve seen steady reductions in emissions through things like the move to cloud, enabling us to leverage hyperscale level datacentres and cutting-edge technology.

“More widely you can see the role that technology is playing in the rapid acceleration of tech such as electric vehicles in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels for transportation. It’s not just the electric motors that enable that, it’s the interaction between the vehicle, the availability of charging points, having that data on our mobile phones or dashboards, allowing us to plan our journeys more effectively and so on.

“Technology won’t solve everything though. Minimising climate change will require massive behavioural and societal changes. So, we need a greater focus on how technology and data can help drive that.”

The report also points out the growing problem of ICT waste and issues in supply chains.

Aims

The Greening Government: ICT and Digital Services Strategy 2020-2025 was published in September 2020 with the intention of

meeting the challenge of measuring the impact of government ICT. The strategy provides best practices and guidance to support the delivery of Sustainable ICT within government spend control processes. The strategy also urges departments to focus on areas for improvement through the delivery of a departmental sustainable technology strategy statement.

Under The HMG Sustainable Technology Advice and Reporting (STAR) team, it should be ensured that government ICT services are designed, delivered and operated with sustainable principles at their core – this includes procurement, use and disposal.

Achievements

Over the years, ICT on government property has become more energy efficient as Cloud First and Digital policies have become more commonplace.

The report recognises achievements that have been reached, with an increased availability of data about footprint, the use of cloud hosting and the use of green energy, progress has been made towards net-zero ICT. E

DEFRA is the lead government fordepartment informationsustainableand communications technology

 34 departments/agencies/bodies provided returns for this year’s report, a significant increase of nine from last year. This means that this year, the assessment covered 603,000 employees which is 128,000 more than last year.

The individual staff energy consumption is estimated to be 1,546 kWh/year – 181 kWh lower than last year (1,727 kWh/y). This is due to a decrease in the energy consumption of the servers due to cloud migration, as well as the increase in the number of staff covered by the report.

38 million e-conferences were held across government, this is a large increase from 3.5 million in 2018/19 – though the pandemic would have had a significant impact on this.

By amending and simplifying reporting processes, a more accurate ICT energy consumption figure was achieved.

All hosting suppliers including cloud, were formally asked to provide energy consumption/carbon data relating to the services being consumed.

Strategy Statements, which set out proactive sustainable ICT projects and programmes have been received from the majority of departments and are endorsed by CDIOs.

Government departments

The Department for Health and Social Care reported: “Through completion of this year’s STAR reporting, we have now identified routes through which to retrieve energy consumption and carbon data for some of our key digital services (data centres and cloud services), as well as some gaps. This will allow us to better track our carbon footprint here in future and has highlighted some areas for transparency improvements”. In addition, organisations such as the HRA have stated aims to adopt technology to reduce wider impacts with an ‘Aim to reduce travel by 60 per cent on pre-pandemic levels for 2022/23’”.

The MoD said: “MOD have made the following commitment in their Sustainable Digital Technology and Services Strategic Approach 2021–2025, with a clear nod towards moving to lower impact digital services.

“Reduced Environmental Footprint Delivery and operation of digital capabilities must be non-polluting, require less energy, and reduce raw material demand, lowering MOD’s overall resource consumption. Device numbers must be managed effectively to avoid unnecessary proliferation, and hardware reused within a circular economy.

“This has already yielded results through proactively transforming MOD’s data centre estate they have achieved a reduction of 38 per cent in 2021/22 since 2018 with further migrations planned for 2023, saving ½ Million kWh or 128475.527 kgCO2e which is about 850,000 km in a diesel car! The same as going to the moon and back with fuel still in the tank.”

Waste

The STAR includes annual reporting on the ICT waste collected across government, how it is handled and how it is disposed of.

The figures for this year show that overall end-of-life resource treatment increased by 35 per cent compared to last year. There is a 43 per cent increase in reuse and a 30 per cent increase in recycled items. On the other hand, recovery decreased by 14 per cent. 2,323,426 kg of assets have been disposed of. This is a 601,070 kg increase compared to last year.

The report says: “The approach by departments to dealing with its end-of-life ICT varies across government. All departments contract out the responsibility. Many pay for recycling services then receive a rebate on value reclaimed from the raw materials and rare earth elements, some allow the waste to be taken for free leaving the contractor to reclaim any costs through resale, and some others offer a mixture of the two. What is clear is that there isn’t a consistent

view, or process, or guidance/policy and with the amount of waste approaching two million kilograms there is an opportunity for government to adopt a smarter, coordinated, ethical and perhaps more lucrative approach to managing its ICT lifecycle.”

Defra said: “In addition to maintaining our Zero to landfill target we have raised £200,000 by selling redundant assets an increase of 426 per cent from £38,000 in 2020 and donated 1,800 assets to citizens’ advice and computer Aid (our assets are now being used for those impacted by the war in Ukraine).”

Improvements

The report found that there has been increased consumption with ICT carbon, energy consumption and waste totals have increased, this is in relation to the digitisation of operations.

There has also been increased supplier engagement, increasing knowledge of the digital footprint. However the report also recognises the need for closer engagement with suppliers, as well as upskilling in the procurement area to ensure waste reduction.

Resource management has been improved with the zero to landfill target on track and reuse and recycling figures improved as well. On the other hand, there is still opportunity for government to adopt a smarter, coordinated and potentially more lucrative approach to managing its ICT lifecycle.

The report also points out that sustainable procurement is not well adopted across government and this requires urgent action in order to manage risks, ensure business resilience and deliver sustainable outcomes.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Read the report here

All hosting suppliers including cloud, were formally asked to provide energy consumption/carbon data relating to the services being consumed

Customer-Centric Agile: It is a business necessity

By embracing customer-centric Agile, organisations can differentiate themselves from the competition and stay ahead in today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape

In today’s digital world, customer-centricity is no longer an option but a necessity for businesses to stay competitive. It is not just about offering great products and services, but also about understanding the needs and preferences of your customers and delivering personalised experiences. The emergence of Agile methodologies has revolutionised project management and delivery, enabling organisations to respond quickly to changing customer demands. However, customer-centric Agile takes it one step further by aligning the Agile approach with customer needs and expectations.

In a recent interview between Jon Grainger (CTIO) and Iwona Winiarska (Agile Coach & Delivery Consultant), they discussed how customer-centric Agile is fundamental to any digital transformation project and the key benefits of implementing this approach. Here is a taster and takeaways from their interview:

Combining customer-centricity with Agile way of working

An agile approach is a flexible, iterative approach to software development that focuses on delivering value to customers in small increments. It promotes collaboration, continuous feedback, and continuous improvement, ensuring that the end product meets customer needs and expectations. Agile’s core values and principles emphasise individuals and interactions, working software, customer collaboration, and responding to change. This makes it an ideal approach for customer-centricity, as it puts the customer at the centre of the development process.

Don’t miss the discovery stage

Customer-centric Agile is not just about delivering a product that meets customer needs, but also about building a strong relationship with customers by involving them in the design process. This involves understanding customer needs, expectations, and feedback at every stage of the development process. This can be achieved through various agile practices, such as user stories, personas, and user acceptance testing. Therefore, discovery is vital for any project to truly understand the customer’s problems and their needs.

“Usually, we start a project having technical teams who begin development. So very often the first stages, like Discovery or Alpha, are about discovering and understanding the current situation, and trying to define that new solution is very often missed. I would propose we take a step back and think about who your customers are. What are they trying to achieve? What are their needs?” –

Iwona Winiarska

Collaboration

Customer-centric Agile also involves continuous feedback and collaboration with customers throughout the development process. This can be achieved through regular product demos, user testing sessions, and regular customer feedback. This allows the development team to iterate quickly, respond to customer feedback, and deliver a product that meets customer expectations.

key to pivoting on what the customer wants rather than a project or outcome-based. Providing solutions that are built for the purpose from the customer’s point of view can help future future-proof solutions.

“We are not saying literally deliver what the customer has asked for. In most cases, it is looking at the customer’s problem, and focusing on that. But stakes in the business are not always equal. The customer might ask for a chair with three legs, which was delivered. But that is what I call meeting the target and missing the point.” – Jon Grainger

Conclusion

Iwona Winiarska

“It’s important to help our customers identify what their needs or problem are. The easiest way to do this is by collaborating with them. So it’s about involving them in the design process so that we can co-create a product together with them. Through collaboration, early feedback and workshops where good facilitation is key, we can learn more about our customers and their needs.” –

Customer needs vs organisational needs

Understanding what your customer needs is one thing, delivering it is another. There will always be limitations on delivering exactly what the customer needs, but it is

In conclusion, customer-centric Agile is a powerful approach to digital transformation that puts the customer at the centre of the design and development process. It enables organisations to deliver value to customers quickly, respond to changing customer demands, and build strong customer relationships. By embracing customer-centric Agile, organisations can differentiate themselves from the competition and stay ahead in today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape. Watch the full interview between Jon Grainger and Iwona Winiarska here. For more information on enabling agile digital transformation in your organisation visit Certes IR Agility Ability or call us below. L

Breaking down digital trust barriers

Chris Dimitriadis, chief global strategy officer at ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association) on how public sector organisations can protect themselves from cyber threats

Public sector organisations in the modern digital economy face an ambitious task in earning – and maintaining – people’s trust.

Recent events like high-profile security breaches involving senior government officials, and the ransomware attack on Hackney Council, have fed into a growing distrust in many institutions. And with heightened scepticism about how well-equipped organisations are to protect personal data, building a trusted public relationship is more challenging than ever. The only path forward is for organisations to make strengthening digital trust – defined

by ISACA as “the confidence in the integrity of relations, interactions and transactions among providers and consumers within an associated digital ecosystem” – a central priority, and to strategically work through all obstacles that could impede this pursuit. What specifically is preventing public bodies from achieving digital trust?

According to ISACA’s State of Digital Trust 2022 survey report, the top obstacles are a lack of staff skills or training, lack of alignment of digital trust and strategic goals, lack of leadership buy-in, and lack of budget. Let’s look at each of these areas to

see how public bodies can work through these obstacles to achieve digital trust.

Lack of staff skills and training

Many of the digital trust fields – areas such as cybersecurity, privacy, IT audit, risk management and IT governance – face critical staffing shortages, as the labour supply in those areas often does not keep pace with public sector demand. But in many cases, organisations can find the right employees by being less rigid about criteria for filling these roles. They can then reduce the skills gaps by providing ongoing training and supporting relevant professional certifications while on the job. Organisations also need to strongly promote a culture of collaboration among these professionals. Digital trust cannot be achieved with a siloed approach – security and privacy professionals must support each other’s work and ethical considerations related to emerging technology implementations must be considered cross-functionally.

Lack of alignment of digital trust and strategic goals

Digital trust is so critical for public sector organisations to succeed that it must be baked into strategic goals from the outset, instead of only being considered once goals already have been established. People rightly expect public bodies to demonstrate urgency in putting plans into action but failing to ensure the necessary security measures are in place can undermine commitments to serve

the community. Taking process shortcuts in the name of a near-term goal is likely to lead to a long-term problem that could erode trust with the public and key stakeholders.

Lack of leadership buy-in

While public sector leaders may not understand all the intricacies of the threat landscape or data privacy regulations, they should understand how building and sustaining trust with the public is necessary to achieve their goals.

If that is not the case, digital trust champions such as chief information security officers, data privacy officers and risk leaders should engage organisational leaders by communicating in clear, businessfocused language what the business risks are of failing to prioritise digital trust.

Too often there is a disconnect between organisation leaders and technology functions in the language that they speak. Framing these conversations around building digital trust can be an effective way to bridge that divide and gain leadership buy-in.

Lack of budget

Prioritising digital trust inevitably requires a significant investment in staffing, tools and ongoing training and professional development for employees. While the public sector is often burdened by budget constraints, the risks of failing to make the necessary security investments must be carefully considered.

Public sector organisations are an attractive target for cyber criminals due to the sheer

volume of personal identifiable information they hold. And while the tactics employed by bad actors are becoming more sophisticated, many organisations are increasingly at risk due to outdated technology, systems, and processes. As we have seen in the fallout of the ransomware attack on Hackney Council, huge investments in time, money, and resources are required to recover from such an incident, but budgets can be better managed when proactive steps are taken in anticipation of threats.

Overcoming the obstacles

While there is much progress to be made, each of the above obstacles can be addressed

through commitment from public sector leaders and a renewed commitment to cross-functional collaboration. Without earning and preserving trust from the public and other stakeholders, no amount of digital innovation will be enough for modern enterprises to remain competitive. Whatever factors might currently be holding organisations back from driving toward digital trust must be identified and overcome to set a foundation for sustainable success. L FURTHER

For 75 years we’ve been at the heart of the cleaning industry, delivering peace of mind. From hand soap and personal care, to dishwashing and kitchen hygiene; from surface disinfection to laundry care; from drain busting to keeping your fleets clean and safe on the roads, you can count on us.

The key role of cleaning staff in keeping public buildings hygienically clean

Jim Melvin, chairman of the British Cleaning Council, on the role of cleaning and hygiene staff in keeping buildings clean

The role of cleaning and hygiene staff in keeping buildings hygienically clean has clearly never been more important than in the years since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The cleaning, hygiene and waste sector – which is one of the ten biggest industries in the UK, worth nearly £59 billion – has always played an unequivocally vital role in keeping people safe, healthy and well.

There can be no argument that during the Covid-19 pandemic, cleaning teams were frontline in getting buildings hygienically ready for key workers. That must not and will not be forgotten.

The outbreak of the pandemic brought a new awareness among the public of the importance of hygiene.

Survey after survey has revealed the public’s need to see visible cleaning to a high standard in buildings they use in order to feel confident and reassured.

The result has been a new emphasis on high standards of hygiene in factories, workplaces, supermarkets, public transport hubs, hotels and hospitals – in fact, in every public building.

In many venues, new cleaning regimes, procedures and innovations have been brought in to meet the heightened expectations of building owners and contract cleaning clients.

One common approach has been to introduce more frequent cleaning for touchpoints such as door handles, bannisters and countertops.

Elsewhere, extra training in infection control has been introduced for cleaning staff along with new chemicals and products.

We have also seen technology being widely introduced to allow staff to work more smartly.

This includes sensors that monitor footfall and radio frequency ID tags linked to handheld devices to ensure areas are given the right amount of cleaning, while demand has taken off for cobots and robots to support the work of cleaning staff.

The sector’s proud and professional staff have responded by adapting quickly to the new requirements and often working more intensively.

Cleaning and hygiene have risen to the top of the agenda bringing considerable investment and I don’t see that changing in the near future.

The importance of keeping public buildings cleaned to a high standard to control infections will remain a priority, especially with the threat of flu or Coronavirus cases this winter, while Mpox remains a menace.

But the cleaning and hygiene sector’s ability to maintain these high standards is being hampered by the severe staff shortages we have been experiencing over recent months.

The British Cleaning Council is calling for the Government to help with this major recruitment crisis and recognise the frontline role of cleaning staff. As part of this, we recently launched the ‘We Clean, We Care’ campaign to highlight the pride that staff have in their vital role.

The Government have now unquestionably seen the effects of Covid-19 and there can never be any claim in the future that we were unaware or caught by surprise.

We need to work together with Government without further delay to ensure we have a collective UK hygiene plan and that, together, we are ready to change both cultural and social attitudes to cleaning and hygiene as well as recognising the professional skill of those who work in the industry.

We no longer accept the narrative that industry staff are “low skilled”, which has been traditionally rolled out by those who have little or no idea of what is involved. I certainly don’t recall too many people saying that over the last two or three years and it is simply untrue. It’s time for a cultural change which we look forward to driving with full Government help and support. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

https://britishcleaningcouncil.org

Facilites Show 2023

The Facilities Show is taking place at ExCel London on 16-18 May

The Facilities Show is Europe’s richest and most extensive range of facilities management solutions and expertise. Facilities Show welcomes thousands of global FM leaders to connect with peers, stay on top of legislation and best practice, experience the latest technological solutions and hear from industry trailblazers.

Those visiting come from facilities services, installation/integration, construction, education, information technology, local government, security/investigation, real estate, engineering and electrical manufacturing.

Seminars

At the FM Theatre, sessions will cover environmental, social and governance, people and culture, workplace as a destination, property and corporate estate, and future-proofing FM. Sessions include Meeting challenges with professionalism, Sustainability legislation – now and upcoming, Celebrating FM’s impact on society and DE&I in FM – why do we need to do better?

Bite-sized presentations on the latest innovations in workplace technology will be delivered at Smart Building Tech Talks. From AIoT to Zero Carbon tech, you’re covered. Sessions include Meeting room tables –blending aesthetics with the requirements of modern AV tech, The 4 pillars of an optimal smart building strategy, Why PIR sensors are essential for a truly smart building and Non-intrusive and live condition monitoring of high voltage infrastructure. The Tall Buildings Conference will cover three key themes – High Rise Construction Fire Safety, Green Fire Safety Issues and Crisis Management in High Rise & Complex Buildings.

Exhibit

Visitors will be able to speak to the experts, explore innovative products and assess hundreds of leading facilities management suppliers under one roof. The show also offers the opportunity to see how the latest tech innovation

brings together facilities management, security, fire safety and wellbeing in a unique smart building environment. For exhibitors, the show offers several benefits including maximising your ROI by meeting thousands of facilities management and real estate professionals face-to-face. The event also offers brand exposure, the opportunity to launch products and networking. Last year, 74 per cent of visitors were interested in doing business with facilities management or smart building suppliers and 42 per cent were heads of department, C-suite, directors or owners.

Networking

Kick back and relax in the FM Bar. Network, catch up with industry colleagues and build new relationships at the UK’s biggest facilities management show. There are also networking opportunities including breakfasts and drink receptions and closed-door roundtable discussions.

At the FM Theatre, sessions will cover environmental, social and governance, people and culture, workplace as a destination, property and corporate estate, and future-proofing FM

HUMAN NATURE: AT ITS BEST

Creating, maintaining and sustaining better landscapes and biodiverse habitats

Reviews

Visitors to the show in previous years have praised the event. A workplace consultant at TSK said: “This is my first time at Facilities Show and I’m impressed with the sheer amount of information here which I can pass on to my clients. One of my favourite things about coming here is having access to the other shows because I have come across useful tech that is new to me.”

A visitor services manager at City of London said: “The networking opportunities are brilliant here, and that’s why I normally attend. However, this year, I have been amazed by the amount of technology and modernisation. There’s always so much to do and see here, but my highlight is always the keynote speakers!”

Co-located events

The Facilities Show is co-located with four other events. Immerse yourself in the rapidly growing smart building technology market at Intelligent Building Europe. Hear about the use of technology in fire detection and the easily mismanaged policy of occupants staying put during a fire at the global centre of excellence for fire safety, FIREX International. Discover solutions to combat safety risks in your workplace, benefit from in-show discounts and keep up to date with mental health initiatives at Europe’s best dedicated health and safety event, Safety & Health Expo. Source products across integrated systems, intruder alarms, IT security, access control and more at the integrated security summit, IFSEC International. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

https://www.facilitiesshow. com/en/home.html

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What are the changes to Fire Safety Regulations?

The Fire Industry Association on the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 and what it means for local authorities and housing providers

The Grenfell tower tragedy has put fire safety back at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

The government responded to the tragedy by introducing new legislation, new guidance and new regulations. The Fire Safety Act was published on 29th of April 2021 and The Fire Safety (England) Regulations which enacted The Fire Safety Act brings in force the changes within the Fire Safety Act and introduces new regulations that anyone managing a highrise residential building will need to comply with. This means that duty holders, whether they be local authorities, social housing providers, or commercial housing providers, now have extra duties and checks that they need to carry out on their properties.

The Regulations apply to all buildings in England that comprise two or more domestic premises (including the residential parts of mixed-use buildings) although there are more requirements depending on the height. These buildings are, principally, blocks of

flats (whether purpose-built or converted from another type of building, such as a house or office building), but also include blocks used for student accommodation.

The Fire Safety (England) Regulations impose duties on you if you are the Responsible Person for any building which contains two or more sets of domestic premises or contains common parts through which residents would need to evacuate in the case of an emergency.

The Regulations apply to: parts of the building that are used in common by the residents of two or more domestic premises (e.g. communal corridors and stairways); flat entrance doors; the walls and floors that separate any domestic premises from other domestic premises, plant rooms, etc, or from parts of

the building that are used in common by the occupants of two or more domestic premises; plant rooms and other nondomestic areas of the building, such as tenant halls, offices, laundries, gymnasia and commercial premises and external walls of the building, including doors or windows within an external wall, and attachments to an external wall (e.g. balconies).

The Regulations do not apply within individual flats, other than in respect of measures installed within flats for the safety of other residents of the building (e.g. sprinklers, smoke detectors connected to a communal fire alarm system, etc).

FireTheSafety Regulations(England)impose

All buildings containing two or more sets of domestic premises.

Information to residents

As the responsible person, you must display fire safety instructions in a conspicuous part of the building. The instructions must be in a comprehensible form that residents can reasonably be expected to understand. Responsible persons will need to provide residents with instructions on: how to report a fire (e.g. use of 999 or 112, the correct address to give to the fire and rescue service, etc.); a reminder of what the evacuation strategy is for that building, (e.g. stay put or simultaneous evacuation); and any other instruction that tells residents what they must do once a fire has occurred, based on the building’s evacuation strategy. E

duties on you if you are thePersonResponsible

Fire Door Safety Solutions

Geofire electromagnetic fire door devices are a simple way to comply with UK Fire Safety Regulations. They hold open fire doors, allowing ease of access, and automatically close doors, protecting people, in the event of a fire.

 These instructions must also be provided directly to new residents as soon as reasonably practicable after they move in, as should also be the case if there are any material changes to the instructions (e.g. as a result of alterations to the building). In addition, these instructions should be reissued to all existing residents every year.

Fire Doors

As the responsible person, you must also provide relevant information about fire doors, particularly residents’ flat entrance doors, as these play an important part in containing any fire within the flat in which it starts. As the responsible person, you must provide information to all residents to the effect that: fire doors should be kept shut when not in use; residents or their guests should not tamper with the self-closing devices; and residents should report any faults or damages with doors immediately to the responsible person.

Buildings above

11 metres in height

Buildings above 11 metres in height are typically buildings of five storeys or more. The new Fire Safety (England) Regulations enforce additional duties on the responsible person with respect to fire doors in the communal areas of the building. These will need to be checked at least every three months typically, these doors will include: doors to stairways and stairway lobbies; cross-corridor doors, which sub-divide corridors; and doors to storage and electrical equipment cupboards and to riser shafts.

The checks should be simple and basic. While checking these doors, it’s important to ensure the doors effectively self-close or in the case of cupboard and riser doors, are kept locked shut. The simple way to check that the self-closing mechanism of the fire door is working correctly is to firstly open the door fully then let it go. Then open the door to around 15 degrees open and let it go. In both cases, the door should fully close overcoming any resistance of any latches or friction with the door. It is also important to check that frames and any glazing are undamaged and, if the door is fitted with intumescent strips and smoke seals, they’re also undamaged.

Flat entrance door checks

In addition to the communal fire doors, the entrance door of every flat should be a fire door and will need to be checked. The responsible person must use best endeavours to undertake checks of flat front entrance doors at least every 12 months. To check flat entrance doors, access to each flat will be needed, so that the door can be checked on both sides. Arrangements should be made with residents in advance to carry out these checks. Other than in very small blocks of flats, it is unlikely that all doors can be checked on a single occasion. So, the responsible

person should consider offering a range of times, so that residents can be present. A record should be kept of the steps taken to check flat entrance doors. Where in cases when access to a flat was not granted, this must also be detailed.

Buildings above 18 metres in height

The Responsible Person will need to install a suitably secure information box in or on their building. They will also be required to provide in the box: the contact details for the responsible person; the contact details of any other person who has the facilities to and is permitted to access the building as the responsible person considers appropriate; copies of the building’s floor plans – which identify specified key fire-fighting equipment; and a single page block plan – which identifies specified key fire-fighting equipment. Access should only be given to the fire and rescue service. Boxes should be maintained, and their contents kept up to date.

Chapters 2 to 4 of “The Code of Practice for the Provision of Premises Information Boxes in Residential Buildings” produced jointly by the FIA and the NFCC sets out good practice on secure locations to install information boxes: PIBS_Guide_06-21_V2.pdf. E

In addition to the communal fire doors, the entrance door of every flat should be a fire door and will need to be checked.

The Modern Solution to Fire Protection

iMist set out with the goal to make the installation of fire suppression systems for domestic & residential dwellings, easier and quicker than it historically has been iMist offer a cost-effective and easily retrofittable system, which gives them an advantage in the fire suppression industry Using high-pressure stainless steel flexible hoses and hydraulic fittings iMist ensure the installation process is quick and problem free even in the most challenging properties including heritage buildings, tower blocks and social housing

Another benefit to using the iMist system in a heritage building is that post fire water damage is minimal as our system only uses 8 litres of water per minute compared with 51 litres per minute used by a traditional sprinkler system Our stainless steel nozzles are available in any RAL colour allowing for a seamless design to maintain the decor

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Fire Compartmentation – Generally described as the practice of dividing a room, parts of a building and/or storeys of a building into smaller fire-resistant compartments using fire resistant materials. Effective compartmentation has three main objectives, it delays the spread of a fire throughout the building, it provides those persons inside the building with additional and sometimes valuable time for an effective evacuation, and it can protect the structural elements of a building to enable the fire fighting services to extinguish a fire and to preserve other parts of the building. The main solutions for effective fire compartmentation are correctly installed & maintained fire doors, and the sealing of service penetrations with approved and tested products.

Guardian Consultancy Services Ltd is a business specialising in Fire Safety and Passive Fire Protection. We offer Fire Stopping, Fire Door Maintenance and Fire Door Installation services which are 3rd party accredited through the BM Trada Q-Mark Scheme. The scheme enables businesses to ensure that all works completed are done to the highest standards and in full accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

Guardian can also provide support services such as Fire Risk Assessment, Fire Strategies, Fire Compartmentation Surveys and Fire Consultancy to all types of properties.

Tel: 0800 170 0401 info@guardian.uk.net www.guardian.uk.net

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 The regulations do not require a responsible person to include in the box any personal or sensitive information about residents.

Wayfinding signage

The Responsible Person must ensure that the building contains clear markings of floor identification and identification of flat numbers for assisting the fire and rescue service to identify each floor. The signs should be located on every stairway landing and every corridor/lobby. The text should be on a contrasting background, easily legible and readable in low level lighting conditions or when illuminated with a torch.

Essential fire-fighting equipment

The Responsible Person is required to check other essential firefighting equipment once a month and take necessary steps to fix them. This is just a visual inspection or other check, it is not the intention to require responsible persons to engage specialists to undertake these checks. What the regulations mean by “essential fire-fighting equipment” includes both equipment provided in buildings to fight fires and important fire safety features and

facilities. These include lifts for use by fire fighters; evacuation lifts; inlets for dry or wet-rising mains; outlets for dry or wet-rising mains smoke control systems; suppression systems; fire detection and fire alarm systems including any detectors linked to ancillary equipment such as smoke control systems (in the common parts); evacuation alert systems; automatic door release mechanisms linked to fire alarm systems. The Responsible Person must keep a record of the monthly checks undertaken and make that record accessible to the residents of the building.

Provide information about a building’s external walls

The Responsible Person must prepare a record of the design of the external walls of the building, including details of the materials from which they are constructed. This must be provided to the local fire and rescue service by electronic means. The record needs to identify the level of risk to which the design and materials of the external walls gives rise, as determined by the fire risk assessment that is required by the Fire Safety Order.

Other than in blocks of flats with external walls of traditional masonry construction or already known, determining the information of the external wall normally requires special skills, not normally held by a typical fire risk assessor engaged to carry out the fire risk assessment required by the Fire Safety Order. So, where necessary, it is advisable to seek the advice and assistance of someone with sufficient training and experience/knowledge to assist in the assessment of the external wall. Typically, other than in the case of lowrisk, traditional masonry construction, the information that should be provided will comprise the following: an overview of the design of the external wall; brief information on the materials of construction, insulation and any cladding; any known defects in the construction (either as originally built or currently); the level of risk presented by the external walls, cladding and any attachments (as determined, where necessary, by an appraisal carried out by specialists); any mitigating steps that have been taken in relation to the risk as identified in the fire risk assessment.

A code of practice for fire risk appraisal of external wall construction and cladding is published by the British Standards Institution as PAS 9980. L

The Responsible Person must prepare a record of the design of the external walls of the building, including details of the materials from which they are constructed

The UK’s Number 1Fire Safety Event

The Fire Safety Event is coming to NEC Birmingham on 25-27 April

The event aims to support fire safety professionals to achieve and maintain the very highest standards of fire safety management. The Fire Safety Event is open to anyone who is responsible for fire safety at work within industrial, commercial or public sectors.

Exhibit

The event will showcase the latest products, technology and solutions in fire safety, with visitors able to gain direct insight into improving business protection and continuity. Attendees are able to gain CPD points and hear from leading industry experts including government officials, lawyers, and manufacturers and receive practical advice and experience live demonstrations. Networking opportunities are also available,

with fire safety managers, officers and risk assessors, insurers–consultants, end-users and manufacturers.

More than 100 exhibitors will be showcasing building management systems, call points, control panels, detector testing, detector servicing equipment, emergency lighting, emergency signage and evacuation equipment. Other products on display will include extinguishers, fire alarm equipment, fire alarm installation, fire alarm maintenance, fire alarm/extinguisher panels, fire alarm systems and fire door shutters.

Exhibitors will benefit from a large audience, all in the same place at the same time.

Conference programme

The seminar programme features three theatres: the Fire Safety Theatre, the Passive Fire Conference and the Innovation and Regulation Theatre. The Fire Safety Theatre will feature a lineup of leading industry experts and keynotes who will E

latestshowcaseeventThewillthe technologyproducts, and solutions in fire safety

Hearing Impaired Fire Alarm Paging

DeafCall provides critical alerts for deaf and hard-of-hearing people on your premises, enabling you to alert them in the event of a fire.

Equality Act 2010 requirements for alerting the deaf and hard-of-hearing

DeafCall Transmitter

Bring reassurance and control to staff and customers with hearing loss in the event of a critical situation or emergency. Instantly send a message to connected pagers, enabling immediate action to be taken.

Our DeafCall Wireless Vibrating Pillow Alarm provides protection and assistance to deaf and hard of hearing whilst sleeping, in the event of a fire or emergency evacuation.

 share their insight and expertise on best practice, regulatory updates and topical areas impacting the fire safety sector.

The Passive Fire Conference will cover passive fire protection topics and various fire safety measures in the built environment. The Innovation and Regulation Theatre will showcase presentations on the important industry updates and guidance for practitioners and business owners, with a focus on standards, regulations and industry best practice.

Networking

The Fire Safety Event will also host ‘Connect+ Live’, a hosted meetings programme, plus digital and onsite activities, with networking drinks at the networking cafe from 16:00 on Day 1 and 2. A digital event platform and app are being introduced this year so attendees can plan their visit in advance and personalise their itinerary.

The invite-only VIP Lounge allows delegates to experience an elevated experience at the show during exhibition hours.

Feedback

Previous attendees have praised the show. Global HSE Solutions said: “The Fire Safety Event is an excellent networking opportunity for anyone related to the Fire Safety industry.

This event not only attracts major players to exhibiting, but it also hosts unrivalled seminars and CPD talks from the country’s leading experts in Fire Safety making this a priority event to all those dedicated to keeping both people and buildings safe.” Safety Technology International said: “It was refreshing to meet so many installers and end users who use, trust, and recommend our products – the Fire Safety

Event provides a platform to target new faces within the fire and security industry. Crowded days highlighted a marked increase in footfall on previous years.”

Co-located events

The Fire Safety Event is co-located with five other events in the Safety and Security Event series, giving you access to more exhibitors, more decision makers and more networking. The Health and Safety Event, The Security Event, The Workplace Event, The National Cyber Security Show and Professional Security Officer Live, will all take place at the same time. L FURTHER INFORMATION

www.firesafetyevent.com

A digital event platform and app are being introduced this year so attendees can plan their visit in advance and personalise their itinerary

Removing asbestos safely

Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous material that was extensively used as a building material in the United Kingdom from the 1950s though to 1999. It was used for a variety of different purposes and was particularly ideal for fireproofing and insulation purposes. Because asbestos can often be mixed with other materials, it’s difficult to know whether you are working with it or not. But any building built before the year 2000 (houses, schools, hospitals, offices, retail units, hotels etc.) can contain asbestos.

The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulation 2012

There is now a specific requirement for all nondomestic property owners to have registers prepared for their premises to hold current asbestos registers.

Regulation 4 places the following duties on persons in control of materials likely to contain asbestos: take reasonable steps to determine the location of materials likely to contain asbestos; presume materials to contain asbestos unless a reasoned argument to the contrary can be made; make and maintain a written record of the location of asbestos and presumed asbestos materials it will be a requirement to maintain this register, in that the condition of asbestos materials should be kept under regular review; monitor the condition of asbestos and presumed asbestos materials; assess the risk of exposure from asbestos and presumed asbestos materials and document the action necessary to ensure any material known or presumed to contain asbestos is maintained in good repair; information about the location and the condition known or presumed to contain asbestos is to be given to anyone likely to disturb it; and procedure and arrangements are in place so that work that may disturb materials known or presumed to contain asbestos complies with all other requirements of the asbestos regulations.

Pinnacle Enviroserve Ltd. hold a full HSE Licence for asbestos removal.

We have since developed into a leading asbestos removal service. With an extensive pool of expertise and resources able to adapt to suit the specific requirement of any project.

We have vast experience of removing all types of asbestos materials from a spectrum of

industrial, offices, hospitals, schools, religious centres, warehouses and factories.

From domestic small works up to large removal projects, we are aware that asbestos removal is often part of a larger plan wiith any delays affecting the timescale of the whole project; as such we are experienced in planning projects to fit with tight timeframes.

We are equipped to deal with all your asbestos needs from bulk sampling asbestos refurbishment and demolition surveys prior to major refurbishment or demolition projects. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

www.pinnacle-enviroserve.co.uk

Darren: 07515 152235

Gary: 07794 765481

Steve: 07817 059576

inquires@pinnacle-enviroserve.co.uk

Pinnacle Enviroserve Ltd. is a leading asbestos removal service with an extensive pool of expertise and resources able to adapt to suit the specific requirement of any project

Looking after workers removing asbestos

The UK Asbestos Training Association (UKATA) highlights the importance of worker safety in asbestos removal

Worker safety is of paramount importance when working with asbestos containing materials (ACMs). Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was widely used in construction and other industries due to its durability and fire-resistant properties. However, it has since been linked to several serious health

conditions, including mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis, which can develop many years after exposure.

Asbestos was widely used in building and construction until the 1980s, when its health hazards became widely known. It is estimated that there are still around 500,000 commercial and public buildings in

the UK that contain asbestos. This includes schools, hospitals, offices, and homes. The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR 2012) require that employers take steps to protect their employees from the risks of exposure to asbestos. This includes providing training and information to employees who are liable to be exposed to asbestos, and ensuring that work with asbestos is properly planned, managed, and monitored.

Health risks

The dangers of asbestos exposure have been well-documented for decades. Asbestos fibres, when inhaled, can become lodged in the lung tissue, causing irritation and inflammation. Over time, this can lead to the development of serious health conditions such as mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive cancer that affects the lining of the lungs, chest, and abdomen. Other health conditions that have been linked to asbestos exposure include lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural thickening. It is important to note that not all asbestos containing materials are dangerous if the material is not disturbed, is not in poor condition and is managed correctly. The danger comes from the release of fibres into E

WE PROVIDE EXCELLENT

ASBESTOS

CONSULTING SERVICES

Inspections

Project Design & Management

Asbestos Removal & Stabilisation

Sampling & Air monitoring Training

Consultancy, Advice & Regulatory Compliance

Lead Based Paint & Anthrax

S a f e l y m a n a g i n g t h e r i s k s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h a s b e s t o s i n l i n e w i t h l e g a l r e q u i r e m e n t s c a n b e a c o m p l e x p r o c e s s Y o u c a n r e l y o n K a d e c A s b e s t o s M a n a g e m e n t t o a s s e s s , a d v i s e a n d m a n a g e a l l a s b e s t o s r i s k s f o r y o u F r o m r e g u l a t o r y c o m p l i a n c e a d v i c e t h r o u g h t o r e m o v a l a n d d i s p o s a l o f A s b e s t o s C o n t a i n i n g M a t e r i a l s ( A C M ’ s ) , w e w i l l e n s u r e y o u r p e o p l e a n d p r e m i s e s r e m a i n s a f e , w h i l s t e x c e e d i n g a l l n e c e s s a r y r e g u l a t i o n s a n d i n d u s t r y s t a n d a r d s f o r a s b e s t o s t e s t i n g

A s b e s t o s c a n b e f o u n d i n m a n y h i s t o r i c a l o b j e c t s a n d i t c a n b e h a r d f o r w o r k e r s a n d c o l l e c t o r s t o k n o w w h a t i t e m s a r e l i k e l y t o c o n t a i n a s b e s t o s , w i t h o u t p u t t i n g t h e m s e l v e s a t r i s k . I f y o u w o r k i n t h e m u s e u m s a n d h e r i t a g e i n d u s t r y a n d h a v e h i s t o r i c o b j e c t s , y o u c o u l d b e a t h i g h r i s k o f a s b e s t o s e x p o s u r e . T o f i n d o u t h o w h i g h t h a t r i s k m a y b e f o l l o w t h i s l i n k

 the air, which can be caused by maintenance activities. The asbestos containing products that are most highrisk when disturbed are those such as insulation materials, spray-on fireproofing, and pipe and boiler insulation which can release large amounts of fibres.

Training

Asbestos awareness training is essential as a minimum for anyone who may encounter asbestos in their work, including local and central government employees, construction workers, building maintenance staff, and others. The training will cover the hazards of asbestos exposure, the types of materials that may contain asbestos, and how to avoid the risks from asbestos by understanding where to obtain information on asbestos in premises prior to commencing work. It also covers the procedures to be followed when coming into unintentional contact with ACMs.

‘Working with’ asbestos training is required for those whose work is planned to intentionally disturb materials containing asbestos including removal. This training will cover the proper procedures for safely removing asbestos-containing materials, including understanding the requirements to prevent the spread of asbestos and control exposure, the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and decontamination procedures.

Regulations require the duty holder to ‘be aware of any asbestos containing materials (ACMs) on the premises, to review and keep up-to-date records of said materials, assess and manage the risks of the materials and provide the necessary information regarding the materials to those liable to work on or disturb them.’

UKATA ‘Duty to Manage Asbestos’ training is recommended to any persons who require an overview of the duty to manage and legislative requirements. This would normally include, but is not limited to duty holder’s assistants, appointed persons assistants, building owners, landlords, sub-lessors, managing agents etc. and any person assisting duty holders in the compliance with CAR 2012, Regulation 4.

Training will provide the delegate with a basic understanding of the legislative requirements with reference to the duty holder and who that could be, the surveys available, what to expect in a survey and the asbestos management plan and its use and requirement.

It is important to note that Regulation 10 of this publication requires employers to make sure that anyone who supervises E

Training will provide the delegate with a basic understanding of the legislative requirements with reference to the duty holder and who that could be, the surveys available, what to expect in a survey and the asbestos management plan and its use and requirement.

 employees who are liable to disturb asbestos during their work ensures they receive the correct level of information, instruction, and training to enable them to carry out their work safely and competently and without risk to themselves or others.

The policing of the regulations could now get harsher following a recent parliamentary inquiry to examine the current risks posed by asbestos in the workplace, the actions taken by HSE to mitigate them and how its approach compares to those taken in other countries.

Asbestos is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK.

The UK death rate from asbestosrelated diseases is the highest in the world with more than 5,000 people in the UK continuing to die each year.

Government responsibility

The United Kingdom Asbestos Training Association (UKATA) is a non-profit organisation that provides training and certification for workers who may come into contact with ACMs. UKATA’s training courses cover a wide range of topics, including the identification of ACMs, safe handling and removal procedures, and the use of personal protective equipment. These courses are designed to meet the requirements of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2012.

In addition to providing training and certification, UKATA also works to promote

awareness of the dangers of asbestos with other organisations and government.

Local and central government have a responsibility to ensure that their employees are appropriately asbestos trained, as well as to ensure that the buildings they are responsible for are safe for employees and the public. This includes regular asbestos surveys, and management plans for buildings that contain asbestos.

It is important to note that the responsibility for asbestos management in buildings does not just fall on the shoulders of local and central government. Building owners and landlords also have a legal duty to manage any asbestos in their buildings and to ensure that anyone who works on or in the building is not exposed to asbestos. L

Established in 2008, UKATA is a highly respected, leading authority on asbestos

training. UKATA’s passion is to both maintain and improve asbestos training, ensuring the highest standards are upheld by means of continuous quality assessment of UKATA training provided by our members.

UKATA continuously works within current legislation as a minimum, whilst collaborating with industry partners to ensure that the UK has the highest standards of asbestos safety.

UKATA freely shares knowledge and information both on the website and across social media, demonstrating that education remains the number one priority.

FURTHER INFORMATION

To find a UKATA approved asbestos training provider near you, visit www.ukata.org.uk or for free advice call the team on 01246 824437

“Asbestos is a serious health hazard and it is essential that proper training is provided to workers who may come into contact with it. UKATA is dedicated to providing this training and ensuring that workers are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to safely work alongside, handle or remove asbestos. Our training courses are designed to meet the requirements of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2012.”

- UKATA representative

The event for Health and Safety

The Health & Safety Event will take place at NEC Birmingham on 25-27 April

The Health & Safety Event showcases the latest products and services from the industry and is the meeting place for anyone responsible for running a safe and efficient workplace. With a unique range of seminars, practical workshops and exhibition hall, it attracts an audience of highly engaged decision makers from HR, construction, manufacturing, engineering, government and many more emerging new markets and industries.

The Health and Safety Event is open to anyone who is responsible for health and safety in the workplace within the industrial, commercial or public sector.

The Health & Safety Event is dedicated to improving

occupational health and safety standards and represents an unmissable opportunity for health and safety professionals to come together, share best practices and explore the latest innovations and trends in the sector.

Located at the NEC Birmingham, The Health & Safety Event is the UK’s largest gathering of anyone responsible for running a safe and efficient workplace. With a unique range of seminars, practical workshops, and exhibition halls, it attracts thousands of workplace professionals from the industrial, commercial, and public sectors. The Health and Safety Event is colocated with five other leading sector events covering over 20,000sqm

at the NEC, meaning more content, more products, and more exhibitors.

Exhibit

With hundreds of products and solutions on offer, speak to the experts and find the best strategy for your health and safety management. Exhibitors include those working in asbestos control, breathing/ respiratory protection, career development, control of substances hazardous to health (coshh), driver safety, drug & alcohol testing, emergency/first aid equipment, environmental/waste management, legal advice and loner & vulnerable working. Other industries include manual & material handling equipment, noise control, occupational health & wellbeing, occupational hygiene, personal protective equipment (PPE), plant/ machinery safety and risk assessment. Exhibitors will benefit from a large footfall, and lots of attendees over the three days. E

atLocated the HealthBirmingham,NECThe & Safety Event is the UK’s largest gathering of anyone responsible for running a safe and workplaceefficient

Practical and secure storage to suit your environment

Lockers are a practical and secure solution for public sector environments where the storage of personal belongings or sensitive materials is often required.

As home to eight of the UK’s most trusted storage brands, Link51, Apex, Polypal UK, Polypal Europe, LinkLockers, HiStore, Probe and LinBins, Whittan has been manufacturing, designing and installing high-quality pallet racking, shelving and locker solutions in the UK to support public sector environments for more than 70 years.

Our lockers have been designed to provide a safe and secure space for employees, students, or customers to store their belongings – ultimately helping to increase productivity, safety, and peace of mind.

All of our locker solutions are made with ActiveCoat anti-microbial coating as standard to protect users and keep your environment hygienic. Highly customisable with sloping tops, a variety of size options, hooks and shelves for inside the lockers and a large choice of lock options to eliminate the risk of lost keys and even generate revenue, we have a locker solution for every environment.

Want to find out more?

You can find us at The Health and Safety Event on stand 2/E10 – why not come and try out our lockers for yourself?

Britain’s largest manufacturer

ActiveCoat anti-microbial coating

 The Health & Safety Event showcases the latest products and services from the industry and is the UK meeting place for anyone responsible for running a safe and efficient workplace. The event has grown to be the fastest growing exhibition in its sector, attracting the UK’s largest audience of health and safety buyers actively looking for product information, solutions and best practice to improve workplace standards.

A business development manager at Elogbooks said: “It’s been a great show, there’s been lots of footfall, and we’ve connected with lots of exciting contacts. This is a show you cannot afford to miss; I would recommend exhibiting to anyone for next year.”

Exhibitors will benefit from brand exposure to a captive and engaged audience of health and safety professionals looking to improve their health and safety management. In 2022, 79 per cent of visitors were responsible for purchasing decisions. Exhibitors are able to speak to customers directly and demonstrate products and services. There are expected to be more than 8,000 visitors this year. A marketing manager at WorkWallet said: “We had a great time at The Health & Safety Event, with a steady flow of visitors to our stand across the 3 days, we’ve obtained some good quality leads that we are excited to follow up with.”

Workshops & live demos

Workshops and live demos across the exhibition floor and content theatres allow attendees to build their skills, knowledge and expertise.

Seminars

Free-to-attend and CPD-accredited seminars present the opportunity to hear from leading experts tackling market-nominated topics and industry updates in health and safety. This year’s event will feature five seminar theatres. Lone Worker Safety Live will be bringing their conference to The Health & Safety Event. In bite-size interactive sessions, experts, and those with practical experience will share their knowledge to bring you best practice ways to E

 manage the key issues of wellbeing, safety, and security for lone and remote workers.

The Knowledge Exchange Theatre will feature a series of sessions covering the challenges faced by health and safety professionals and practitioners. Hear from industry experts who are making a difference in the workplace and safety culture.

As part of the Driver Safety Zone, the Driver Safety Theatre allows visitors to hear from leading experts sharing a series of presentations and panel discussions covering legislation updates, driver fatigue, distraction, staff culture, vehicle safety and much more.

New for 2023, the Practical Safety Theatre offers the opportunity to hear from the experts on how to create a safe and compliant working environment. Gain the practical tools and knowledge to protect you and your employees from danger, whilst helping to look after the future of your business or organisation.

Also new for this year, the Keynote Theatre, the main stage at The Health & Safety Event will welcome key industry speakers who will be providing the latest news and updates as well as regulations, guidance, and training within the health and safety industry.

Networking

A new and specialised matchmaking service has been introduced this year. CONNECT+ Live is a free-of-charge personalised matchmaking service that matches qualified buyers with hand-picked solution providers. Where physical attendance is not possible, a series of virtual

buyer rooms will be created to enable the most senior buyers the opportunity to connect. Networking drinks will take place at the networking cafe from 16:00 on Day 1 and 2. The invite-only VIP Lounge allows delegates to experience an elevated experience at the show during exhibition hours.

Feedback

Previous attendees have commended the event. An international accounts manager at Microlin said: “An incredible show with a fantastic atmosphere. It was excellent to meet other exhibitors as well as visitors from the show. I managed to catch up with existing customers and it was the perfect platform to display new products. Thank you to the team for making the show such a success for us as well as for many others I’m sure!”

A partnership manager at BSI said: “The show has been fantastic! It’s been great to finally get back out in front of people and pick up the conversations we’ve been wanting to have over the past 2 years.”

Facilities

Free WIFI is available throughout all the Show Halls at the NEC Birmingham. To

connect, select ‘NEC Free WIFI’, and fill in the information form on your browser page.

Themed cafés serving light snacks and refreshments can be found within the halls alongside numerous bars, restaurants, and seating areas outside of the halls, offering anything from a quick drink to a more substantial meal.

Co-located events

The Health & Safety Event is co-located with five other events. The Safety & Security Event Series includes The Health and Safety Event, The Fire Safety Event, The Security Event, Professional Security Officer Live, The Workplace Event, and National Cyber Security Show and is the UK’s largest event series dedicated to improving the safety and security of people, places, and assets. The co-location of these events means that it provides a comprehensive offering to the full buying chain, bringing the industry together under one roof. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

www.healthandsafetyevent.com

The invite-only VIP Lounge allows delegates to experience an elevated experience at the show during exhibition hours

Transforming facilities services in the public sector

Integral is one of the UK’s leading integrated facilities providers, with a track record of delivering best-in-class, cost-effective and compliant engineering services

2023 is a uniquely challenging time for local and central government. Those responsible for managing the built environment, the many services that support it, and the people who live and work in it are facing significant pressures. This includes increasingly stringent environmental rules and targets, new ways of working that have emerged post-pandemic, and tightening belts in response to public spending cuts that could total £28 billion.

The government’s pledge to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 has major implications for local and central government. There is an urgent need to develop plans and policies to support the transition to a low or zero-carbon built environment, to invest in technology that will help cut carbon emissions and renewable energy infrastructure, and educate stakeholders on what it will take to meet these targets.

Many local and central government buildings are in serious need of updating, with a Law Society report released in December 2022 describing the state of Britain’s courts as “appalling”. The professional association noted that “broken lifts, grubby facilities, malfunctioning air conditioning and buckets on the floor” were hampering efforts to address a backlog of 62,000 cases. If the sector is to reach net zero, buildings must be modernised and retrofitted with technology to reduce carbon emissions.

Meanwhile, the shift to more hybrid working is challenging public sector facilities managers to manage buildings more efficiently and provide government employees with infrastructure, services and experiences that meet their needs. Despite numerous attempts to get civil servants back into their offices, many are still working from home for part of the week.

Transformed facilities services

These are era-defining challenges that require smart, dynamic facilities service partners that are committed to putting the customer’s needs first and delivering innovative solutions.

Integral is one of the UK’s leading integrated facilities providers, with a track record of delivering best-in-class, cost-effective and compliant engineering services. We have a diverse public sector portfolio, including multi-site contracts, iconic single buildings, listed and heritage

assets, and integrated facilities services on a local, regional, and national level. Integral self-delivers more than 85 per cent of mechanical and electrical requirements, enabling us to provide a cohesive, comprehensive and reliable endto-end maintenance service. We also have a proven network of specialist supply chain partners to support customers in more specialist areas and during emergencies. With over 1,000 fully qualified, in-house technicians and engineers, we maintain control of contract requirements and provide a premium customer experience regardless of site, size, location or any challenges that may occur. We provide the full range of hard and soft FM services, including statutory and non-statutory planned maintenance, reactive maintenance and cleaning. Some of our principle hard maintenance services include: mechanical and electrical (M&E) systems, including fire safety, lifts, hoists, conveyance, lighting, security, high voltage (HV) and standby power; internal and external building fabric; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC); pumps, including fire, air conditioning, heating and water; refrigeration and cooling; and energy management and optimisation.

Integral’s culture of customer-centricity, excellence and sustainability is mirrored throughout our offering. With our leadingedge technology, we can provide total visibility over your entire operation, including real time analytics over operational performance, giving you complete control over the health of your buildings.

Over the last 40 years, we have pioneered a transition from the traditional, impersonal, and unreliable ‘man in a van’ service, to a dynamic model that can be tailored to the unique needs of our customers, their sites and users.

Our five engineering service delivery models

Resident: Our most dedicated model, where engineers are assigned to a single site. This allows them to gain a deep understanding of the customer and site needs so that they can proactively identify faults, risks and opportunities. It also ensures resilience and business continuity, as they can rapidly respond to tasks with a high rate of first-time fixes.

Cluster: A strong value for money offering as engineers are assigned to a group of accounts or a specific geographic region. This means our customers benefit from service flexibility and cost distribution across contracts, whilst still receiving a responsive service that is delivered by certified, multiskilled, predominantly local resources.

Account dedicated: This balances the positives of the resident model and the flexibility of the cluster model. Engineers work on a specific contract covering multiple sites, providing costeffective building maintenance via knowledgeable and committed employees.

Specialist: We provide a variety of specialist engineering services through our in-house teams, including cooling technology, fire suppression, high voltage, and BMS.

Mobile support: We have over 500 regionally distributed mobile support engineers that work locally within the communities that they are invested in, enabling greater resilience and reduced travel. Mobile engineers are multi-skilled and hold the relevant qualifications and certifications to uphold our reputation for excellence. These teams provide vital support to our other engineering delivery models and those contracts that solely require mobile support.

Our services can transform how government buildings and infrastructures are maintained and managed. By leveraging these solutions, we can optimise building performance, reduce energy consumption and improve the overall occupier experience, moving facilities services truly into the 21st century. L

www.integral.co.uk

Evolution of the built environment

The built environment is evolving, and so is Integral. We are shaping the future of sustainable building performance.

As one of the UK’s leading integrated facilities providers, we’re proud of what we do, supplying end-to-end facilities services to ensure safe, compliant and resilient buildings.

With years of technical know-how across a wide range of specialisms, our people are experts in their fields. So whether big or small, simple or complex, by combining our engineering excellence with innovative technologies and flexible delivery methods, we are adding value to businesses across the UK.

Delivering efficiencies, reducing costs and creating environments where people can thrive

Our service delivery:

Residential

On site engineers

Cluster

Geographically focused engineers

Account dedicated

Specific contract maintenance

Specialist Teams dedicated to specialist services

Mobile support

Over 500 regionally distributed engineers

Mark Evans Director, Sales & Solutions

www.integral.co.uk

The Workplace Event: the home for workplace and facilities innovation

An evolution of The Facilities Event, The Workplace Event on 25-27 April brings together workplace professionals from facilities, HR, technology, real estate, transport, design, and architecture to share best practice, expertise and ideas to create effective working environments

the solutions organisations need to enhance facility and workplace performance. The Workplace Event is free to attend and is part of The Security & Security Series. Co-located with The Security Event, The Fire Safety Event, The Health & Safety Event, National Cyber Security Show and NEW for 2023, Professional Security Officer Live.

multiple disciplines to discuss and explore the current challenges facing the workplace with different focus topics each day.

Day One – The VUCA Sessions

About The Workplace Event

The Workplace Event is the home for workplace and facilities innovation. An evolution of The Facilities Event, it brings together workplace professionals and practitioners from facilities, HR, technology, real estate, design, architecture, consultants, and advisors to share best practice, expertise and ideas to create effective working environments, employee experience and drive optimum organisational performance.

The three-day event from 25-27 April 2023 at the NEC Birmingham comprises a Workplace Leaders’ Summit, Workplace Leaders Top 50, Knowledge Hub seminar programmes, exhibition, and a Wellbeing Village. Following the successful launch last year, The Workplace Event will have its own dedicated hall, and will introduce themed zones –workplace design, workplace technology, wellbeing and culture and workplace services. Helping delegates navigate around the halls, and themed zones will have its own dedicated content programme. Focused on these key areas, presentations will highlight

The Workplace Leaders Top 50 New for 2023, The Workplace Event introduces the Workplace Leaders Top 50. This honours the individuals who make the workplace such an inspiring and resourceful sector, it is one of the cornerstones of activities that celebrate the industry. This is the influential and celebratory list of inspiring leaders, innovators, pioneers, and changemakers of the workplace today. Award categories include Thought Leader, Innovator, Inspiring Leader, Driver of Cultural Change, Young Pioneer and Unsung Hero. Nominated by fellow workplace and FM peers, and judged by our esteemed advisory council. Winners announced at The Workplace Leaders Summit.

The Workplace Leaders Summit

The Workplace Leaders Summit, sponsored by Emcor, runs all day from 25-27 April 2023. This will feature influential speakers and high-level content specifically curated to present transformational ideas, aid proactive conversations and deliver actionable takeaways in order for attendees to reshape the workplace experience and facilities management of tomorrow. Bringing together practitioners from

Day one will be focussing on VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous). The global events of the past five years have sent shockwaves through all corners of our lives. Brexit, the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine; all of them have contributed to a number of unpredictable and difficult-to-manage challenges in the workplace and facilities sector. The morning session will explore how organisations are navigating a VUCA world. Returning for 2023, the Hackathon hosted by Perry Timms and his team will guide visitors through an array of challenges outlined in the morning and provide solutions.

Day Two – The Future Sessions

On day two of the summit, the programme will imagine a new future. Collating ideas shared over the last two days discussing what the future of work will look like and how best to support that. Visitors will also explore new business models, new mindsets, new strategies and new tactics. This is a commitment to shaping the future, not waiting for it to happen. A fun finish to wrap up the day commences with Have I Got Workplace News For You where two panels of workplace experts are put through their paces in a quiz based on the infamous BBC programme. Filled with drinks, laughs and insights gathered as the day comes to a close.

Day Three – The Data Sessions

Finally, on day three, visitors will focus on how equipped we are for the digitisation of the workplace. What innovations exist that can move the dial? How are jobs going to change and how will it change the working lives of people? This morning’s sessions will explore the cutting edge of technological advances and assess their implications for the workplace community and the employees they serve. To close the final day, we welcome back the Workplace Geeks podcast who will be bringing their show to ours as they interview a globally leading academic on the implications of technology on the way we work and how organisations support that work.

Tristan Norman, group director, The Workplace Event, said: “We are very proud of the exceptional speakers that are joining us to launch our first Workplace Event. Following a lengthy period of turbulence, it is critical we have the best-in-class speaker line up to help organisations forge ahead and create the best workplace experience possible as we enter a new era.”

As well as the comprehensive three-day Workplace Leaders’ Summit programme, the Workplace Event will include: the Knowledge Hubs, a free-to-attend seminar programme showcasing all the cutting-edge products and technologies that will enhance facility and workplace performance. A mixture of presentations, live demonstrations, and workshops, to gain practical insight and know-how so attendees can enhance their workspace, employee performance and business potential; a curated exhibition bringing together workplace interiors and design companies, digital technology, facilities services and building management providers, and more to help elevate workplace strategy and performance; and The Wellbeing Village proudly sponsored by Conker Living where visitors can rest and restore with interactive well-being initiatives, quiet spaces, and the opportunity to speak to leaders in the field about how workplace wellbeing can make a difference to organisations.

Workplace Data Census

The Workplace Data Census will be making a return to The Workplace Event which dives deep into the current usage and output of workplace

data. The results of the survey will map how organisations are capturing and utilising the various data opportunities in today’s workplaces and develop a robust understanding of the value placed on it by business leaders.

CPD-accredited content

The seminar programme at the show will be offering CPD points, providing the opportunity for professionals to build their career portfolio and personal development. 16 content theatres will be on offer covering all the topical and business essentials visitors will need to upskill, learn best practice and advance their industry insights. Notable key speakers include Mrs Figen Murray OBEMartyn’s Law campaigner, Philip Grindell - CEO Defuse, Kate Bright CSyP, CInstLM, FRSA - CEO Umbra International and TEDx speaker, Mike Povey, vice president/Corporate Services Europe- VISA, Mark Catchlove, global insight director, MillerKnoll and many more.

Hosted buyers programme

To meet the business needs of workplace professionals, CONNECT+ Live will return for another fantastic year of specialised networking. Matching the visitor’s buying requirements and needs with carefully curated exhibitors, the CONNECT+ Live team of matchmaking experts will fast-track access to key suppliers. Visitors can save valuable time and effort by making invaluable contacts through this outstanding and ever-popular hosted meeting programme.

Networking opportunities

Back by popular demand, two networking reception drinks from 4:00pm on days 1 and 2 will take place across all the shows. Taking place at the Networking Café, this is the perfect opportunity to unwind and meet industry peers and professionals, enjoy a drink with friends and colleagues, and make those vital new connections in an informal and affable setting. At The Workplace Event, the Workplace Leaders Top 50 Awards will be presented celebrating the top inspirational leaders that are making a difference in the workplace and facilities management.

One pass, six shows, one unmissable opportunity

Registration is now open for The Safety & Security Event Series - The Security Event, Professional Security Officer Live, The Fire Safety Event, The Health & Safety Event, The Workplace Event and National Cyber Security Show. Free to attend, the series of events are guaranteed to maximise your time and investment in improving your business operations in all things security, fire safety, health and safety, and workplace/facilities management. We also offer free parking for all visitors, saving you time and money, and giving you the flexibility to travel safely to and from the event across the full three days of the show.

FURTHER INFORMATION

www.theworkplaceevent.com

Let us help you achieve NetZero with our innovative systems and products, including:

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Making collections more efficient

All local authorities are struggling with rising costs at the moment and savings need to be found. On top of this, many people still do not recycle as much as they could. With recent bad weather also affecting bin collections, is there a way to make bin collections more efficient?

Councils across the country have been introducing different initiatives in order to make their bin collections more efficient and increase rates of recycling. Ideas range from reducing collections to encouraging residents to separate their waste better.

Pleas to residents

Without meaning to attribute blame, there is more that residents could do to increase rates of recycling and make bin collections quicker for the pick up teams.

Residents in Flintshire, Wales are being encouraged to recycle more. The Welsh Government has a target of 70 per cent recycling, however Flintshire is currently at 60 per cent and the council faces the possibility of a £670,000 fine from the Welsh government for missing targets last year. Residents are being warned that waste

collections may be cut to three-weekly collections if recycling rates are not improved. The council will be publishing tonnage amounts of recycling and waste monthly to show how well residents are doing.

Katie Wilby, chief officer for the streetscene department, said:

“There has to be a significant improvement to recycling figures otherwise we will have no option but to restrict the amount of residual waste collected at the kerbside.

“It is very much down to the residents of Flintshire to recycle as much as possible and achieve those targets.”

Flintshire Council also took part in Food Action Waste Week from 6 to 12 March, where local residents were encouraged to minimise the amount of food wasted with help on planning and managing the amount of food that is bought and eaten. The council is encouraging residents to donate unused food to local food banks or community fridges so that others can make use of it. The council states that in the year to March 2022, almost 4,700 tonnes of food waste was recycled in Flintshire. However, even more than this ended up in black bins, which the council points out is not sustainable. The slogan for Love Food Hate Waste’s Food Waste Action Week campaign this year was “Win. Don’t Bin.” And the campaign aimed to bring the nation together to save time and money by making food go further.

Flintshire’s cabinet member for streetscene and transportation, Councillor Dave Hughes, said: “It’s great that we are recycling food waste, but we know that there is still a lot of food waste being placed in the black bin. Around one quarter of the waste put in the black bin is food which could still be eaten or be sent for recycling.

“Given the environmental impact that growing, manufacturing, transporting and disposing of food can have on the environment, we need take action and there is no better time to start taking action than right now.” E

The Welsh hasGovernment a target of 70 per recyclingcent

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 Residents in Torfaen are also being encouraged to recycle more with the threat of reduced waste collections. Wheelie bins are currently collected every two weeks, though the council said that these are being found to contain food waste, for which there is separate caddy which is collected weekly. Paper and card are also said to account for up to 15 per cent of black bin waste, though this can also be recycled. A consultation is set to be held on the plans, which are intended to boost recycling rates.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service found that the amount of waste collected across Torfaen which is destined for landfill has increased since the pandemic. In 2019, Torfaen hit a 64 per cent rate of recycling. However, over the following two years, the rate fell to 62 per cent.

The Welsh Government can fine councils £100,000 for every percentage point they are short of the 70 per cent target rate for recycling. The Welsh Government has demanded an explanation for the failure to hit target in 2021/22 with the cleaner communities scrutiny committee asking the council to produce clear information for residents to explain the reasons for any changes.

Any changes would be brought in from March 2024.

Help the crews

Residents of Epping Forest have been asked to do what they can to help increase the speed and efficiency of bin collections in the area, with crews collecting around 1,700 bins in a single round. Residents have been asked

to position waste as close to the road as is safely possible with bin handles pointed in the direction of the road, as “The further the crews walk, the longer it takes to collect your waste.”

It is anticipated that careful placement of bins could save collections crews an hour or more.

Locals are also being encouraged to consider the welfare of the collections teams, as “Time off work leads to delayed and missed collections.” Residents are reminded to not bury heavy waste at the bottom of the bin and not to stack bags of rubbish high. Cardboard should be flattened and bagged to keep it clean and dry for collection. Recycling waste in the area is collected in transparent plastic bags, which attracts animals. Locals are urged clean residual food off packaging so vermin is not attracted. Vermin can also carry disease which may then be passed on to collection teams. For example, Weil’s disease, also known as Leptospirosis, is common in rats and can be caught by anyone who comes into contact with rat urine.

Parking is a big hindrance to a speedy collection. Residents are reminded to leave enough room for refuse lorries to travel down the road. Following on from this, drivers are urged to be patient and courteous to refuse crews.

Reduced Collections

Many other councils are reducing the frequency of bin collections in a bid to encourage residents to recycle more. Residents in Wokingham could see their bin collections reduced from weekly to fortnightly. Proposals have been put forward by the council after more than a year of research, analysis and public consultation. Currently both recycling and general waste are collected weekly, but proposals are being considered where they are each collected on alternate weeks. Food waste will still be collected weekly. Another proposal has also been put forward which will see the current plastic bags replaced with wheelie bins. Waste collected in plastic bags has a tendency to be dispersed across streets during bad weather and is also a target for foxes and rats.

Cllr Ian Shenton, executive member for environment, sport and leisure, said: “By having weekly collections, we recycle nine to 14 per cent less than local authorities that collect rubbish fortnightly or threeweekly. We need to improve our recycling performance, the government has a new recycling target for local authorities and we just aren’t doing enough now. E

In 2019, Torfaen hit a 64 per cent rate of recycling. However, over the following two years, the rate fell to 62 per cent

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 “We have also set ourselves a goal in our climate emergency action plan of reaching a recycling rate of 70 per cent, and we’re not going to get there without making some changes.”

“Experience of other councils tells us that alternate weekly collections will not discourage recycling. On the contrary, it encourages residents to put recyclable waste back to recycling, instead of binning it. We expect, as a result of the changes, our recycling rate will go up to 64 per cent from our current rate of 54 per cent, and carbon emissions will be reduced by 2,400 tonnes per year.”

The changes would be introduced in Summer 2024 and are expected to save more than £1 million a year by 2025/26.

Cllr Clive Jones, leader of the council, said: “Inadequate government funding and increasing costs have left us with no choice but to change our waste services, so that we can protect vital services and help our residents during this tough time.

“If introduced in the next financial year, the changes would save us around £500,000 to start with and at least £1

million in the year after. This is the best way to make savings before the current waste service contract expires in 2026.

New systems

Denbighshire Council has announced plans to move waste collections to once every four weeks, with recycling being collected once a week. The plans will also see the introduction of new larger bins to account for the longer waiting times. The 140-litre refuse bins that are already in use would be replaced with 240-litre bins. The old bins would then be sold or recycled. There will also be a new method of separating recycling into different boxes for different materials. There would be new boxes for the separation of plastic, paper, cans and glass, which would be collected weekly. Food waste would also be collected weekly. On top of this, from September, a new nappy and incontinence pad collection trial will begin. The council has said that 5,000 tonnes of recyclable material is still being thrown away and this amounts to a cost of £500,000 which could be spent elsewhere on other council services.

An online survey is available for residents to complete, to help the council understand current recycling patterns, as well as help people to prepare for the changes. The changes are set to be introduced in March 2024, so residents have lots of time to adjust their own waste management and prepare for the changes.

Seasonal collections

Leeds City Council provides a brown bin service for garden waste, however, it is not collected all year round. This year, the fortnightly service will run from March to December. According to Leeds City Council, the council provides the largest garden waste collection service by any council in the UK and is one of only a handful that do so for free. Last year, 29,662 tonnes of garden waste was emptied from the 217,000 brown bins in the city. The waste collected from the brown bins is composted locally and used in farming, horticulture and land restoration projects around the city. Residents are also encouraged to use other methods to reduce their garden waste including leaving grass cuttings on the lawn, reusing garden waste by composting or creating piles for insects, birds and other local wildlife. The council also has a partnership with Great Green Systems, which provides a 40 per cent discount on composters to local residents.

Councillor Mohammed Rafique, Leeds City Council’s executive member for environment and housing, said: “The resumption of the free brown bin collection service is welcome news, marking the return of spring to Leeds. E

“By having weekly collections, we recycle nine to 14 per cent less than local authorities that collect rubbish fortnightly or three-weekly.”

“With over 18,000 brown bins emptied and taken for composting every day across Leeds, we are proud to offer the largest, free garden waste collection service of any council in the UK to help residents manage their gardens.

“However, we cannot offer this collection service to every household and regardless of whether you have a brown bin or not, the most environmentally friendly way to manage garden waste is by homecomposting as much as you can; creating soil nutrients and improving the biodiversity of your garden and neighbourhood.

“There is plenty of on-line advice on how easy this is to do, and I am pleased that we have been able to secure a big discount on compost bins for Leeds residents.”

Mansfield District Council also has a seasonal brown bin collection service, though this is paid-for by those who use it for a fee of £30 a year if you pay before 30 April and £32 for those paying after this date. Those with more garden waste to dispose of can purchase up to three additional bins for £18 a year. Both 240 and 120 litre sizes are available. Across the district, around 19,000 brown bins are collected fortnightly from March to November and then once in December.

Councillor Andy Burgin, portfolio holder for the environment, said: “Our garden waste service brings convenience right to your door, so we are now reminding all residents that signups for 2023 are open.

“Gardening is a great way to wind down from the stresses and strains of life for many and is an easy way to keep active and moving. The bonus part is that with your brown bin, you don’t need to worry about trips to the local tip to tidy up afterwards.

“We would encourage residents to mark their brown bin clearly with their house number so that our crews can identify which need emptying by using our new in-cab technology, linked to the payment system.”

Bedford Borough Council’s green-lidded garden waste bin also resumed in March.

Councillor Charles Royden, portfolio holder for environment, said, “We are proud that unlike many councils we continue to provide garden waste collections without

making additional annual charges to residents. From the start of March to the end of November 2022 we collected 10,125 tonnes of garden waste that was composted at a local site in Ravensden.

“I encourage residents to also consider composting what they can and it’s fantastic that the council can provide compost bins at a subsidised price for households.”

Change of provider

It is worth investigating if a change of service provider could reduce costs and/or increase efficiency. Southend-on-Sea City Council has recently signed a new contract with Suez recycling and recovery UK for the treatment of residual and bulky waste. Under the contract, which will run for five years, Suez will handle all the residual and bulky waste collected from more than 78,000 households in the city, as well as from two council-operated Household Waste and Recycling Centres. E

On top of this, from September, a new nappy and incontinence pad collection trial will begin

Suez will also manage any waste that is collected from fly tipping or through street and beach cleaning. It is estimated this will save around 44,300 tonnes per year.

Following the closure of Tovi Eco Park, a lot of waste from the city was sent to landfill and the council says that the new contract is a big cost saving. It is anticipated that the new contract will save around £2 million over its lifetime.

Non-recyclable waste which is sent to the Suez plant in Suffolk will be turned into energy.

Cllr Paul Collins, cabinet member for asset management and inward investment, said: “Energy from waste is a much more environmental and efficient alternative to landfill, which produces energy for the national grid, and the on-site recycling facility uses the leftover ash to make secondary aggregate products for road building and construction.

“Along with this, the new contract provides a big cost saving too, which is vital as we grapple with our own financial challenge and support our communities with the cost-of-living crisis.

“Council officers will now work closely with Suez over the next few months to ensure a smooth transition. This change in the end destination of our waste will not

affect residents’ collections, and residents should put out their pink recycling sacks, paper and cardboard box, food waste bin and black sacks on their usual collection day.”

Amanda Padfield, director of public sector development for SUEZ recycling and recovery UK said: “We look forward to partnering with Southend-on-Sea city council over the next five years, using our regional network to help divert more waste away from landfill in the East-of-England.

“By sending the residual waste to the Suffolk Energy from Waste facility, this new contract will also bring further efficiencies for the plant and for our other local authority partner in the region, Suffolk County Council.”

According to Suez, accepting waste from Southend as well will make the best use of the plant’s capacity.

Staff safety and wellbeing

It is important to consider the health and wellbeing of staff. Reduced sickness means

more staff available to collect waste. Over the summer, bin collections in Basingstoke and Deane will take place earlier in the morning, to protect staff from high temperatures. Between 1 May and 31 August, residents are asked to put their bins out by 6am, so that collection teams can start work earlier in the day and avoid the hot weather. Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s cabinet member for resident services Cllr Rebecca Bean said: “Collecting bins is a physically demanding role in any weather but during extreme heat it is important we consider the crew’s safety while also doing our best to avoid disruptions to bin collections.

“Last year, in agreement with our waste collection contractor Serco, we introduced 6am collections during shorter predicted periods of extreme heat. But to avoid regularly changing times in response to changing weather we have decided to introduce a set 6am start time from 1 May to 31 August. E

Non-recyclable waste which is sent to the Suez plant in Suffolk will be turned into energy

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“This move supports the effective delivery of the waste collection service, the safety of the bin crews and is easier for our residents to remember. I’d like to thank residents for their support in advance of this slight change and encourage them to share the information with neighbours that bins must be at the kerbside ready for collection by 6am from 1 May to 31 August.”

There are many ways local councils can improve the efficiency of their refuse collection, improve services for residents, increase recycling, cut down on waste and save money. This could be done by cutting

down on collections, or finding a new contract that provides better value for money. Though staff shortage, sickness and burnout are a problem, looking after the crews that collect rubbish will lead to more staff at work, and healthier and more energised staff, which in turn leads to more waste collection. Reduced collections are an obvious way to cut costs, as theoretically, reducing collections leads to money saved. Changing collections to fortnightly from weekly could make a big difference to the purse strings, with little impact to residents. The same could be said of seasonal collections – it is unlikely that

people are producing much garden waste in December, January and February. Consider charging for garden waste collection – for homeowners with large gardens that produce more waste, it can be argued that if they can afford a house with a large garden, they can afford a small contribution a year for their garden waste to be collected. It seems the best way to improve collection efficiency and cost is to encourage behavioural changes in residents. Consider an information campaign highlighting the amount of recyclable waste that isn’t being disposed of correctly, and how this is having an environmental and financial cost for the area. Work with local businesses and even schools to raise awareness. Finally, as Epping Forest District Council did, share tips with locals on how they can help improve bin services. With everyone on board, you should see change. L

It is important to consider the health and wellbeing of staff. Reduced sickness means more staff available to collect waste

Cleaner bin collections

Bin collection is, by nature, quite a dirty task. However, councils around the country have been working on making collections cleaner by using electric vehicles

In January, South Tyneside Council began trialling an electric refuse collection vehicle. The council will assess its first all-electric refuse collection vehicle (eRCV) to see how it performs against that of a conventional diesel engine.

The analysis will include monitoring the impact on the battery of frequent starts and stops and bin lifts, the charge-up requirements, impact on staff working patterns, and the suitability of the truck on the Borough’s varied collection rounds, in different neighbourhoods and streets and on different gradients.

In 2019, the council declared a climate emergency and committed to taking all necessary steps to become carbon neutral by 2030.

The council already has a fleet of 325 vehicles, including 18 electric. The council’s fleet accounts for 11 per cent of the 17,000 tonnes of carbon emissions, which need to be cut in order to meet the carbon neutrality goal.

Councillor Ernest Gibson, lead member for transport and neighbourhoods, said:

“Our diesel refuse collection vehicles perform a hugely demanding task.

“Every waste collection round is different and puts a different strain on vehicles and our crews, which is why it is important to give this specialist electric bin lorry a thorough test drive in real-life day to day operations.

“We’re delighted to be the first local council to test this new electric refuse collection vehicle from CTS Hire and give our waste collection crews the chance to work with the latest technology.

“We’re excited to see how well it works for us and will be monitoring how it performs, particularly over this period and in inclement weather.

“This will help us to understand the capabilities of electric refuse collection vehicles and make informed decisions about their viability for potential use in South Tyneside in the future.”

South Tyneside Council is the first local authority in the country to hire an electric refuse collection vehicle of this type from municipal vehicle hire company CTS Hire on a short-term arrangement.

Gibson added: “We have set an ambitious target for carbon emission reductions by 2030 across our council operations and introducing more electric vehicles to our fleet is one of the ways we are working to meet our objectives. E

The council’s fleet accounts for 11 per cent of the 17,000 tonnes of carbon emissions, which need to be cut in order to meet the carbongoalneutrality

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 “These electric trucks are much quieter than their diesel counterparts and have zero CO2 emissions leading to reduced noise and air pollution, which makes them ideal for operating in busy urban areas. More sustainable alternatives are a huge step in the right direction for us to achieve our aims while continuing to deliver the frontline services on which our residents rely.”

City of London

Back in 2021, the City of London Corporation became the first UK governing body to run a full fleet of eRCVs. Five trucks formed the UK’s first zero-emission recycling and waste collection fleet. The trucks aimed to help reduce air pollution in the capital, being powered by lithiumion batteries instead of diesel. The City of London Corporation has an ambitious goal of ensuring that at least 90 per cent of the Square Mile meets World Health Organisation guidelines for nitrogen dioxide by 2025.

At the time, chairman of the City of London Corporation’s Environment Committee, Keith Bottomley, said: “These new vehicles will help to further drive down air pollution in the City and improve the environment. Our fleet vehicles emitted

eRCVs introduced in Nottingham in the same year, were named as Binderella and Trash Gordon

about 400 tonnes of CO2e in 2018/19, so this change of fleet is of great significance.

“We hope this move will encourage local authorities across the country to follow suit in the urgent need to deal with toxic air.

“This pioneering fleet complements the work we’re doing to help businesses consolidate vehicle deliveries and use more hybrid models.

“Air pollution is the largest environmental risk to public health with up to 36,000 people dying prematurely every year in the UK.

“We will continue to take steps to ensure that we are reducing emissions from our entire vehicle fleet, for the benefit of all.”

Manchester Also in 2021, Manchester City Council invested in 27 eRCVs to replace almost half of its fleet. At the time, it was estimated that the swap would result in a reduction of carbon emissions by almost 900 tonnes a year.

In a bid to encourage community engagement, a competition was held to name five of the lorries. 600 votes were cast and the winners were announced as Sparkus Trashford, Usain Volt, Trashiena, Bin Diesel and Binspiral Carpets.

Councillor Angeliki Stogia, executive member for environment, said: “These new electric bin lorries are a visible symbol of our commitment to cut carbon emissions and improve air quality. I’m sure that Sparkus Trashford, Usain Volt and friends will become a cheery and familiar sight around the city’s neighbourhoods.

“We’d like to thank everyone who suggested a name or took the time to vote in the poll.”

Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, executive member for neighbourhoods, added: “While the naming competition has certainly sparked Manchester people’s imaginations, we hope they will take these vehicles to their hearts.

“We’re proud that Manchester City Council has made the most significant investment of any council in emission-free refuse collection E

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 vehicles and that the waste and recycling service is playing its part in binning pollution.”

Nottingham

eRCVs introduced in Nottingham in the same year, were named as Binderella and Trash Gordon. The lorries were introduced as part of the city’s plan to become the UK’s first carbon-neutral city by 2028. At the time, it was expected that the new lorries would reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the city by 52 tonnes a year and save the taxpayer £32,000 a year in running costs.

Councillor Sally Longford, deputy leader of the council and portfolio holder for energy,

environment and democratic services, said: “It’s great to be able to officially unveil these vehicles today and I’d like to thank everyone who helped to choose names for them.

“They were the first ones off the production line, which is a big deal for the city. It reaffirms Nottingham’s place as a leader in putting innovative electric vehicles into operation.

“They add to our award-winning fleet of zero-emission vehicles which already include the first fully-electric sweepers, cage tippers and minibuses to be run by a local authority in the UK.

“We are leading by example and electrifying the refuse collection fleet

is a major step forward in our aims to deliver clean air in our city and a huge step towards our carbon-neutral goals.

“A total of 30 per cent of our vehicles are fully-electric, emitting no exhaust emissions whatsoever, and these lorries further underline our commitment to having a fleet which consists of as many ultra-low emission vehicles as possible by 2028.”

Cambridgeshire

Greater Cambridge Shared Waste, a partnership between South Cambridgeshire District and Cambridge City Councils, also uses electric vehicles.

Cllr Rosy Moore, executive councillor for environment, climate change, and biodiversity for Cambridge City Council said “It’s great to have our second fully-electric bin lorry which is one more step to help us improve air quality and reduce our carbon emissions whilst maintaining a high-quality service to residents and businesses, collecting waste and recycling. We are committed to replacing our existing diesel vehicles E

Cutting emissions is one of the most significant things that we can do as a Council to meet our zero carbon aspirations for South Cambridgeshire

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 with ultra-low emission versions when each vehicle requires replacement. We are early adopters of this new technology and are pleased to be leading the way as a waste collection service in doing everything we can to achieve our net zero carbon targets.”

Cllr Brian Milnes, lead cabinet member for environment at South Cambridgeshire District Council said: “We were one of the very first waste collection services in the country to introduce a fully electric bin lorry into our fleet and I know residents were pleased to see it out and about. As we continue to reduce carbon emissions from our fleet, it’s excellent news that we are taking delivery of our second such vehicle. Cutting emissions is one of the most significant things that we can do as a Council to meet our zero carbon aspirations for South Cambridgeshire.”

Exeter

Meanwhile, in Exeter, three electric lorries entered operation in August last year. The vehicles are powered by electricity produced by the Council’s solar farm and battery storage facility at Marsh Barton. It is planned for all 15 of the city’s refuse vehicles to become electric.

The council plans to be net zero carbon by 2030. It is anticipated that the switch will save approximately 27,000kg of carbon per year.

Cllr Ruth Williams, lead councillor for recycling, said: “We have three electric vehicles now out on the road as part of the fleet for refuse collection in Exeter.

“We are planning to get more, but we’re well on the way now – and they are absolutely fantastic. They are very quiet compared to the diesel ones. They’re much cleaner and we’re not pumping out all the CO2 from diesel, so it’s a great day for Exeter to see these vehicles in service.”

Cllr Duncan Wood, lead councillor for climate change added: “These trucks go out across the city - there are 15 of them at the depot, and we now have our first three that are electric.

“Exeter’s refuse vehicles are out every day throughout the city, and each truck runs its engine almost constantly from the moment they go out to when they get back to the depot. That’s 7 to 8 hours of emissions from a truck, collecting around nine tons of rubbish, being moved around by diesel engines throughout our city – that’s what’s going to be saved by using these electric vehicles.”

“This is a significant investment, a significant change to the way we operate. These vehicles will be charged from our solar farm at Water Lane in Marsh Barton. So not only will they be cleaner, the electricity

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Total numbers of chargepoints is important –but location matters too

The recent Geospatial Commission report identified how better use of location data can help overcome four key challenges to siting chargepoints: modelling future demand, finding suitable sites, creating a seamless consumer experience and tracking rollout. Ellie Skinner, senior policy advisor at the Geospatial Commission, explores these four points

The UK government has set an ambitious agenda to decarbonise the entire transport system and put us firmly on a path to net zero by 2050. The transition to zero emission vehicles is driving progress towards net zero, with increasing numbers of motorists making the switch to electric vehicles. Last December, there were over 42,000 new registrations, 32.9 percent of all new car registrations that month according to ZapMap.

The clock is ticking: from 2030, sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles will be banned. Comprehensive, responsive and accessible EV charging infrastructure that drivers of today and tomorrow can depend on is critical to growing the number of electric vehicles on the road in the UK. Easy access to a chargepoint that can deliver a smooth consumer experience is required to successfully enable this transition. The government estimates that 300,000 chargepoints will be needed by 2030, a significant increase from today’s 37,000. While the government continues to invest in delivering the total sum of chargepoints we need, the public and private sector will also need to address where chargepoints are located.

In December, the Geospatial Commission, an expert committee within the Cabinet Office, published a report setting out

how location data - the record of what we do and where we do it - can accelerate EV chargepoint rollout to more parts of the UK. Our report identifies how better use of location data can help overcome four key challenges to siting chargepoints: modelling future demand, finding suitable sites, creating a seamless consumer experience and tracking rollout.

Challenge 1 - modelling future demand

We found that location data can help local authorities understand current and future demand for chargepoints. For example, where there are clusters of households without access to off-street parking there will be greater demand. Modelling chargepoint demand can help public authorities identify the right number, type and locations of public chargepoints. By bringing together data on existing chargepoints, travel patterns and infrastructure constraints, the public sector can more efficiently and effectively plan, procure and rollout chargepoints. Demand modelling could provide the evidence base to develop the investment case to set commercial terms which balance the need for equitable provision and making sustainable returns.

Challenge 2finding suitable sites

Once demand has been established, the next stage is assessing whether sites are suitable for chargepoint installation. Location data can accelerate this process, helping planners identify optimal sites for where chargepoints can be installed to avoid wasted effort. Location data can speed up site selection by improving our understanding of energy capacity and identifying site constraints, hazards and opportunities on the kerbside.

Challenge 3 - creating a seamless consumer experience

According to CI&T (formally Somo), one in five non-EV drivers say that having to research the location of chargepoints when on a long journey is stopping them from switching. The market will drive improvements in the consumer experience. Making chargepoint location data more FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable) can encourage innovation in the private sector which will then improve how current EV drivers interact with the chargepoint network, creating a more seamless experience for them and building the confidence of prospective owners.

Challenge 4 - tracking rollout

The UK government has a vision for a chargepoint network that reaches everyone, everywhere. The right use of location data can drive this transition and help the government to monitor rollout and identify where demand is not being met. The Geospatial Commission will continue to work with other government departments to support local authorities and others to make better, evidence-led, decisions through the use of location data so that public chargepoints are made accessible to everybody, everywhere. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

Read the report here

The UK hasgovernment a vision for a networkchargepoint that reacheseverywhereeveryone,

Where there’s a will, there’s a wave

The energy crisis is squeezing a lot of budgets right now and this of course includes local authorities. One of the highest energy costs for local authorities is the local swimming pool and this may be one of the areas that takes a hit when times are hard. GB takes a deep dive into what pools across the country are doing to stay afloat

Almost a year ago, The Guardian reported concerns that heating bill increases could lead to swimming pools going under. At the time, swimming’s governing body Swim England and ukactive, which represents gym and pool operators, met the sports minister Nigel Huddleston and asked for funding to keep pools from closing. Swim England chief executive, Jane Nickerson, said: “We need some acute support now. At the moment swimming is not viable unless it’s supported. Our real worry is that doors will just shut because operators will find they can’t afford to run their pools. We need a bailout now because you can’t suddenly make a pool energy efficient.”

For reference, it was reported by The Mirror around the same time, that then chancellor, now prime minister Rishi Sunak would be spending £13,000 a year heating a new swimming pool at his home in North Yorkshire. At the time of the meeting in April 2022, Nickerson said the total energy bill for public pools for the coming year would be £1.25 billion, compared to £500 million in 2019. Let that sink in

Going under

Then in November, Swim England warned again that the energy crisis was putting pools in deep trouble. The organisation warned that more than 100 pools were at risk of

closure or a reduction in services in the next six months. In a consultation with national public leisure operators, ukactive members were asked to risk assess the current threat to their facilities – the results revealed that 40 per cent of council areas are at risk of losing their swimming pools and leisure centres.

Nickerson said: “Pools and leisure centres are vital parts of the community, improving the health and wellbeing of people of all ages.

“They help reduce pressure on the NHS and social care system, saving more than £350m pounds a year – as well as being a place where people of all ages can learn a skill that could one day save their life.

“However, they are particularly vulnerable to the rising energy prices as we are seeing now with increased closures and service reductions.

“Our fear is that more than 100 pools are under threat in the next six months.

“That would be a devastating blow for the millions who rely on being active in the water for their physical and mental health.

“Without additional support, the situation will only deteriorate further which would be an absolute tragedy.”

Huw Edwards, ukactive CEO, said: “We are now seeing daily announcements of public sector leisure facilities either restricting services, at threat of closure, or closing permanently due to the energy crisis.

“This is the sad reality of the accurate projections ukactive made to the Government earlier this year, and a tragedy for local communities which are losing trusted, essential services that support the physical and mental wellbeing of the communities they serve.

“The Government needs to intervene now, and we remain committed to bringing together operator members, alongside representatives across local government, to explore all options available to stem the flow of closures.”

Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, chair of the LGA’s Culture, Tourism and Sport Board, said: “This research reveals the precarious future of our leisure services, which have a critical role to play in helping our communities

recover from COVID-19, both physically and mentally, and tackle issues like obesity, heart disease and diabetes, reducing the burden on the NHS and social care.

“Councils are working incredibly hard to prevent community facilities from closing, and understand that many people are facing rising individual costs, so have no desire to increase prices or adjust opening hours if it can be avoided.

“But rising energy costs pose a very real and significant issue for the sector.

“The Government must use the upcoming Autumn Budget to stabilise local government funding and invest directly in supporting the leisure sector, as was done during the pandemic through the £100m National Leisure Recovery Fund.

“Without sufficient support, councils will be forced to make difficult decisions about whether new facilities open, and whether existing centres are forced to close.”

Plea to the prime minister

In February this year, a coalition of almost 200 sports governing bodies, health organisations and top athletes wrote to the prime minister to warn about the impact of the energy crisis on gyms, pools and clubs. The letter said: “We are writing with an urgent plea for you to think again, and provide the necessary support to the sport, recreation, and physical activity sector during the ongoing energy crisis. The failure to do so will lead to an escalation of service reductions and closures at swimming pools, gyms, leisure centres, community facilities and clubs across the UK, impacting people of all ages and backgrounds.”

The letter which was signed by some of the country’s most famous pool users including Becky Adlington, Duncan Goodhew, Steve Parry, Mark Foster, Adrian Moorhouse, Sharron Davies, Matty Lee and Andrea Spendolini Sirieix, continued, E

In February this year, a coalition of almost 200 sports governing bodies, health organisations and top athletes wrote to the prime minister to warn about the impact of the energy crisis on gyms, pools and clubs

 “Sport, recreation, and physical activity is woven into the fabric of our communities, positively impacting the lives of millions of people across the nation. It creates positive experiences, memories, and habits we cherish across our whole lives, and often provides us with sanctuary and resilience in our most challenging of times, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The letter was coordinated by a group of bodies, including: Active Partnerships, the Association for Public Service Excellence, the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity, the Chief Cultural & Leisure Officers Association, Community Leisure UK, District Councils’ Network, the Local Government Association, Sported, the Sport and Recreation Alliance, the Sport for Development Coalition, Swim England, the Swimming Teachers’ Association, the Youth Sport Trust, and ukactive.

In February, the latest data from UK active showed that around 31 per cent of council areas in England remain at risk of losing their

leisure centre(s) or seeing reduced services at their leisure centre(s), from 1 April.

The letter says: “the failure to identify bespoke support for the sector (and schools operating sports facilities) as part of the Energy Bills Discount Scheme will be the final straw for many facilities and services –especially swimming pools” and calls on the government to reclassify swimming pools as energy intensive as part of the Energy Bills Discount Scheme so they have access to the higher level of discount on energy prices.

Staying afloat

However, despite the lack of support from central government, many pools across the country have implemented innovative solutions to stop from sinking.

Easton Leisure Centre, which is managed by Everyone Active in partnership with Bristol City Council, significantly reduced its heating bill by installing solar thermal technology. A solar hot warm system will heat the swimming pool with renewable energy.

Things are going swimmingly, as according to reports, within six weeks of installation (in the summer) the pool’s heating bill was reduced to zero.

Noel Hickman, general manager of Everyone Active said: “The water for the swimming pool is pumped through and around the tubes to heat up and then returns to the water to keep it a nice 30 degrees.

“This is part of Bristol City Council’s initiative for their green plan. The works took about three months to input the solar thermal tubes.

“When the energy provided isn’t sufficient to keep the pool at 30 degrees the gas boilers will kick in, which will happen more during the winter months.

“At the minute we are very lucky with the weather we’ve had, we’re saving around six pence per kilowatt hour.”

In Banbury, Cherwell District Council is making a splash by heating the outdoor pool at the Woodgreen Leisure Centre with one of largest solar thermal installations of its kind in the UK. The Council’s three other public pools, (Spiceball; Bicester; and Kidlington and Gosford) are being heated with new air source heat pumps.

Air source heat pumps work by drawing energy from the wider atmosphere.

Councillor Dan Sames, portfolio holder for cleaner and greener communities, said: “Reducing the carbon emissions from our leisure centres has been a high priority in this council’s drive to tackle climate change. Now, when you dive into the pool, go to the gym, or play a game of badminton

In Banbury, Cherwell District Council is making a splash by heating the outdoor pool at the Woodgreen Leisure Centre with one of largest solar thermal installations of its kind in the UK

you can rest in the knowledge that your carbon footprint has been reduced.

“Councils need to lead by example in driving forward the changes that are needed to address the climate emergency, and we are pleased to be so far ahead in making these ambitious schemes an everyday part of people’s visits to our leisure centres.

“We’ve been proactive in applying to the government for funding to make these improvements, and this comprehensive overhaul of our swimming pools is part of a programme that will eliminate around 25 per cent of our emissions by the end of 2022.”

Solar panels at Chesham Moor swimming pool in Buckinghamshire were installed in 2011, saving an estimated four tonnes of carbon dioxide each year. The power generated from the solar panels goes back into the grid, the payment for which is offset against the running costs of the pool. The pool is filled with “near chemicalfree water” from a nearby artesian well.

Braintree swimming pool in Essex, has replaced the halogen lights above the pool with LED lighting, which is set to save 20KW of electricity an hour. Meanwhile, solar panels installed in 2016 produce an average of more than 17,000kwh of electricity every month.

Council health and well-being boss Peter Tattersley told Halstead Gazette: “We all need to make changes to help tackle climate change and that’s why we are pleased to have replaced our old lighting at the pool with LED lighting.

“Not only is the lighting great for swimmers and staff, but it also means we can cut back on our energy use, which is really important as the lights are on for around 10 hours a day.” Redcar and Cleveland Council is set to start a public consultation on proposed new swimming baths in Eston which are set to feature sustainability measures including solar panels, air source heat pumps, and increased wall insulation.

Finally, Sheringham Reef swimming pool, in Norfolk will also be heated by solar panels installed in its carpark. The solar panels will be installed on steel beams above the car parking spaces.

Budget funding

In his most recent budget, chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced £63 million for public leisure centres and pools.

In his speech in parliament, Hunt said: “I have listened to representations from the hon members for East Devon, North Cornwall, Colne Valley and Central Suffolk and North Ipswich about the risk to community facilities, especially swimming pools, caused by high costs. When times are

tough, such facilities matter even more.”

The money will be in a fund managed by Sport England and is aimed at helping the facilities with rising energy and maintenance costs, as well as helping them to become low-carbon and more energy efficient.

Sport England CEO Tim Hollingsworth said: “Swimming pools play a vital role in our communities and are enormously important in helping people to be physically active in their daily lives,” he said.

“We know how difficult the present situation is and have been working hard to ensure these providers get the support they need.

“We’ll now turn our efforts to supporting the process in the weeks ahead to distribute the funding made available today to ensure it goes where it is needed the most.”

While swimming pools are undoubtedly struggling and could do with more assistance, it is great to see councils finding innovative ways to heat their pools and reduce their bills and their carbon emissions at the same time. The recent budget announcement is also welcome and it is hoped this will provide a lifeline to facilities that are struggling at the moment. L

Sheringham Reef swimming pool, in Norfolk will also be heated by solar panels installed in its carpark

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Synergizing future urban design

Christian Schneider, hostile vehicle mitigation (HVM) advisor, explains how HVM can be integrated into towns and cities and address other problems besides security

The competition for coveted residents, visitors and businesses has always been won by those cities that, as innovative pioneers, offer their clientele the highest level of quality of life. Those cities prevail because they are perceived as more innovative, secure, sustainable and healthy than their counterparts.

Urban quality of life is inextricably linked to a high level of perceived security, which gives people the sense of well-being they often crave in order to be carefree, creative and productive. As such, even the slightest emotionally perceived inkling of terror and crime is diametrically opposed to this desired state, a situation that underlines the importance of urban security.

Hence, this article discusses an important aspect of urban security, the structural protection of urban spaces against the growing threat of hostile vehicle attacks and its intelligent implementation to also overcome a number of further urban challenges simultaneously. How do innovative cities fund their ambitions in the face of scarce resources and ever-growing tasks?

Perhaps, just in the same way as successful business enterprises do, through the constant search for innovations and the prudent use of simple,

multifunctional and self-supporting systems! However, it would be rather silly to assume that in an increasingly complex world, adding more complexity will lead to more sustainable solutions. Most of the time, the opposite holds true. This applies to all areas of future cities, regardless of whether we are talking about highly complex requirements in the implementation of pedestrianisation or protecting publicly accessible locations against terrorism, extremism and the growing use of vehicles as weapons (VAW) in acts of violence. In all cases, the solution is to look at many municipalities’ most important challenges in a comprehensive way and then tackle them with most simple and cross-sectoral measures. This not only saves time and money but also ensures the smart (multi)use of valuable resources for installation and maintenance.

Solutions to city problems

Most cities are currently facing an overwhelming number of urgent demands. These include an increased desire for perceived security, urbanisation, climate change and urban warming, particulate pollution management, outdated infrastructures, ageing populations, pedestrianisation,

social tensions and a growing number of despicable attacks against police and emergency services. In addition, staff shortages, inflation and falling revenues are not really helpful to cope with these mammoth tasks. It is therefore essential to find sustainable solutions to simultaneously solve as many of the above-mentioned tasks as possible while at the same time, requiring as little of the scarce urban resources as possible.

HVM

A promising way of killing several birds with one stone has recently emerged in the field of Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM). While HVM’s primary task surely is to protect people from extremists who are misusing vehicles as weapons to run people over or harm them through shrapnel dispersion. Still, modern HVM schemes also ought to offer the very opportunity to combine the potential resources of a city, nature and technology in such a smart and cross-sectoral way that solutions to the plethora of demands can in fact benefit from it. Hence, we smartly solve five issues with just one solution. Anyone who nowadays is just thinking of hostile vehicle mitigation in terms of bollards, barriers and steel constructions is kindly advised to get an update from a national Counter Terrorism Security Advisor (CTSA) or an experienced and impartial Hostile Vehicle Mitigation Advisor (HVMA). Modern, innovative Vehicle Security Barriers, so-called VSBs, are now much more efficient than E

qualityUrbanof life is inextricably linked to a high level of perceived security, which gives people the sense of well-being they often crave in order to be carefree, creative productiveand

 they recently used to be. Whereas in the past, HVMAs had to apply expensive and space-consuming additional measures to compensate for sometimes insufficient retention capacity of standard VSBs (usually Ekin approx. 1,850kJ), the latest barriers are now four times as powerful (Ekin 7,400 kJ), so that they effectively stop all heavy lorries (24t. plus) approaching at full speed within a few metres. Moreover, they now no longer require deep foundations that interfere with subterranean infrastructure to achieve this impressive performance. Ultimately, this is an immense economic and architectural advantage! However, compared to the latest generation of multi-use-planters these new barriers still are just an evolution in terms of performance and foundation, without offering any other additional benefits. A real revolution, in the sense of our initial question of increasing the quality of life in modern cities, however, comes with this new generation of multifunctional, and greenable planters, the so-called “Green Beans”. These are an impressive innovation of high-performance raised beds, that are not only architecturally largely free in terms of shape and dimensions as well as choice of materials and appearance but also offer significantly more benefits than just keeping vehicles out. Urban planners, security authorities, emergency services and security architects may now make use of the multitude of “Green Beans” additional positive technical, climate-protecting, waterstoring and, of course, economic capabilities that can be optimally adapted to the respective local needs. The many benefits of these barriers could well be considered a disruptive technology, that now opens up entirely new and creative possibilities for urban planners and security professionals.

Cross-sectoral cooperation

However, the key to success, as so often, lies in the cross-sectoral cooperation of different offices and authorities, which still goes somewhat beyond the pure consideration of security and urban design. Synergies can be created through comprehensive cooperation, which can even range from the promotion of inner-city biodiversity and spontaneous, virtual unsealing of urban areas to urban climate cooling, the creation of resilient sponge cities, or the relief of the city sewage system during heavy rain falls. But before we now go to deploy this new generation of VSBs, it is particularly important to understand that security is not a product but a process. Hence, security is not resulting from merely placing barriers somewhere but from their proper application. Hostile vehicle mitigation is an instrument of vital security and therefore is regulated by standards and guidelines. Thus, its application is much more demanding than just an installation of simple traffic control measures, e.g. aiming to avoid car park search traffic or the like. More often than not this still is being confused and therefore leading to serious consequences in terms of effectiveness and cost explosion. Hence, the question that rightly arises here is; “how can such a project, which is supposed to

simultaneously address so many requirements of future-oriented cities, be planned and implemented properly”? The simple answer is “with foresight and balance”. In this context, “balance” is about constantly keeping the three core principles of security design in mind and bringing them into synergetic harmony with one another. For without balance and synergy, the full potential of an action can neither be fully recognised nor exploited.

In the successful handling of securityrelevant projects, “foresight” means that at any preparation of a project the three core principles of process, cooperation and proportionality are duly taken into account.

Legislation

The core principle of “process” focuses on the task of clarifying the project aims, expectations, limitations, budgets, stakeholders, project participants, project

The key to success, as so often, lies in the cross-sectoral cooperation of different offices and authorities, which still goes somewhat beyond the pure consideration of security and urban design

structure and process organisation as well as compliance with relevant legislation, standards, and guidelines.

In Europe, the relevant standard of Hostile Vehicle Mitigation currently still is ISO IWA 14, which will soon be superseded by its updated version, ISO22343. Just Germany, due to its federal structure and recent extremely negative incidents, got its own HVM-regulations, DIN Spec 91414 guideline, stipulating that any HVM

measure must be supervised by an impartial, experienced and trained HVMA or CTSA.

The core principle of “cooperation” considers the fact that almost every successful security architecture owes its success to the good cooperation of experts from all affected areas, who were involved in the project from the very beginning in order to jointly find balanced solutions in the sense of project aims and best user experience later on. And so, the third core principle,

“proportionality”, is indispensable, because throughout the entire project, the parameters of security level, aesthetics, utility and added value, sustainability and costs shall always be balanced. Securing the urban future increasingly is a question of taking a holistic view on urban tasks and the art of bringing them together; synergistically and economically. Fortunately, nowadays, perceived security and a high quality of life are no longer about dominant “fortress designs” but can once again become central elements of aesthetic urban design, have an inspiring effect and at the same time exert a positive influence on a multitude of other municipal tasks. All that is needed is a commitment to make use of the potential of available innovations and to fully exploit it through cross-sectoral cooperation between municipalities, security professionals and business. Modern HVM therefore is an active contribution to the well-being of people and a liveable, urban future. L

About the author

Christian Schneider founded the INIBSP “Initiative Breitscheidplatz” in 2017 after the terrible Vehicle Ram Attacks of Nice and Berlin, as a non-profit expert forum aiming to quickly provide relevant HVM knowhow to decision makers in Germany. Since then, his enterprise has developed into the leading consultancy on the topic in German-speaking countries. Together with international experts and local authorities, he developed and implemented numerous HVM schemes for the protection of entire city centres, airports, critical infrastructures, stadiums and public spaces. Schneider also is member of HVM standards and norms committees, and author of multiple articles on the topic of HVM. His commitment and devotion to protecting people form hostile vehicles earned him the nickname “Poller-Pabst” (Bollard Pope) in Germany.

Securing the urban future increasingly is a question of taking a holistic view on urban tasks and the art of bringing them together; synergistically and economically

The Security Event is back and bigger than ever!

The Security Event (TSE), the UK’s no.1 award-winning commercial, enterprise and domestic security event returns to the NEC Birmingham on 25-27 April 2023. This year’s event is set to bring even more exclusive products and launches of the latest security products and solutions from some of the biggest and best names in the security industry

Also on offer is 50+ hours of accredited CPD content providing a comprehensive overview of the changing security landscape, new measures and regulations, and the practical knowhow for security installations and protection of people, places and assets. Attendees will experience live product demonstrations to get hands-on with the most cutting edge technologies, and can enjoy a host of unrivalled networking opportunities across three spectacular days of innovation, collaboration and education.

The UK’s largest showcase of exhibitors and supporters Spearheaded and supported by an alliance of key global security brands, our founding partners — Anixer, Assa Abloy, Comelit, Honeywell, TDSI, Texecom, Tyco, Videcon — will be exhibiting some of their latest launches, products and projects which are set to revolutionise the sector and working practices. Event exclusives feature product showcases from leading security solution providers including: 3xLOGIC, AMAG Technology, Amalock, CAME, CIE, CQR, Dahuah, Deister Electronic, Dynamic CCTV, Fastlane, Fortus, Gallagher, Hanwha, Hikvision, Hytera, ICS Security Solutions, Pacom, Paxton, Quality Essential Distribution, Suprema, WEYTEC, ZK Teco, and many more. The show has grown exponentially since its launch, now covering an incredible 16,000+ sqm, with over 250 exhibitors offering

10,000+ products and solutions, and joined by over 10,000 security installers, integrators, consultants, and end users. Representing a 61 per cent increase of exhibitors from its last edition in 2022, over 100 exhibitors will be newcomers. With many exclusive brands on board, attendees will be able to find all the latest and innovative solutions under one roof.

Designed by the industry, for the industry

The Security Event was developed with keen input from major industry players to deliver a world-class exhibition dedicated to support UK security professionals. Our broad range of recognised event sponsors continues this collaborative approach to constructing an inclusive platform that provides outstanding value to exhibitors and visitors alike. Providing an unmissable opportunity to speak directly to the industry experts, the knowledge sharing and insight on offer will be invaluable to thousands of organisations to ensure competency within their workforce and compliance within their business.

NEW! Professional Security Officer Live and Conference

Brand-new for April 2023, Professional Security Officer Live will be launching at The Security Event. With security guarding proven to be one of the most effective measures to ensure the safety of people, property and assets, the show will recognise the vital

role of front-line security professionals. Covering all security guarding needs for industrial and construction sites, corporate offices, major live events, shopping centres, airports, and many more; discover the latest technology, equipment and innovations to equip security guards and officers.

Running alongside professional security Officer Live, visitors are invited to attend our new Professional Security Officer Conference geared towards the latest policies, evolving demands, high-risk environments and challenges facing security guarding today. Featuring pivotal keynote speakers, case studies and presentations, attendees will boost their working knowledge and keep up-to-date with crucial security guarding issues, regulations and guidance at this must-see conference.

New! Physical Security Zone and Live Security Testing

This exciting new zone will highlight the latest physical and perimeter security products and solutions and feature interactive demonstrations and workshops. Industry leaders will be on hand to give their expert advice and guidance on how to mitigate risk by deterring, delaying and detecting threats, intrusions or attacks. Keynote speakers and panellists will share their keen insights and experience on the latest trends and challenges in physical security.

In association with Element and supported by Secured by Design, Live Security Testing will also be taking place across the three days at 11am and 2pm. Attendees will experience first-hand how different physical security solutions perform in real-world scenarios to highlight their effectiveness at mitigating serious threat. From surveillance systems and access control systems, to intrusion detection and asset management and protection, industry-leading products from major vendors will be put to the test live, helping visitors make informed decisions in selecting the best products for their own security needs.

Designing Out Crime Zone, in association with Secured by Design

This specialised zone is dedicated to showcasing the latest innovative policing

techniques and solutions for reducing criminal activity and enhancing security in public spaces to keep local communities safe. Constructed in collaboration with Secured by Design and Police Crime Prevention Initiatives, this highly-specialised feature within The Security Event is a unique opportunity to explore best practice, deep dive into new methods and procedures for tackling crime in the community, and highlight the increasing risk of cyber threats on the public.

Attendees will gain insight into the latest research into successful crime prevention through carefully considered public space design that discourages criminal activity and promotes safety, and get hands-on with a range of products and technologies which can be integrated into the design of community areas to both prevent and detect acts against public security.

Security in Practice Conference, sponsored by Motorola

The Security in Practice conference is dedicated to providing security professionals with skills and knowledge for the protection of people and assets in today’s complex security environment. With a focus on providing practical, actionable information that security professionals can utilise in the day-to-day work, the conference will cover a broad programme of topics: risk management, incident response, physical security, cyber security and more.

A key emphasis for the conference is realworld case studies, with best practice shared by security professionals who have successfully implemented security measures in a range of settings, including government, corporate, private sector, and non-profit organisations. Attendees can learn from the achievements and challenges of their peers, and gain valuable insight into how to effectively apply security measures in their own organisations.

Tailored education programme and seminar sessions

The Security Event 2023’s focussed seminar programme covers a range of topics crucial for security professionals to stay up-todate on, including cyber security, physical security, risk management and emergency preparedness. Led by industry experts and key players sharing vital knowledge and real-world experience, attendees will learn essential skills and foresight to stay current in their field, and ready and able to effectively protect their organisations from threat. With ever-evolving security regulation, guidance and law essential within the industry, The Security Event’s seminar programme will guarantee attendees abide to the highest industry standards, and apply new legislation and security requirements in their work.

CPD accredited

content

Our education programme features the latest case studies, workshops and seminar sessions to keep you up-to-date with the latest issues and developments in security. Free-to-attend, our programme has been formally recognised as professional development where you can claim accredited CPD points with The Security

Institute. Members of Chartered Security Professionals (CSyPs) and Fellows (FSyl) or guests looking to top up their CPD points should take advantage of our outstanding accredited CPD offerings. For 2023, we have partnered with CPDMe who will be available onsite to facilitate collection of certificates of attendance and assist guests in building their CPD points portfolio.

Newly announced! Figen

Murray to share the Martyn’s Law - Protect Duty

On day one of the Security in Practice Conference, we will be joined by Figen Murray the mother of Martyn Hett, who at 29 years old was killed in the terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena in May 2017. Figen is the force behind Martyn’s Law, a proposed legislation that requires publicly accessible locations to bring in security measures against the threat of terrorism. Martyn’s Law will hopefully form part of the Protect Duty. Figen has also been presented with the Outstanding Contribution Award at the 2020 Counter Terror Awards for her efforts in stopping terrorism.

Hosted meeting programme and unrivalled networking opportunities

To meet the business needs of security professionals, The Security Event is bringing back CONNECT+ Live for another fantastic year of specialised networking. Matching the visitor’s buying requirements and needs with carefully curated exhibitors, the CONNECT+ Live team of matchmaking experts will fast-track access to key suppliers and integrators. Visitors can save valuable time and effort by making invaluable contacts through this outstanding and ever-popular hosted meeting programme.

Unrivalled networking opportunities

The Security Event will feature countless opportunities to connect with new and

existing contacts, industry peers, business leaders and professional experts. Back by popular demand for 2023, The Security Event will host networking reception drinks at the end of each day of the show. Unwind and meet industry peers and professionals, enjoy a drink with friends and colleagues, and make those vital new connections in an informal and affable setting.

One pass, six shows, one unmissable event

As a key part of The Safety & Security Series, The Security Event, alongside Professional Security Officer Live, will again be uniquely co-located with four other industry-leading events: The Fire Safety Event, The Health & Safety Event, The Workplace Event and National Cyber Security Show. With just one registration, attendees can cover the entire buying chain of the safety and security of people, property and assets. This series of shows is guaranteed the biggest of their kind in the UK, with over 33,000 SQM of total floor space, 800+ exhibitors, and one unmissable opportunity.

We also offer FREE PARKING for all visitors, saving you time and money, and giving you the flexibility to travel safely to and from the event across the full three days of the show. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

For more information and to register for your FREE pass visit

www.thesecurityevent.co.uk

The Jockey Club Venues Collection – Unique spaces.

World-class venues

At The Jockey Club Venues Collection, it’s not just on the track where all the action happens. Known for world-class horse racing, The Jockey Club Venues Collection offers versatile and flexible locations to deliver exceptional quality conference and events throughout the country. You are never far away from one of our 15 venues

at our one of venues or a delegate’s light lunch for 25, we cater for all needs, styles and occasions.

All Jockey Club venues have ample free and on-site car parking, free Wi-Fi and all the latest audio-visual equipment.  Our venues are members of BEAM, ABPCO and are AIM Accredited. We are proud to offer a collection of refreshingly different delegate experiences designed to enhance your Jockey Club Venues event. From Segway Forest adventures and footgolf to tackling rickety bridges on the Skywalk Activity course, there’s something to set everyone’s pulse racing across our portfolio of venues. Each of our venues offer different spaces, numbers and options, but they all offer breath-taking scenery and a space steeped in history and prestige.

Unique spaces for small and large events - indoor and outdoor Conferences and events at the multiaward-winning Jockey Club Venues offer a truly unique experience for delegates and guests alike, we cater for small, large, indoor and outdoor events all with low rates for government business.  Our dedicated teams are experts in their field, with experience in organising large-scale outdoor events, corporate meetings and conferences, exhibitions, election counts, training events, team building days, award ceremonies, product launches and lots more. Our flexible and versatile venues all have several areas and spaces to choose from, making it almost a certainty that a Jockey Club Venue will be a fit for any event criteria.  Whether you need a theatre space for 300

at Exeter Racecourse or a large conference for over 2,000 at The Centaur at Cheltenham Racecourse, Jockey Club Venues are service focused, with a flexible approach and enjoy working with clients to curate the perfect event to meet the event objective. Our fresh, healthy and delicious food is thoughtfully and carefully prepared by our team of exceptional chefs. Ingredients are ethically sourced from local suppliers wherever possible. Impact on the environment is reduced through sustainable produce and practices, waste is minimised, and dishes are seasonal, fresh and balanced with a focus on promoting healthy eating as well as providing choice for those with dietary requirements.  We tailor the food offerings to our clients’ requirements, so whether it is a BBQ menu for a team building day using the plentiful outdoor space

Why choose The Jockey Club? The Jockey Club have low government rates and purpose-built conference and meeting facilities for events of all sizes. They also have a dedicated event manager; state-of-the-art AV equipment; free Wi-Fi; award-winning catering with versatile menu options; catering facilities; stunning views with a unique heritage; ample free parking and The Jockey Club is easily accessible by road and rail.

Our venues include Aintree Racecourse, Carlisle Racecourse, Cheltenham Racecourse, Epsom Downs Racecourse, Exeter Racecourse, Haydock Park Racecourse, Huntingdon Racecourse, The Jockey Club Rooms, Kempton Park Racecourse, Market Rason Racecourse, Newmarket Racecourse, Nottingham Racecourse, Sandown Park Racecourse, Warwick Racecourse and Wincanton Racecourse.

Get in touch today

Get in touch with the team today and find out how The Jockey Club Venues Collection can provide the perfect space for your event.

Call – 01242 539 538

Choosing the right venue

There are several things to consider when picking an event venue and some things you may not think of. Have a look at our guide before you make a booking, to make sure you get a venue that suits your event

Before you start, consider the purpose of your event, be it a meeting, presentation, awards show, conference or exhibition. Take into account the factors we have listed below and fit them to your event. Think about your must haves and where you can compromise.

Location

Perhaps the most obvious thing to base your selection on is location. If all your attendees are local, pick a nearby venue. However, if your attendees are travelling from all over the country, pick a venue that is easily accessible. This means it should have a carpark. As well

as this, the venue needs to be accessible by public transport for those who don’t have cars, but also for sustainability. You should take steps to lower the carbon impact of any event you hold and one of the best ways to do this is to encourage people to travel by public transport.

If you are expecting guests from abroad, your venue needs to be near the airport. If guests will be staying overnight, pick a venue near accommodation. Also, if the event will run for a few days, are there things to do and places to eat in the local area?

Is it important for the venue to be in a nice area with nice views or is it more important that it is easy to get to? Will attendees be able to pop out to make a call or go down the road to get lunch?

If your guests are coming from around the country, remember to look outside of London and the southeast. There are many venues in the north and midlands which could suit your needs. Think about what sort of venue would encourage people to attend –beach, football stadium maybe? E

The Thames Barrier

Thames Barrier The View Conference Centre

On the River Thames, view one of London's iconic structures from our grounds. Visit our Information Centre, where you can learn how the Thames Barrier was designed , built and works.

The Thames Barrier

Unique meeting rooms with views of the River Thames and London. Our rooms are light and spacious and offer various room layouts to suit all occasions. With a range of audio visual equipment.

On the River Thames, view London's iconic structures from grounds. Visit our Information where you can learn how the Barrier was designed , built and works.

Meeting, event hire for up to 60 people with catering.

Our packages and prices are available on our website

Our packages and prices are available on our website

Please tephone 0208 305 4188 or email us at Thamesbarriertheview@environment-agency. gov.uk for more details.

Please telephone 0208 305 4161 or email us at Thamesbarriertheview @environment-agency.gov.uk for more details.

Please telephone 0208 305 4161 or email us at Thamesbarriertheview @environment-agency.gov.uk for more details.

Please note there is no access on the Thames Barrier Structure.

Please note there is no access onto the Thames Barrier Structure.

Please tephone 0208 305 4188 or email us at Thamesbarriertheview@environment-agency. gov.uk for more details.

Please telephone 0208 305 4161 or email us at Thamesbarriertheview @environment-agency.gov.uk for more details.

Please note there is no access onto the Thames Barrier Structure.

Please note there is no access on the Thames Barrier Structure.

Please note there is no access onto the Thames Barrier Structure.

Ideas connect when we’re together.

The feeling of togetherness is a great one. We’re committed to to ensuring that we provide the perfect environment for great meetings & events.

Our two residential venues are forward thinking, flexible, and sustainable, providing your team with the perfect space to express themselves.

Whitefoot Photography

 Capacities and minimums

While venues have a maximum capacity, many also likely have a minimum capacity. Plan carefully around how many people you expect to attend. If you have too few to fill the space, your event will feel empty. However, maximum capacities are there for safety reasons and must be adhered to.

Contract flexibility and force majeure

Have a look at the flexibility of the contract on offer. For small events, can you rearrange if someone is sick? For large events, will you be able to cancel if there is bad weather or strike action and the event can no longer take place?

Services and amenities

Think about what services will need to be provided. Will you need catering? Is the catering affordable, sustainable and suitable for different dietary requirements? Will the venue provide furniture, or will you have to source this yourself? Does the venue provide a set-up and cleaning up service or will you have to take care of this yourself? Is security provided, and if so, to what extent?

Layout Consider the layout of each venue. If it is a large event with breakout meetings or talks, will people be able to find the breakout rooms easily? It is important that people are able to travel quickly and safely between rooms if they are attending one talk after the other. Think about how and where “traffic” may build up. Think about where to place any attractions that will attract large crowds, so they don’t cause blockages.

Ambience and acoustics

For large events, it is important to visit the venue beforehand. Think about the acoustics. For talks, it is important that sound travels well and does not echo. If you will be hosting a networking event, it is

important that people don’t have to shout over each other to be heard. Check the venue meets the style of the event you are putting on. For example, if you are hosting a tech event, pick a modern venue, for a drinks reception, pick a stylish venue. E

If you have too few to fill the space, your event will feel empty. However, maximum capacities are there for safety reasons and must be adhered to

 Date and season

Of course, it is important to consider the date and season of your event. Remember the weather will be a factor, so think carefully before booking an outdoor venue. If you do book an outdoor venue, make sure there is a plan B! Bad weather in the winter may affect people’s ability to attend, but having an event in August may mean people are on holiday. Think about the day of the week, maybe the venue is cheaper on a Monday.

Wi-Fi and technology

Wi-Fi is a given at most venues nowadays, but consider what other technology you may need.

This could be audiovisual equipment, such as mics, speakers or overhead projectors. When visiting the venue, check how good the Wi-Fi is – this is important if people need to access the internet for a presentation, or dial into a call.

Staff

Consider the staff you interact with when researching and booking your venue. Are they polite, friendly and helpful? Remember these people will likely be interacting with your guests on the day of the event and will have an impact on how your event goes. Also make sure you know who your go-to contact is on the day in case any problems arise!

Sustainability and values

Consider the sustainability and values of the venue, and check they align with what you are trying to promote. Do they donate takings to charity? Do they donate leftover food and materials? For example, if you are holding an event promoting sustainability, don’t pick a venue that doesn’t recycle.

Cost

Last but not least comes cost. Do your research and make sure you are getting value for money. There is no point paying over the going rate for the same service you could get elsewhere. On the other hand, if a venue if surprisingly cheap, you may be missing out on something.

Remember the venue cannot take up all of your budget, there will be other costs too including food, signage and supplies.

When choosing a venue, consider the aspects listed above. Think about what is most important to have and where you can compromise. The right venue can be the making of your event. L

There is no point paying over the going rate for the same service you could get elsewhere. On the other hand, if a venue if surprisingly cheap, you may be missing out on something

Helping the Government to achieve Gigabit Britain

Aberdeenshire | Perth and Kinross | Oxfordshire

We are proud to be working with a number of Local Authorities on their digital transformation programmes.

In Aberdeenshire we have connected 190 sites including schools, hospitals and several towns using a 275km network.

In Perth and Kinross we connected 3 Council data centres and 31 public buildings spanning 19.5km.

In Oxfordshire we are building a broadband infrastructure to connect 184 sites including a range of public sector sites.

G-Cloud and tech procurement; some necessary spring cleaning

Heather Cover-Kus, head of central government programme at techUK takes a look at some of the pros and cons of the G-Cloud 13 framework

As the daylight hours get longer and we look forward to ditching our puffy winter coats for lighter spring jackets, the urge to have a good spring cleaning can take over. In my household, my husband is the one who loves a good clear out. He is ruthless in deciding what to keep and what no longer meets our needs. I on the other hand can easily convince myself that one day I will use the cake decorating tools that sit collecting dust in the cupboard.

Like my kitchen cupboards, many public procurement frameworks could benefit from a bit of spring cleaning. It is a useful exercise to bring them out, shake them off, and consider which parts of them

work and which parts are less useful. The team at Crown Commercial Services are undertaking this kind of evaluation with one of its most popular frameworks – G-Cloud.

What is G-Cloud?

G-Cloud is an online catalogue where public sector customers can buy cloud-based computing services such as hosting, software and cloud support. It includes many offthe-shelf, pay-as-you-go cloud solutions. No stranger to “spring cleaning”, the framework has undergone many iterations and its current formation, G-Cloud 13, is nearing an end. As the G-Cloud team

at Crown Commercial Services prepare for G-Cloud 14, let’s explore elements of the framework that are worth keeping and those that could be changed.

The keep pile

In general, G-Cloud is a very popular framework. It has over 40,000 services on offer provided by over 5,000 suppliers. Among the technology-focussed procurement frameworks, in 2021, it had the second highest value call-offs at £515 million, the second highest volume of traffic with 446 call-offs, and the largest number (by far) of successful suppliers at 112. E

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Our company: Excelpoint has, for over 20 years, empowered organisations to realise the benefits of a digital transformation, making it easier to gather and analyse data, operate with more flexibility, and expedite efficiencies in business processing.

Our Clients: Over 125 clients with 500,000 plus users span a multitude of sectors, public and private, large and small – and some have been with us for over 15 years – all of which speaks volumes about our ability to evolve with changing technologies and organisational needs – never more so than during the pandemic when solutions for the public sector were deployed, at pace.

Our Product: Excelpoint’s no-code solution is hosted in the Microsoft Azure Cloud. It is securely accessible through any modern device – desktop, laptop, tablet, and mobile, and accessed via a

portal, internet, and mobile app. It can handle data through multiple channels without re-keying, moving seamlessly through email, text, and MS Office, and complies with WCAG2.1 guidelines rated AA following an external audit.

Our Services: We provide in-depth training enabling in-house teams to configure your solution, or we can supplement your team with our consultants to realise the full benefits of no-code and ensure you address all your organisational challenges. Our consultants also provide comprehensive first and second-line support to ensure prompt help is always on hand.

The Benefits: Our no-code solution is configured to the precise requirements of each client to create a unique solution every time using our practised and proven agile methodology. It delivers solutions much faster than bespoke

development, with fewer resources, costs, and shorter communication cycles, enabling you to achieve organisationalwide automation incrementally.

As your organisation evolves, our platform is just as easy to adjust in alignment with your changing processes and business practices keeping ongoing “development” costs, timescales, and risks to a minimum.

To schedule a demo to learn how Excelpoint can align your organisational and IT strategy, please contact us below.

FURTHER INFORMATION

hello@excelpoint.co.uk

01325 375930

www.excelpoint.co.uk

“The global pandemic made digital imperative to the delivery of public services, with many large-scale digital innovations rolled out at unprecedented speed — laying the foundation for future digital government.” Deloitte

Value and volume of identified call-offs awarded to Tech Titans by framework, 2021

Source: The Tech Titans, 2022 https://www.tussell.com/insights/the-public-sectors-top-150-tech-suppliers-the-tech-titans-2022

 With this high level of engagement from buyers and suppliers, G-Cloud is clearly doing something right. From a buyer perspective, many G-Cloud enthusiasts contend that the framework is a quick and easy route to market that provides value for money. It gives departments the flexibility to easily change service providers as well as access to the latest technology and innovation with every refresh of the G-Cloud agreement. For suppliers, there were similar benefits. A recent informal survey of techUK

members showed that for suppliers, the most well-liked feature of G-Cloud (by far) is the ability for customers to Direct Award to a supplier. Suppliers ranked the speed of the competitive call-off process as the second-best feature of G-Cloud. In third position was the ease of getting awarded on the framework due to low barriers to entry (in comparison to other public sector frameworks). G-Cloud’s transparency was a close fourth place. Suppliers value the ability to see

others’ offers and prices. This transparency helps keep costs down and bids competitive. It also helps to drive out bad practices in procurement. For SMEs in particular, the transparency function is hugely beneficial to understanding their position in the market and putting themselves in a good place to win bids. Indeed, G-Cloud is essential to the government’s target of 33 per cent spend with SMEs. 71 per cent of members surveyed said that the current lot structure of G-Cloud aligns well with the SME supply market offering. E

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Helping government and local authorities positively impact the financial well-being of consumers

 The repair pile

So far so good with G-Cloud. But there are definitely things that need repair. For starters, the eagle-eyed among you would have noted that while 112 suppliers got business through G-Cloud in 2021, that number represents just over 2 per cent of all 5,000 suppliers on G-Cloud. Most suppliers never have any work channelled through this framework. Perhaps departments are choosing to use other frameworks, or perhaps because the framework is easy to join, many suppliers sign up, whether their services are best suited for G-Cloud or not. I suspect it might be a mix of both. Furthermore, as with any good thing, there will always be those who take things too far. Crown Commercial Services are extremely cautious about the direct award feature of G-Cloud and want to ensure that it is not abused. Indeed, the proposed Lot 4 seems to be designed to safeguard against this type of behaviour. However, this lot serves

to exclude SMEs and makes the framework less SME-friendly than it previously was. In the midst of a constantly shifting economic climate, the transparency of G-Cloud pricing that is well-liked rubs up against the inability to update prices and locks suppliers into a model that might not be suitable for the current context. Suppliers have suggested introducing dynamic pricing into G-Cloud which would allow them to add and alter services and prices to fit the present situation.

The future is still bright

While G-Cloud might be like marmite, with some people loving it, and others hating it,

there is definitely still a place for it in the public procurement cupboard. What gives me hope is Crown Commercial Services’ approach to this framework. They are actively seeking supplier views on G-Cloud, recognising that to get the best out of this procurement vehicle, it needs to work well for both buyers and suppliers. We are actively looking forward to seeing the improvements that can be made with G-Cloud 14, particularly under a new set of rules allowed by the Procurement Bill. L

In the midst of a constantly shifting economic climate, the transparency of G-Cloud pricing that is well-liked rubs up against the inability to update prices

Developing digital skills for today… and tomorrow

Investing in digital skills is a good way to help your organisation, and as listed below, the benefits come in many areas

Smart organisations are putting people at the heart of their digital agenda. Investing in digital skills will support strategic initiatives including: attracting and keeping good staff; accelerating digital adoption and the integration of technology into business processes; delivering more value from ongoing digital investment; managing costs, including cloud vendors and meeting sustainability targets.

Future-proof your organisation with ITIL®4

ITIL is the most widely adopted IT service management framework in the world and has been adopted globally by the public and private sectors. There are millions of ITIL certified individuals around the world, a reflection of the high value placed upon these skills by both individuals and their employers.

Organisations that have invested in ITIL training already leverage improvements for their existing ways of working. Their investment helps people to do their job better, feel motivated, use best practices and apply proven concepts. However, as the pace of change intensifies, digital technology becomes an essential part of our business processes. Organisations and individuals need to embrace a new service culture and co-create value to deliver business outcomes.

ITIL 4 is “an adaptable framework for managing services within the digital era. Through best practice modules, ITIL 4 helps to optimise digital technologies to cocreate value with consumers, drive business strategy, and embrace digital transformation.

ITIL 4, the latest evolution of ITIL, builds on the core guidance of previous versions to provide comprehensive, practical, and proven guidance. It supports traditional

service management activities, for example incident management and continual improvement, but can also be aligned to transformative technologies, such as Cloud, Automation, and AI.” Source Investing in ITIL 4 will deliver improvements for the future of your organisation –give your people inspiration to change how work is done, embrace innovation and apply new ways of working.

Embrace digital training for digital skills

Every industry sector has been affected by digital transformation, including training and education. Many employers are reluctant to take staff out of the office for days at a time and incur the associated travel and accommodation expenses. Sustainability targets and the shift to working from home also mean organisations are more reluctant to send people on long journeys for short courses. Online training has developed enormously since its early days. What was once a poor substitute now delivers an engaging, interactive experience that supports employee retention and increases the possible return on investment from training budget. Recent data supports a shift to ‘micro-learning’ allowing people to study in shorter bursts, the very opposite of spending three days in a classroom worrying about an exam. Do you think of elearning as being a ‘talking head’ pointing at slides? Think again! At ITSM Zone, we’ve been developing high quality, accredited elearning for more than 15 years. We’ve created our own best practices which all of our ITIL training delegates benefit from. These include: multi-level learning – experienced

employees can skip basic content if they don’t need to review it; multi-format – selfpaced content, cartoons, exercises, quizzes and documents keep delegates engaged; real-world content – examples from industry to support key concepts ; ‘Less than 10’ –short lessons that can be completed in 10 minutes; continual improvement – based on exam results and delegate feedback; and 24x7 technical and tutor support – no matter when you’re learning, we’re here. For clients who are training teams, we recommend a tailored approach to get the most from your investment. Workshops or consultancy hours can be added to a package to allow your teams time to reflect and then discuss how the concepts can be applied to the challenges facing your organisation. These sessions are delivered by experienced ITIL experts, and can be done face-to-face or virtually. It’s the perfect way to maximise training efficiency and deliver tangible results. You’ll see immediate benefits and also longterm changes as your teams develop digital skills for today and tomorrow. Your dedicated account manager will always be available to answer any questions and provide support.

Where to start?

Sustainable organisational change starts from strong foundations. The ITIL 4 Foundation can be used as the start point for digital skill development in your organisation. The ITIL 4 Foundation introduces delegates to the creation, delivery and continual improvement of technology-enabled products and services. The course includes: how modern IT and digital service organisations operate; using value streams to understand and map how value is delivered; and using principles to guide work and support effective decision making and common service management terms and concepts such as incident and change management. The ITSM Zone online ITIL 4 Foundation is fully accredited and includes the certification exam – a widely respected global certification that will show your employees you are investing in their future. L

The Neos Networks public building ‘energy efficiency’ report

Where can improvements be made to meet net-zero decarbonisation targets?

progress. As smart technology becomes used more widely and AI-sourced data highlights more opportunities for efficiency, the pace of change should pick up. Of course, local authorities will first need to invest in the network solutions required by such innovations.

The role connectivity plays in improving energy efficiency

The energy performance of public buildings in the UK can have a huge impact on our environment and the public funds that go into powering them. Some 40 per cent of the UK’s annual energy use comes from buildings, which are also responsible for around one-third of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. Buildings have been cited by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) as a key challenge on the way to meeting net-zero targets.

To address the impact from the public sector, the UK’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme aims to cut emissions from public buildings by 75 per cent – compared to 2017 levels – by 2037.

As experts in public sector network connectivity, Neos Networks conducted a deepdive analysis of the energy performance and efficiency of public buildings in England and Wales. We wanted to outline the size of the task to meet these standards and improve public building stock – and how better connectivity, smart tech and big data can drive the first steps. This report also details the scale of the opportunity for improving energy efficiency in public buildings, and explores the solutions for meeting public sector emissions targets.

Key report findings

Only 0.01 per cent (just 48) of public buildings scored the highest DEC rating of A+ in the UK, out of the 450,074 assessed in the available data.

12.95 per cent of public buildings fall below the current minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) EPC rating of E for non-domestic buildings, based on their latest Display Energy Certificate score.

9 out of 10 (91 per cent) public buildings will need upgrading in the next seven years to meet net-zero targets.

To meet the government’s 2017 decarbonisation target of a 75 per cent reduction, it would take 121 years at the current rate.

One in seven (14 per cent) NHS buildings are operating at ‘G’, the lowest DEC rating, more than any other public sector category in the dataset. Leisure facilities are the highest operational rating CO2 emitters of all public buildings. Using renewable energy, Sefton local authority reduced CO2 output per square metre by 23 per cent – more than anywhere else in England or Wales.

What’s needed to improve energy efficiency in public buildings?

The data highlights the need for immediate action. Almost 13 per cent of public buildings fall below the current minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) EPC rating of E for non-domestic buildings, based on their latest display energy certificate score. Technology has improved greatly over the last 10-20 years, giving rise to new materials, construction methods and smart devices to improve the energy efficiency of a building. For smart devices to function, however, local authorities first need a solid foundation of connectivity. Networks will, therefore, need to be a primary focus of investment.

Smart technology has become increasingly common in UK homes and building management. Its increased use means more data insights to inform actions, on both the consumer side and for energy providers. Building internet of things (IoT) tech into the national grid will reduce wastage and make energy use more efficient.

Machine learning and big data in the built environment: The UK government estimates that savings from a digitalised, flexible energy system could be worth £30-70bn – between now and 2050. To achieve this, smart meters and smart building systems are collecting more and more data, supporting the AI and machine learning (ML) behind building control systems.

Data network connectivity: The majority of councils currently run smart buildings and networks in silos. But collecting and sharing energy data across a network of public buildings will mean other teams and neighbouring local authorities can make better energy decisions. Nearby buildings might even be linked or share heat recovery. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

Have England

and

Wales experienced overall improvements in energy efficiency? And how does connectivity play a part?

Using England and Wales’ historical DEC database, we can see that operational rating CO2 emissions from public buildings have fallen by 9.3 per cent, on average, in the last 15 years.*

To achieve the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme core 2037 goal, the government would need a 3.75 per cent annual reduction in operational ratings of public buildings. To meet the government’s 2017 target of a 75 per cent reduction, it would take 121 years at this current rate. Government will have to act to provide local authorities with the funding to make real

You can view the full report here and see how your local authority is rating against net-zero targets.

*Calculated from the sum CO2 output from each local authority in England and Wales, taking into account buildings that have been constructed since.

How to use G-Cloud 13

G-Cloud 13 went live on 9 November, after a slight delay. The latest iteration replaces G-Cloud 12, provides cloud computer services to the public sector and lists 5,006 suppliers

According to Crown Commercial Service (CCS), the delay was because they were working to make their agreements easier to use and provide a better experience for their customers.

Following user testing, feedback and insight was provided that needed to be examined further before the launch of G-Cloud 13.

G-Cloud 13 offers public sector organisations a straightforward and compliant way to purchase cloud-based services, including hosting, software and support.

For G-Cloud 13, more than 90 per cent of the suppliers on the framework are small and medium-sized enterprises and 72 per cent are micro and small organisations.

Philip Orumwense, commercial director and chief procurement officer for technology at CCS, said: “G-Cloud has been a huge success and is popular due to the high SME inclusion and the ease with which services can be bought by customers.

“The latest iteration of the agreement will offer improved terms and conditions for customers, a wider range of competition across cloud professional support services and access to increased innovation and ideas, using state of the art technologies.”

Scope

The framework covers buying cloud-based computing services including hosting, software and cloud support, with many off-the-shelf, pay-as-you-go cloud solutions included. The new framework will continue to provide cloud hosting and software services, as well as associated support services to the UK central government departments and all other public sector bodies, including the NHS.

The framework will run from 9 November 2022 until 8 November 2023.

Prior to the launch of G-Cloud 13, CCS ran supplier and customer surveys, and held a supplier event and 1-to-1 supplier interviews in order to understand the needs related to buying, consuming and

implementing cloud storage. In December 2021, an RFI was published to Lot 3 suppliers to gather feedback on Lot 4. As an updated framework, there are changes compared to previous iterations. Compared to previous versions, G-Cloud 13 introduces a fourth lot for further competition for cloud support services for larger, more complex requirements. The call-off term across the agreement has also changed to 36 months with an optional 12month extension. These changes also include improved terms and conditions, with greater inclusion for the provision of day rate cloud support services and inclusion of the latest procurement policies, including social value and prompt payment. E

G-Cloud 13 offers public sector organisations a straightforward and compliant way to purchaseservices,cloud-based including hosting, software and support

DIGITAL IDENTITY IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR

Deliver trusted digital services quickly, simply, and securely with Nets Digital Identity services

Digital identity (eID) has a wealth of benefits for any country looking to future-proof their digital transformation. A national eID is a real door-opener to efficient and secure handling of data, creating social, economic, and environmental value for the public and its administration.

The Nordics is the most digitalised region in Europe, leading the way in the development of digital payments and related services. Denmark is currently at the top of many different digital rankings due to their transformation from a paper-based society to a digital one, supporting multiple use cases for citizens. Nets has played a key role in this development by shaping a new digital reality based on innovation, stability, and security. In the last 20 years, Nets has developed and delivered national eID solutions in the Nordics.

The Danish success story

For the public administration, digital identity improves manual processes associated with registration, identification, and authentication.

Simultaneously, with increased exposure to cyber risk in the UK due to accelerating digital transformation, digital identity can help protect against fraud and scammers, which boosts overall operational efficiency.

A national eID solution can also assist in bringing different levels of government and private organisations to cooperate even better and create better services for the public together, without compromising the safety of data collection and sharing.

KEY BENEFITS

Accessibility

Compliance

Interoperability

A digitalised society enables sustainability and powers the transition to a Green economy, by utilising green technology as part of the overarching national social strategy, enabling carbonsaving, and a more resource-efficient, sustainable, and socially inclusive economy.

About Nets

It is valuable to be trusted. For citizens, digital identity improves their lives and can increase trust in their government by providing a single, user-friendly, and reliable identity verification system for onboarding and access to a multitude of services with One Login enabled through one platform.

Netsenablesend-userstoseamlesslyaccessserviceproviders’web interfaceswith a uniqueeID

Nets app safely connects end-users and service providers

Nets, part of Nexi Group, has more than 20 years’ experience in delivering secure and business critical authentication solutions and services in the Nordics, supporting governments in their digital transformation and efforts to make relevant public services available to citizens in a safe and secure way with digital identity. Nets’ next generation white label eID platform incorporates all the functionalities required for digital public services, and is fully compliant with regulations, including GDPR, eIDAS, PSD2, WCAG, and we are an accredited supplier to governments in the UK.

Want to know more?

To gain further valuable insights on digital identity, read more here:

Nets Digital Identity for Publics

How harmonising Europe’s digital identity landscape will transform our daily lives

Nets eID - a digital identity platform for governments

Lot 1 includes Cloud Hosting (PaaS, IaaS) and covers cloud platform or infrastructure, which enables buyers to deploy, manage and run software, and provision and use processing, storage or networking resources. Services covered by this lot include: archiving, backup and disaster recovery; compute and application hosting; container service; content delivery network; database; NoSQL database; relational database; data warehousing; load balancing; logging and analysis; message queuing and processing; networking (including Network as a Service); Platform as a Service (PaaS); infrastructure and platform security; distributed denial of service attack (DDOS) E F protection; firewall; intrusion detection; protective monitoring; search; storage; block storage; and object storage.

Lot 2 is Cloud Software (SaaS) and includes applications which are accessed over the internet and hosted in the cloud. Services

covered by this lot include: accounting and finance; analytics and business intelligence; application security; collaborative working; creative, design and publishing; customer relationship management (CRM); electronic document and records management (EDRM); healthcare; human resources and employee management; information and communication technology (ICT); legal and enforcement; marketing; operations

management; project management and planning; sales; schools, education and libraries; software development tools; transport and logistics.

Lot 3 covers Cloud Support to help set up and maintain cloud software or hosting services. Services covered under this lot include ongoing support; planning; quality assurance and performance testing; setup and migration; security services and training. E

Prior to the launch of G-Cloud 13, CCS ran supplier and customer surveys, and held a supplier event and 1-to-1 supplier interviews in order to understand the needs related to buying, consuming and implementing cloud storage

Keeping workers safe

Why do organisations need a worker safety solution?

Every organisation has a legal and moral duty of care to ensure the safety of the people who work for them. This ranges from those who work alone for extended periods of time to those attending infrequent meetings between offices. According to the Health and Safety Executive, an estimated 6.8 million people work alone in the UK. This number has increased post COVID19 with working patterns becoming increasingly fragmented, making it harder to know if staff are safe and to locate them during an incident.

How does HomeSafe help?

HomeSafe helps you to meet your corporate responsibilities whilst providing a simple solution for mobile staff to confirm their safety or get assistance in an emergency. Staff are automatically prompted to confirm

their safety during working hours using the HomeSafe mobile app. The HomeSafe web portal provides a real-time consolidated view of staff by location and safety status.

What is unique about HomeSafe?

HomeSafe is the only lone-working solution to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to significantly reduce the need for manual monitoring of staff safety. Specifically, HomeSafe AI replaces the constant need for people to watch for alarms, instead the AI provides a precise look-out for each individual and automatically notifies line managers and wider teams when an alarm is raised or if a check-in is missed - thereby allowing for management by exception.

Isn’t this technology expensive?

Historically, investment in digital lone working systems has been constrained to specialised businesses, typically for only a small

proportion of staff, due to the high system and management costs. Techfinity’s objective for HomeSafe was to build a location-based safety tracking solution that is affordable for all and suitable for use across any job role including those travelling for business - in addition to the more traditional lone worker roles. Techfinity’s cloud platform enables the delivery of a high-performance system that is typically one-third of the cost of others, making HomeSafe viable for rollout across entire organisations.

Will it be right for my organisation?

HomeSafe provides a wide range of user configurable settings to tailor the solution to your organisational policies. Additionally, its many built-in privacy features provide reassurance for staff without compromising safety. L

HomeSafe and other solutions from Techfinity are available on the G-Cloud 13 Framework. Contact the Techfinity team for more information and a solution demonstration.

 Lot 4 is an addition to the framework and is for further competition for Cloud Support. The scope is the same as that of Lot 3, but is designed for larger and more complex requirements which are procured through further competition.

Information for buyers

Buyers can use the Digital Marketplace to buy cloud services through the G-Cloud framework.

All public sector organisations, including agencies and arm’s length bodies, can use the Digital Marketplace. Buyers can check the customer unique reference number (URN) list to see if their organisation is eligible to buy using the framework.

All the suppliers have already confirmed information about their company and the way they work and added information about the services that they offer. However, the

financial position of suppliers isn’t checked when they apply to the framework.

Before starting to look for services on the digital marketplace, buyers are advised to write a list of requirements to help them decide which search category, keywords and filters to use. When writing requirements, buyers should consider the funds available to buy the service, the technical and procurement requirements of the project and the criteria on which the choice will be based. Buyers should also check if they need approval to spend money on a service.

Buyers are also urged to keep an audit trail, as a record of what has been done when procuring services. If a contract is awarded through the G-Cloud framework, you must be able to show that the assessment of services was fair and transparent.

Search

When doing a search, buyers can download a copy of the category, keywords and filters used, the services found and the date results were exported. This information can then be added to the audit trail. Records should also be kept on communications with suppliers, including any early market engagement, clarification questions, emails and face-to-face conversations you have.

The digital marketplace can be used to search for cloud services that meet your needs. You can choose a category and then search for services using keywords and filters. The search can be saved so the results can be exported later. Saved search results can be found by logging into your account.

Export your search results to keep a record of the services found. You cannot edit your search again after exporting your results, so you should only do this when you are in a position to start assessing services.

Results can be exported as a spreadsheet or comma-separated values (CSV). Both sets of results include service names, descriptions and prices; links to service description pages on the Digital Marketplace; and supplier names and contact details. E

When doing a search, buyers can download a copy of the category, keywords and filters used, the services found and the date results were exported

We are specialists in delivering Service Architecture, Service Design, and Project, Programme and Portfolio Management, empowering Digital Transformation across the Public Sector.

With a proven track record of delivering complex IT projects and programmes spanning multiple sectors, HM3 have the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver your Cloud First strategy

Find us on G Cloud 13 Lot 3 – Cloud Support

Architecture Design | Solutions Analysis | Service Strategy | Business Objectives | Environments

As an industry SME, HM3 are delighted to be accepted onto the G Cloud 13 Framework

“G Cloud 13 provides us with the opportunity to engage directly across the Public Sector, bringing to the fore our experience and knowledge, and enabling our agility to respond to evolving demands and requirements in support of a Cloud First strategy”

Our Ethos

HM3 understand the key to success is building and maintaining trusted relationships The partnerships we build deliver a cohesive digital transformation strategy for our clients to support their business and help them grow and sustain enduring capabilities

Discover more at www hm3 co uk

Supporting the public sector in delivery of Digital Transformation Programmes

maintain those trusted relationships enables us to ensure their strategic business goals and underpinning transformation requirements are fully aligned and that outcomes and deliverables are agreed, documented and appropriately governed and assured.

demonstrable deployment of our skills and experience across complex public sector transformation programmes.

Trust – hard earned, easily lost

Our ethos - building trusted relationships

Formed in May 2020, HM3 brought together a wealth of Public Sector delivery knowledge and experience through its four founding directors. Our goal was to establish and develop a SME consultancy specifically to support public sector clients in the delivery of the their Digital Transformation Programmes.

From the outset, we have been focussed on building and enhancing our reputation as a trusted delivery partner, while expanding our core team of associate consultants, ensuring they are fully onboard with our company ethos.

Our key focus is to utilise the relationships we establish from the outset to focus on the client’s core business objectives, and bring together diverse eco-systems of suppliers and internal delivery teams to engage and deliver agreed outcomes. The ability to develop and

The wealth of experience within HM3 means that we are able to effectively plan and deliver to all our stakeholders, removing blockers and defining the critical path, leading to a successful digital transformation within the agreed parameters of time, cost and quality.

Impartiality matters

A major factor in our success to date is our ability to maintain our independence and remain focussed on delivering the required business objective, even though it may be different to the original stated objective.

Seeing past the contractual limitations, corralling suppliers to engage and fill the grey areas a multi-supplier environment inevitably brings has been critical to our success within defence & security. This can only be achieved through the development of trusted relationships, and

We place huge emphasis on maintaining the trust we have earned with our clients. Providing complete transparency, owning the issues, and always being prepared to go above and beyond is central to all of our engagements and instilled into our consultants and partners.

In the community

Our approach to building relationships extends through to our social, environment and economic values. We are building lasting engagements within our local communities, supporting charitable concerns, grassroots sports and building a presence within education and access programmes to promote the industry and attract and invest in new talent. L

 Assessment

When you search for services on the Digital Marketplace, you must assess all the services in your search results and the assessment must be as fair and transparent as possible. You must not combine the results of more than one search to create a shortlist. You also cannot hold a competition to decide the winner, ask suppliers to tender, bid or submit proposals or unfairly exclude any services without referring back to your requirements. You can contact suppliers to ask them to explain their service description, terms and conditions, pricing or service definition documents. However, you must not negotiate with suppliers about the details of their service. If something is not mentioned in a supplier’s service description, you cannot ask a question about it. You should always keep a record of any conversations you have with suppliers for your audit trail. There is guidance available for assessing services and you should choose the service that best meets your budget and requirements.

When choosing the winning service, you should consider: whole life cost, technical merit and functional fit, after-sales service management and non-functional characteristics.

Your final choice should be based on best fit, and not on ruling out suppliers that don’t meet your current contract or an ideal set of terms.

Awarding a contract

When you have chosen a service, you can award a contract to the supplier. If only one service meets your requirements, you can award a contract to that supplier and you don’t need to do anything else. If none of the services in your search results meet your requirements, a new search is needed. If a contract is not awarded, you should still let CCS know the outcome of your search.

The buyer and supplier must both sign a copy of the contract before the service can be used. The contract can then be downloaded.

The maximum length of a G-Cloud contract is normally 24 months. After the 24 months has passed, a new search will be required.

If you have the right approvals, in some cases you may be able to extend your contract. Contracts can be extended by one year and then another year.

Central government organisations can only extend a contract if the spend controls team gives approval or if the supplier gives an ‘additional exit plan’ to approve at least eight months before the end of the contract.

Benefits

G-Cloud 13 boasts many benefits, including access to over 40,000 services and over 5,000 suppliers, with a quick and easy route to market. The services are scalable, meaning you only pay for what you use. Using G-Cloud 13 means reduced costs and reduced total cost of ownership compared to running your own service in house. G-Cloud 13 also provides access to the latest technology and innovation

CCS Agreements

In an attempt to make CCS agreements easier to use and enable a better experience for customers, G-Cloud 13 will be accessible through a new digital Contract Award Service (CAS). CAS will support future iterations of G-Cloud in an agile manner, as well as eventually digitally enabling all CCS agreements. The intention behind the digital enablement is to provide a full end-to-end digital procurement experience to buyers and suppliers.

CCS has also negotiated a set of Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) to enhance commercial value across cloud suppliers and services which can be procured through G-Cloud 13. More information can be found on the MoU page. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

To find out more about G-Cloud 13, visit the framework page or join a customer webinar

You can contact CCS for any questions about buying through the framework or to request access to an MoU’s pricing model.

G-Cloud suppliers can be found here

In an attempt to make CCS agreements easier to use and enable a better experience for customers, G-Cloud 13 will be accessible through a new digital Contract Award Service (CAS)

Leveraging cloud for citizen-centric services

Many public sector organisations, from central government departments to local authorities and county councils, are increasing their efforts to transform their IT capabilities to improve organisational efficiency and provide new and enhanced citizen-centric services. This has mainly been driven by the unexpected and significant disruption brought by the COVID pandemic which has shone a light on critical needs and the government’s ability to respond quickly

That said, unlike private sector organisations, the public sector is still finding it challenging to marry up cloud computing operations with its projects and departmental aims. And low budgets, lack of inertia and a lack of the right resources don’t help. Once deployed and used correctly, cloud computing can improve the pace of delivery, improve security, deliver cost efficiencies, and give public sector organisations more adaptable and responsive options on which to draw when needed.

Changing expectations

The public sector needs to provide services and care for all of its citizens. Innovations in customer interactions delivered by private sector organisations have shifted consumer expectations, especially since the pandemic. We now live in a world where consumers are expected to self-serve so there is an expectation that services delivered by the public sector are as instant as checking your bank account balance via an app. Booking a GP appointment or claiming an allowance should be equally as seamless and frictionless. Public sector organisations need to rapidly adapt to external factors – this has been critical since the start of the pandemic. Cloud computing enables this. With well-built cloud computing platforms, the public sector can build quickly, with flexible scalability, to react to any changing circumstance – be it a cost-of-living crisis, change of government or the processing of asylum claims. Cloud computing has the capacity to help government departments to deal with dynamic changes in technology and computing needs much more quickly and effectively.

“The time for digital transformation and reinvention of citizen-centric public sectors services powered by the innovation of cloud is now.”

Getting the most out of cloud computing

If cloud computing is deployed effectively, public sector organisations can strengthen technology and data security, generate cost savings, improve the pace of delivery, generate more flexible, agile opportunities and improve services for the citizens they serve. Government department leaders need to look for the right technology providers and

consulting services providers to transform their organisation’s cloud operations as effectively and efficiently as possible.

To create a well-planned roadmap to maximise the transformative potential of cloud, central government departments and local government bodies need to research the best options to combine industry-leading business solutions with a high-touch, outcome-based approach. There are plenty of providers publishing reports and giving advice to help demystify the various options. It’s critical to bring the right partners together to create an ecosystem of solutions and support ranging from consulting and strategy development to cloud engineering innovation, migration and transformation. This way, public sector organisations can bring together the latest and best solutions on the market. This is all the more critical for public sector bodies where employees are short on time and resources – simple and easy to manage and effective systems are much needed.

Cloud computing and cybersecurity

As cyber security threats change, choosing the right technology provider is also really important. There is a concern amongst many public sector organisations that hosting your IT infrastructure on the cloud means a loss of control. It’s actually the opposite. In many ways, public cloud can offer better security than ‘on premises’ such as providing centralised protection and backed-up data. The other significant benefit is that public sector organisations

will be able to take advantage of continual improvements and updates to technology. Public sector organisations need to work with both technology providers and those offering consulting services to ensure that critical data is protected via the enhanced security that cloud offers. Given the highly sensitive and personal nature of the data that government departments and local authorities hold, this is of even greater importance within the public sector. The other benefit of combining the specialist skills of technology providers and consulting services is that it will help drive a smooth transition to cloud and deliver extensive rewards. The time for digital transformation and reinvention of citizen-centric public sectors services powered by the innovation of cloud is now. Public sector organisations stand to benefit in a number of ways under the UK government’s ‘cloud first’ policy for all technology-related decisions. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

For more details of Wipro’s FullStride Cloud Services click here.

Ensuring best value and best price

External procurement of IT services is well established in the public sector. Nevertheless, problems often arise, in the relationship or in the evaluation of service levels or pricing. Independent consultants can assist in putting the relationship and discussions on a stable footing

Sourcing Support

IT sourcing can be a meaningful solution, but also includes risks. For years, there has been a perception that one third to one half of contracts do not bring the expected success. On the one hand, this is due to a shortfall in service performance, but on the other hand, it is also due to misaligned expectations and general conditions.

Sourcing managers must prepare themselves as effectively as possible for each partnership, especially in times of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. To reduce the risk of a sourcing contract, it is important both sides proceed professionally: take enough time, prepare for the deal, bring realistic objectives and aim for meaningful goals. After all, the life cycle of a contract does not run on a straight road to the horizon, but often like a path through rough terrain. Even a small mistake or a misunderstanding can throw the vehicle off track.

Here are some issues we see impact sourcing processes time and time again: 1) Overly ambitious project plans lead to insufficient time spent in areas such as due diligence and negotiation, frequently leading to poorly scoped services with punitive pricing; 2) Unrealistic business cases and expectations almost always lead to disappointment further down the line; 3) Poor staffing and funding of the retained organisation leads to difficult service relationships. The skills required to manage a service provider are very different from the skills required to run a service. It is vital to have sufficient people in the right roles with the right skills managing your service providers.

An analysis undertaken with our clients demonstrates involving a third party advisor which specialises in sourcing ensures independence and objectivity during the process and will reduce cognitive biases during negotiation. The analysis shows sourcing engagements which involved a third party advisor delivered pricing approximately 6% to 10% better than engagements with no external input. Further analysis shows that if the sourcing specialist also has access to a database of real deal data, the outcomes from a price perspective can be dramatically better; 10% – 20% better.

Our insights

See our playbook for a series of thoughtprovoking insights you can apply to your sourcing processes: Download here

Contractual price benchmarking

In the current climate, ensuring your IT contracts represent good value for money is vital. Running a tender process is an obvious part of the procurement lifecycle, however, if you have an opportunity to test the pricing of your contract(s) midterm this may yield valuable benefits.

Market price benchmarks can have a significant impact on IT outsourcing prices during negotiation, whilst assessing running contracts and at the renewal phase. In our chart, we show the impact of a market price benchmark during the term of a contract. Evaluation shows 45% of outsourcing contracts include the implementation of a market price benchmark in the first twelve months, and another 40% in months 13 to 36. In two-thirds of the benchmarks analysed, prices were lowered by an average of 11%. IT services have differing performance, quality and costs depending upon how services are delivered and by whom. Performance and quality can be measured against SLAs and KPIs determined in the services contract, but knowing whether these are good when compared to the wider market is vital. Pricing may have looked good when the contract was signed, but whether those prices are competitive after the service has changed and the market has evolved, is crucial.

Clarity of spend

If the resulting performance compared to a peer group is not as desired, an improvement programme could be required, or in the case of the price benchmark, a reduction in contractual pricing. Transparency of the financial makeup of your contract can make life much easier when dealing with stakeholders and explaining or justifying external spend. It also ensures a thorough understanding of factors such as the impact of volume on spend which, in a world where cloud usage is proliferating, can drive fundamentally better deal management.

IT services are a very costly affair, so it is critical to ensure prices are in line with the market. Many IT contracts include benchmark clauses for the very reason of ensuring the contract remains competitive over time. The cost of performing a benchmark is generally small in relation to the possible savings identified. In conclusion, how do you know whether your IT service pricing is value for money? Should you now consider conducting a benchmark? L

Tackling the staffing crisis

With very high vacancy rates across the public sector, what can be done to fill these gaps?

We know that the public sector is facing a staffing crisis. According to the i newspaper, in September last year there were 165,000 care worker vacancies in the UK. NHS England has a vacancy rate of 9.7 per cent and one in eight newly qualified teachers leave the profession within one year, and almost one-third leave within five years.

Vacancy rates

The Society of Local Authority Chief Executive Officers (Solace) has found that 33 per cent of council chief executives and senior managers in England do not have enough skilled staff to run services to an acceptable standard.

In Bridgend, between April 1 and December 31 2022, more than 20 per cent of job adverts posted for positions in Bridgend Council received no applicants. A council report found that staff turnover for 2021/22 was 13.09 per cent. The report said: “It is critical for the council to be able to recruit and retain a sufficient number of employees with the right skills to deliver council services and priorities. This is increasingly important at a time of growing pressures on services. Councils are continuing to report recruitment difficulties and like many employers across the UK, are operating in a challenging recruitment market, with high vacancy rates and skills gaps in some key areas of services.”

Meanwhile, according to a recent poll by the Trades Union Congress (TUC), nearly two-fifths of public sector workers have taken steps to leave their profession or are actively considering it. The poll found that over a third (36 per cent) of key workers in the public sector cite low pay as a reason for wanting to quit and that feeling undervalued (27 per cent), a poor work life balance (23 per cent) and a lack of career progression (23 per cent) are also major factors in people quitting.

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Our amazing key workers in the public sector got this country through the pandemic.

“But many are now leaving the jobs they love because of pay cuts, brutal workloads and years of feeling undervalued.

“It is shameful that 1 in 6 are having to skip meals to get by. This is unsustainable.”

The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that workforce shortages are adding to service pressures. A recent survey by the LGA found that more than 8 in 10 councils are having difficulties recruiting

children’s social workers and almost three quarters (72 per cent) are having problems retaining them. Furthermore, almost 6 in 10 councils (58 per cent) are struggling to recruit planning officers and more than a fifth (22 per cent) are struggling to recruit HGV drivers.

Recruitment initiatives

The LGA has highlighted that councils are trying to tackle recruitment issues with initiatives such as offering more flexible working, running targeted recruitment campaigns locally and offering accessible training and development opportunities.

Cllr James Jamieson, LGA Chairman, said: “Working in local government is hugely challenging and varied but equally rewarding. It is a great place to grow your skills and your career.

“Our workforce changes lives for the better every day and helps keep communities running. They care for your family, protect children from harm, ensure your favourite takeaway is safe and keep our streets clean.

“Local workforce shortages are adding to the challenges facing our local services.

“In the coming years, some services are likely to continue to see a significant increase in demand which they will not be able to meet without an increase in the supply of skilled staff. Government

investment in local government and its workforce is key to ensure services are protected and also to delivering its own policy agenda.”

Despite the alarming statistics, there are recruitment campaigns running across the public sector.

The Student Loans Company has launched a recruitment campaign to mark Scottish Apprenticeship Week (6-10 March). 12 new apprentices will be recruited in Glasgow, with successful applicants joining the Operations team in June.

The 15-month programme is being run in conjunction with education provider, Babington and apprentices will work towards their Business Administration qualification.

Jackie Currie, Interim Executive Director of Operations at SLC said: “It’s fantastic that we are able to launch our latest apprentice search during Scottish Apprenticeship Week and I’m looking forward to welcoming a new cohort of apprentices to the Operations Team this summer. It’s a fantastic opportunity for people to get great experience with a large public sector organisation and achieve a recognised qualification at the same time.

“At SLC we’re passionate about growing a talented, diverse and skilled workforce. Our Apprenticeship programme forms an important part of this approach which is why we make sure our apprentices are equipped with the tools they need to develop their expertise and achieve their career goals.” L

“Our changesworkforcelives for the better every day and helps communitieskeep running”

Rediscovering and restoring our waterways

Ali Morse, water policy manager at The Wildlife Trusts explains some of the Trusts’ projects and how they are benefitting the local area

Every day, whether we’re conscious of it or not, our daily lives are shaped by water. The most obvious example is the simple action of turning on the taps at home to wash up, brush our teeth or fill the kettle. Outside the home we’ll likely be near a river, stream, lake, reservoir, canal or wetland. Spanned, damned or diverted, the waterways we see can often be heavily engineered, constrained or sometimes hidden underground. Waterways are constantly in flux, impacted over time by natural and human factors whether by tides, rainfall, abstraction, drought, sewage systems, trading routes, flood defences, development or agricultural to list a few. Water and waterways connect us directly to nature and have shaped the way we live over millennia. Our ‘blue spaces’ are also places to spend time in nature – there is growing evidence that even amongst other natural features, they have distinct benefits¹ for our mental health. Today waterways and the wildlife that inhabits them are adversely affected

by a multitude of challenges including agricultural pollution, sewage, over-abstraction and by the historic changes made to rivers’ natural course all of which are exacerbated by climate change. It’s little wonder that they are in a critical state, with all of England’s waters, for example, failing pollution targets, and less than a fifth meeting ecological standards.

Aims

One of The Wildlife Trusts’ aims is to restore vital habitats and bring wildlife back across land, fresh waterways and sea. Our vision is of a thriving natural world with natural habitats playing a key role in addressing the ecological and climate emergencies. Across the 46 Trusts there are a host of new nature recovery projects this year and of these, a number involve river and wetland restoration. These schemes not only restore nature,

but also incorporate nature-based solutions – ways of working with nature to provide benefits to people and wildlife. By relying more on natural processes and less on heavy engineering interventions, we can harness the power of nature to capture flood waters, filter it more slowly, break down pollutants, and later allow that water to dissipate more slowly and replenish water resources for society. The Wildlife Trusts’ projects embrace these concepts, restoring the function, form and diversity of water and wetland habitats.

River restoration

Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) is forging the way on a major wetland and river restoration project at their flagship Chimney Meadows reserve beside the Thames. Creating a new freshwater channel for fish and restoring wetland habitat, under a £2m RDPE Water Environment Grant, the project has involved landscape re-modelling to reconnect the river with the floodplain, helping fish to move around, improving habitats and water quality, and tackle the impacts of climate change by reducing flooding downstream. Floodplains hold a huge amount of carbon and levels are being monitored on site. Work continues this year to restore lost habitats, benefitting wildlife including otters, water voles, chub, snipe and hobbies.

BBOWT work on the Ecover-funded Meadows for the Climate project will study

Water and connectwaterways us directly to nature and have shaped the way we live over millennia

the ability of floodplains to store carbon to mitigate climate change. In spring 2023, soil testing starts at Chimney Meadows with the aim of gathering enough evidence over the three-year project to discover whether floodplain meadows are a more effective, reliable and longer-term natural carbon store than other habitats. Partnering with the Open University Floodplain Meadows Partnership and the Thames Valley Wildflower Meadow Restoration Project, the project team will also restore floodplain meadow alongside The Thames.

Community Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust’s Love Your River Stour initiative is a community-focused river restoration project which has been in operation since 2021 at key sites across Wolverhampton, Stourbridge and Halesowen (thanks to funding from the Green Recovery Challenge Fund). The project tackles issues affecting the river and its wildlife including barriers to fish migration, pollution and litter. Following additional funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority’s Community Green Grants programme, the Trust is able to expand its urban river restoration project into Lye in Dudley and Cradley Heath in Sandwell. This second phase of the Love Your River Stour project will focus on two key sites enabling continued river restoration across the wider river catchment area and working with new communities. One of the plan’s key aims is for everybody living in the West Midlands to have access to high quality natural areas within a 300-metre walk of their home. Local communities will be able to get involved with the project through practical conservation volunteer days.

Gowy Meadows is one of Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s largest reserves and is at the heart

of its Gowy & Mersey Washlands Living Landscape. Covering over 400 acres (165ha), the reserve includes a significant proportion of the floodplain grazing marsh found in Cheshire including ponds, hedgerows, wet grassland and an extensive network of wildlife rich ditches, now a stronghold for water voles. The site is a haven for birds with over 158 species recorded, including regular sightings of great white egret, garganey, lapwing, marsh harrier, merlin, wheatear and stonechat. The reserve is particularly impressive for aquatic invertebrates including the lesser silver water beetle and is home to more than half of the dragonfly and butterfly species recorded across Cheshire. The Trust’s Nature Recovery team have recently secured funding to deliver enhancements to the wetland habitats across the reserve which will see the installation of new sluices, scrapes and bunds to help to manage water levels on the site to provide ideal conditions for waders and waterfowl.

Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust is pioneering natural solutions along the Limb Brook in south Yorkshire. Encompassing water quality, flooding and land management, this two-pronged approach aims to ensure nature-based solutions are included in local elements of the emerging Environmental Land Management Scheme. The Trust’s Working with Water team is on the ground carrying out natural flood management projects and using this work to bench test high level research along the Limb Brook on ecosystem services and economics in partnership with industry leaders. Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has secured additional funding to deliver a £3million project in the Sherbourne Valley in Coventry. The project will focus on the River Sherbourne, its tributaries, the green spaces along its length and the wider catchment area of the river in and around Coventry. The total

scheme area is 60 square kilometres and is a sub-catchment of the wider Warwickshire Avon river catchment, which is one of a number of river catchments that form the River Severn Basin. The River Sherbourne starts its life outside the city boundary in Corley Moor and flows through some of the more affluent, and also some of the most disadvantaged communities in Coventry. The team will help people in Coventry to feel connected to the river Sherbourne and their surrounding green spaces, ensuring a greater variety of wildlife and habitats, and will communicate with local people and schools to empower them to protect their heritage.

Projects like these exemplify why restoring our waters and wetlands improves water quality, protects water supplies, reduces flood risk, locks away carbon, improves biodiversity and supports nature’s recovery whilst enhancing the places we love to visit. They bring partners together to take joint action and harness the expertise and determination of local landowners and communities. They show what we can do, in collaboration with other organisations, to turn around the fate of our waters despite all the pressures they face. And above all they demonstrate that it’s not too late to take action to restore our vital blue spaces, and to continue to champion all the benefits that this brings. Wherever clean water is located life, can really flourish. L

FURTHER INFORMATION

www.wildlifetrusts.org

1) Blue Spaces, Health and Well-Being: A Psychologist’s Perspective Matthew White, Uni of Vienna: https://www.wcl.org. uk/blue-spaces-health-and-well-beinga-psychologists-perspective.asp

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