Cllr Jim Kenyon Q&A Balfour Beattie Contract

[Colin James]

Jim asked me if I would post the responses to his questions. 

 

these are some answers to my questions I asked of the council contract managers of the  Belfour Beatty contract.

Cheers Jim  

 

Cllr Kenyon Contract Management queries

 

1.Strategic partnering board "who sits on it"? No cllrs

This detail is in the contract data

Director EEC (Geoff Hughes)

Assistant Director PBC (Richard Ball)

The Service Manager (Clive Hall)

No Cllrs sit on the board, as the management of the contract is not a political function.

 

2.Need site of the annual plan for this year

A presentation to members is planned, also a report to Cabinet member / director re internal governance

There is no annual plan for this year (2013-14); due to the contract starting part-way through the year. The plan is being developed for the future in accordance with the contract.

 

3.Clause 31 ten year extension seems stacked in BB favour who sets the performance acceptability and can that be adjusted during the length of the contract.

These clauses allow for a ‘rolling extension’ to be awarded in return for continued acceptable performance. They are designed to keep the provider incentivised throughout the contract term, as opposed to ‘winning all extension in one chunk’. The term can be reduced in performance not maintained. The Employer also has options to reward more, and might do so to:

• Give time to re-procure;
• In return for an investment (fleet, roads);
• Some other reason that is not foreseen at this time.

4.So far have there been any dispute's with BB and if so how many and what cost.

No disputes, but early warning and compensation events have/are being processed.

To date 16 Early Warnings and 22 Compensation Events have been raised by both parties.

Of these, 11 Early Warnings have been closed, or are in the process of closure at a value of £40,163, which is made up of increased costs for commissioned design and build works, and 5 remain live.

Of the 22 Compensation Events, 3 have been cancelled, 10 have been accepted and closed, at a valuie of £182,480 and 9 remain live.

 

5.Direct fee % is 9.83% Sub-contracted fee is 9.83% unless open book 25% less or less £10,000 or less spent in one year net of vat (my info) Management agent  fee 2.60% (my info)

The fee is 9.83% the application of this through the various payment mechanisms should be understood. The payment mechanisms are, lump sum (a tendered price, adjusted for the following years, in each year’s annual plan), target cost (pain/gain share, this incentivises improvement), Cost reimbursable (the cost +fee). With Lump sum the risk transfers to the Provider, but the Employer will pay for the risk in the lump sum. With target cost the risk is shared, this is a healthy partnership approach. In cost reimbursable the risk is retained by the Employer, this works well for ‘events’ that are difficult to quantify prior to them happening, such as the response to severe weather.

 

6.What is enhanced third party margin 0% up to £25,000 then  50%

A way of HC benefiting in enhanced third party work (work for other clients) and the way that this will spread their business overheads.

 

7."Good industry practice" how do we bench mark against who?

There are various benchmarks, nationally, regionally and locally. Some to be developed further, for example with other BBLP contracts.

For example there is on-going benchmarking using the National Highways and Transportation annual survey (approx. 75 LAs) and participating in their CQC (cost, quality, customers) pilot.

Aligning performance measures with other BBLP contracts will enable us to compare.

 

8.Performance Indicators "Need to See" agreed list (seen)

Note strategic and operational indicators, purpose of each and the fact that these are not the only measures used in the delivery of service.

Strategic measures are used to help determine future contract extension. First measurement period 2014/15 – 2015/16.

Operational measures are used to determine payment of 25% of their fee percentage each month.

Other performance measures are being developed by BBLP using their asset management system (Confirm) which is accessible to the Contract Management Team.

 

9.Recognised sub-contractors where is the list and how do local business's get on that list.

Sub-contractors used by the previous provider formed the basis of the BBLP list; further suppliers have been added to the list since the 1st September. BBLP have consulted the Hereford and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce on the potential of the local supply chain and will also be holding a supplier open day in March. 

Subcontractors are required to go through a stringent vetting process before they can be engaged on the Herefordshire Contract and BBLP are actively providing assistance to some of the smaller subcontractors to get through this process. The Councils Contract management have full visibility of BBLP approved sub-contractor list.

 

10.With new and existing  staff what responsibility would Herefordshire council have regarding pensions etc

TUPE applies to transferring employees, see schedule 7 for detail . This is a complex area. BBLP have admitted body status, but broadly comparable pension schemes can be provided. Note pension fund shortfalls on termination fall to the Employer; this is equitable way of dealing with this risk.

[Colin James]

11.I need a briefing on the implications of any staff redundancies and the cost saving if they were potentially retrained within BB.

HC pays for the resources used in the delivery of service no more than that, so if retained by BBLP they need to find work for them.

 

12.What is the break down of tupe staff currently at BB and what T&C are they using.

The detail is in the TUPE regs TUPE list and various T&Cs

To summarise, the TUPE list at transfer contained the following:

Ex Herefordshire Council - 127

Ex Herefordshire Jarvis Services – 23

Amey Wye Valley – 34

Amey Services Limited – 69

LG SOM (Amey) - 21

 

13.Cross role training at BB

This question needs clarification

 

14.What is the current vehicle fleet and who maintains it.

BBLP have fleet management role

Please see attached Annex 06: Service Information: Fleet Management.

While BBLP are not carrying out all these functions at present, it is planned to move towards this model. A list of HV vehicles is also attached. Please note that the transit vans for the Community Equipment Store are soon to be transferred to the new provider.

 

15.Reactive and Response teams cost's and call outs

Depends on service order, preparedness is ordered on a lump sum basis, response on a cost reimbursable basis, this reflects appropriate risk apportionment, ensures preparedness and does not constrain the necessary response.

 

16.Pot Holes how many claims have been made by the public how much has been paid out who is responsible going forward.

The provider is responsible for claims that are paid out as a result of their default. The attached is a summary of our highway claims history for the last 12 months.

Number of claims

1334

Amount paid in compensation over the preceding 12 months

£91,501

Spend (including staff salaries and outsourced assistance) on work relating to such claims

£170,000

Total cost of compensation and staff salaries

£261,501

 

17.What is an average cost for a standard two lane road recovered to a distance of 100m with Tarmac to an industry recognised depth

Estimating work, do have benchmarks  see the inputs into this model for details on rates. But please note the revised cost base in the new contract. The Public Realm Services Contract being based in Cost not Rates, as such the price to HC will change from there rates going forward. We are working with BBLP re the estimating that is needed to establish and agree target costs.

 

18.What is the average distance and depth covered by a full load of a Tarmac lorry.

Tarmac deliver in 20T loads normally, but can be 44T. Distance and depth does depend on treatment.

 

19.Does this council still own any grounds maintained equipment if so who Services and at what cost is the hire to BB.

BBLP provide this equipment

The cost to HC of plant for Parks & Open Spaces from 1st Sept 2013 to 24th Jan 2014 was £188,800, including vehicles.

 

20.Recycling of street waste? P127 "reuse and recycling"

It can be done and the council has targets re this

Currently most street cleaning waste is deposited at the Council’s waste site at Rotherwas where recycling and re-use is the responsibility of the Council’s waste disposal contractor.

Work is underway with waste management colleagues to take this forward.

 

21.Apprenticeships how  are BB  doing on this aspect

The Public Realm contract was procured in accordance with National Skills Academy for Construction guidance, and Herefordshire Council was approved as a Skills Academy under this initiative in January 2014. As such, the commitment to creating apprenticeships is being monitored and delivered as part of a project including a range of skills and employability opportunities. BBLP is in the process of working with council officers to deliver these commitments, with the first cohort of 5 apprentices scheduled to begin work with BBLP at the start of the next academic year in September 2014.

As well as creating new apprenticeship opportunities, BBLP has 7 apprentices who were transferred from AMEY and are continuing their studies. In addition, an event for subcontractors is to be held in March, which will include guidance on taking on apprentices.

 

22.How are BB doing ref page 138 highway defect completion timescales

We have a performance report

For the period 1st September 2013 – 31st January 2014 39,000 defects were identified (the vast majority as a result of regular inspection) a fourfold increase compared with the same period in 2012-13; of these 28,000 have been dealt with.

Currently 97% of Category 1 defects are dealt with within 24 hours, but only 33% of Category 2a defects are dealt with within 28 days. The volume of defects is the issue here and this is directly related to the underlying condition of roads.

 

23.What is the average cost per winter grit and have we safeguarded sufficient stock of rock salt.

We have a full cost model and we have sufficient stocks.

 

24.Call centre enquiries how they are fed into the system at BB "pot hole list and general"

Currently requests for service, whether originating through Info or from the website, generate an e-mail to BBLP; BBLP enter the service request into their asset management system, Confirm, which manages the allocation of work and resources. Emergencies are immediately passed by Info to BBLP by phone.

 

25.Complaint handling (ciu) hfd shire how is this holding up I believe there has been big reductions in staff and loss of experience are the faults filtering through to BB in a timely manner  I understand the public is very dissatisfied.

Complaints are dealt with in accordance with the Council’s policy and timescales.

Levels of satisfaction and dissatisfaction have been improving.

 

26.Could I have site of the tree survey.

This can be arranged

 

27.I think we should have a council Woodstock pile area that we could take wood to be processed then sold on to generate income to improve the budget spent on tree services, could something like that be inserted into the contract if agreeable.

It could be if the business case for it ‘stacks up’.

 

28.Is there a rental cost for the 5 depots and are business rates applicable and is there any under occupancy.

There is a rental cost, note business growth ‘third party work’ etc.

The leases are being finalised and market rents are charged through the contract, these are a pass through cost with no mark-up being paid by HC. This enables the true cost of the service to be managed through the contract.

Business rates are applicable and are handled through the contract in the same way as rents.

 

29.Who checks the inventory at those depots and at what frequency.

The Council’s inventory at the depot’s was identified prior to occupation by BBLP and is identified in the leases. BBLP are required to maintain/replace any inventory. The inventory will be checked at the end of the lease.

 

30.Can any path/ highway improvements be carried out by any contractor other than BB i.e. crossings, traffic calming measures or community initiatives without any financial penalties.

There is no exclusivity in this contract, so no financial penalties for HC using others to deliver works. That said, we need to be aware of the value that partnership working can bring, and how that might be undermined by using others without good reason. We also need to fully understand the VFM in making procurement choices, be that a choice to use BBLP or any other.

 

 

I have attached the original document that Councillor Jim Kenyon provided below

 

Cllr Kenyon Contract Management queries V1.00.doc

 

[flamboyant]

Well done Cllr Kenyon and thank you. Please accept my sincere apologies for doubting you. 

 

24.Call centre enquiries how they are fed into the system at Balfour Beatty "pot hole list and general"

Currently requests for service, whether originating through Info or from the website, generate an e-mail to BBLP; BBLP enter the service request into their asset management system, Confirm, which manages the allocation of work and resources. Emergencies are immediately passed by Info to BBLP by Phone

 

Regarding the response above this seems like a very poor way of doing things. Why do the Council email complaints through to BB? I understand the Council purchased a piece of software for this purpose at a cost of 1.5 million. Doesn't this mean the work is done twice? A Council employee writes an email then a BB employee has to add it to their systems. Wouldn't it be more cost effective to cut out one of these processes? I have heard the Council have over 500 unanswered emails on their systems do you know if BB also have a back log?

[Colin James]

 

16.Pot Holes how many claims have been made by the public how much has been paid out who is responsible going forward.

The provider is responsible for claims that are paid out as a result of their default. The attached is a summary of our highway claims history for the last 12 months.

Number of claims

1334

Amount paid in compensation over the preceding 12 months

£91,501

Spend (including staff salaries and outsourced assistance) on work relating to such claims

£170,000

Total cost of compensation and staff salaries

£261,501

 

 

So it has cost almost double the amount of money just to administer the claims than the claims themselves at £170,000  :Cha ching:

[Glenda Powell]

Surprise, surprise, at 9am this morning a team of BB workmen were clearing water gullies in Charlton Ave, another team was looking at what work is needed in regard to potholes. I went out to speak to them advising I was the local councillor and asked them to look at other sites in Newton Farm!

[megilleland]

7."Good industry practice" how do we bench mark against who?

There are various benchmarks, nationally, regionally and locally. Some to be developed further, for example with otherBBLP contracts.

For example there is on-going benchmarking using the National Highways and Transportation annual survey (approx. 75 LAs) and participating in their CQC (cost, quality, customers) pilot.

Aligning performance measures with other BBLP contracts will enable us to compare.

 

Just in case anyone is wondering what BBLP stands for it is Balfour Beatty Living Places. I noted on 4th Noveber 2013 that their website for this was not up and running and today the same applies.

 

[flamboyant]

I forgot to mention 

 

When BBLP took over it was several months before they had any phone lines. Now if you don't have phone lines you don't have an internet connection and can't receive emails. So how during those first few months did BBLP receive emails from Hereford Council? 

 

How long was the delay in reporting potholes/ road issues to HC and BBLP receiving them? What was the contingency plan?

[twowheelsgood]

They had email almost from the outset - I had extensive correspondence with the Rights of Way team. The phones thing is very odd, because obviously Amey had phones, there were and are phone lines into the building, they have email but no phones. Guess we won't find out as it’s a private company ...

[dippyhippy]

Jim, you are a top bloke!

Well done, and many thanks for pursuing this.

 

A rare breed, Cllr Kenyon - he says, he does, he gets back to you!

 

I see where Jim has asked for specific costs, questions 17 and 23, these have been neatly side stepped!

I wonder if Geoff Hughes himself approved the answers given.....possibly not, he seems to have so many roles, I am amazed he finds time to do any actual work........

[flamboyant]

Try TWG well spotted lol

[Biomech]

Good job Jim...

 

.. and well done Colin for getting a fleet together to get these issues fixed!
 

A list of Hereford Voice vehicles is also attached.

 

 

 

;)

[gdj]

The thing that really strikes me is the labyrinthine complexity of these contracts.  Mutual suspicion and the rules for conflict are a big part of them.

 

There can be no way that the work can be done as responsively and efficiently with so many contractual hoops to jump through and transaction costs and contract management and supervision costs to take account of.

 

Old days: Council depot manager receives call saying an urgent repair is needed somewhere.  He slots it into the schedule for one of his gangs for the day.  

 

Brave new world.  Council hears of repair need - sends email to BBLP and hopes they receive it.  BBLP check whether that work is included in the contract and try to prove it will require extra payment and wait for agreement before scheduling it.  If they do the work they make sure that they only do that work - even if another repair close by is noticed.  Forms are filled in by BBLP and a raft of BBLP and HCC managers then chew over who should pay.  HCC send out someone to check the work has been done satisfactorily and put their report into the argument.  Repeat every day.  Workers in the `gang' receive less pay that when directly employed - BBLP managers and HCC contract managers get decidedly more.  This is efficiency!

[ragwert]

What boils my p**s is that these so called teams of pothole fillers are just filling reported potholes.Even though there are potholes close by the one reported they just ignore them.
I thought Amey were a joke but Balfour Beatty knock spots off them.

[twowheelsgood]

There was a programme on Radio 4 last week about this pervasive outsourcing - basically its all been taken over one way or another by the big 4 accountancy practices, who in turn work with the likes of Capita, and who freely admitted that the contracts were deliberately impenetrable (one councillor spoke of a 1000 page contract) and the methods to calculate costings so deliberately convoluted that even other accountants couldn't unravel them (there is a hint of the sort of jargon in the answers above). So, a £200 gritting bin for a steep pavement was costed out at £4500, with the result that the council said they couldn't afford it and pedestrians were left to fall over. There was no hint of remorse from the accountants, quite the opposite - they thought they were doing a good job by making their clients so much money. The morals of it seemed to pass them by. Bottom line is we're doomed and will be bled dry and the county's infrastructure decimated unless we get back to direct labour. Of course the council officer who sold us down the river wye left with £250k in his back pocket and went on to a job with ... Capita.

[Jim Kenyon]

Spent the morning in Tupsley with a the Belfour Beatty road and path "pot hole" inspector we identified 5x cat one pot holes AND they were fixed today we also marked up 15 x cat twos which they have 28 days to fix they are trying hard but there is a new way of thinking required most of the repairs are quick fixes not perminant I shared some of his frustrations and I have some ideas which make sence and in the long run would work better now the difficult job getting the council administration to listen.

[megilleland]

There was a programme on Radio 4 last week about this pervasive outsourcing - basically its all been taken over one way or another by the big 4 accountancy practices, who in turn work with the likes of Capita, and who freely admitted that the contracts were deliberately impenetrable (one councillor spoke of a 1000 page contract) and the methods to calculate costings so deliberately convoluted that even other accountants couldn't unravel them (there is a hint of the sort of jargon in the answers above). So, a £200 gritting bin for a steep pavement was costed out at £4500, with the result that the council said they couldn't afford it and pedestrians were left to fall over. There was no hint of remorse from the accountants, quite the opposite - they thought they were doing a good job by making their clients so much money. The morals of it seemed to pass them by. Bottom line is we're doomed and will be bled dry and the county's infrastructure decimated unless we get back to direct labour. Of course the council officer who sold us down the river wye left with £250k in his back pocket and went on to a job with ... Capita.

 

The link is here.

[Biomech]

Spent the morning in Tupsley with a the Belfour Beatty road and path "pot hole" inspector we identified 5x cat one pot holes AND they were fixed today

 

It's a shame that someone like yourself has to hold their hand and supervise the work in order for it to be done.

[ragwert]

Sorry Jim but they are not trying hard at all

[flamboyant]

Good luck with that Councillor It won't be easy getting anything past. Cabinet, but I for one appreciate all your endeavours. 

My kindest regards

[megilleland]

In the Hereford Times: p16 13th March 2014

 

Thirty to lose their jobs

 

Thirty people are set to lose their jobs at Balfour Beatty in Herefordshire as part of a restructuring process taking place within the company.

 

The redundancies will be in the street cleansing and ground maintenance teams as Herefordshire Council's contractors look to provide better service within a new budget.

 

The restructuring process does, however, create new roles within the company.

 

Eleven locality stewards will be recruited to work closely with local parish councils within communities by cleaning and repairing roads where possible. Jobs will include litter picking, potholes repairs and street light work.

 

Further to that 15 new roles will also be created to "improve and manage the whole of the Herefordshire public realm".

 

These posts are likely to be recruited both internally and externally with an emphasis on providing better information and advice.

 

"There is simply no escaping the pressure on all councils to cut budgets" said Andy Williams contract director at Balfour Beatty Living Places in Herefordshire.

 

"We will do everything we can to help our employees to find alternative work through our redeployment programme".

 

"We want to get closer to the communities we serve and provide services that match their needs more closely".

 

"To make that happen, we are restructuring and recruiting new staff in Herefordshire to support the new ways of working"

 

What are they up to! £200 million pounds of council tax payers money to run this contract for the council and now they are looking for other people to do the work. Who signed this off?

[megilleland]

Colin delete this please - posted twice.

[Glenda Powell]

before Amey lost the contract to BB I was talking to some of their workforce they told me that those Amey staff that were left was taken on by BB on a 6 months trial basis, at the end of that period they would all go through a second interview for their jobs if BB did not think they had done their job properly they would be made redundant. This is probably the result 30 jobs lost!

[megilleland]

Balfour Beatty recruiting:

 

Structuring for Success 

Are you up for a challenge? Balfour Beatty is at the start of a new ten year contract with Herefordshire Council to maintain, manage and improve the highways and public spaces within the County. As a result of changes to the way that we are going to deliver services, and after carrying out an internal reorganisation, we are now looking further afield to fill 25 vacancies for exceptional individuals that can help us transform the way that we provide our services to the public. 

 

Andy Williams, Contract Director of Balfour Beatty Living Places in Herefordshire explains "We want to get closer to the communities we serve, and provide services that match their needs more closely. To make that happen we are restructuring, and are currently recruiting new staff in Herefordshire to support the new ways of working. We're looking for outstanding individuals who are passionate about Herefordshire's residents and making sure they get the highest quality services". 

 

Balfour Beatty is introducing a new team of thirteen 'Locality Stewards' - these are new roles for a new way of working. Our Locality Stewards will be based in, and responsible for an area of the County. They will develop an understanding of the needs of the community by listening to the public, elected members and parishes alike, and by first- hand inspections of the issues. We want to talk to individuals who know how to build good relationships. They will need to be very good at listening, and they'll need a very strong sense of personal responsibility for getting things done. And sometimes - like recently in all the floods we've been having - be prepared to work long hours to ensure residents are safe and happy with the services we provide. We're keen to talk to people from all sorts of backgrounds. What will count will be personality, tenacity and commitment. We need to make the best use of our resources, and Locality Stewards will ensure that we minimise the impact of reducing budgets for routine activities such as street cleaning and grass cutting. Training will be provided for individuals that demonstrate the right approach for the roles. 

 

The roads of Herefordshire will benefit from over £40m of investment this year, and Balfour Beatty is planning how best to do the work - to ensure that the right work is done at the right time, whilst minimising the effect on the travelling public. We need very skilled and highly motivated people, who are driven by a commitment to the best possible value and service for the residents of the County. " Councillor Philip Price, cabinet member for infrastructure said, "I've been working hard since the beginning of this new contract to push for locality stewardship and I'm pleased to see the new posts being created to work with local parishes and residents. Local input is the key to make sure services are right for each community, and we need to get back to this way of working." 

 

Depot Manager 

Overview of the role: You will run one of our operational depots and be responsible for the management of all services delivered from the depot, through the effective management of its staff, managing the quality and productivity of their work, while maintaining company and industry standards relating to health and safety and other related company policies. You'll need to know how to get the best out of our people, often in very demanding conditions. The ideal candidate will be an experienced professional with knowledge of highway maintenance and management, and related operations. You'll have good communication skills, both verbal and written and have the ability to deal with difficult or confrontational situations. You'll be good at understanding needs, and finding solutions to problems, customer focussed at all times and continually looking for ways to improve. Technical Competencies: You will have at least 5 years' experience of operational management of both planned and reactive works. Good organisational and motivational skills are essential. 

 

Locality Stewards (13 posts) 

Overview of the role: A Locality Steward is a new role and a new way of working. A Locality Steward will be the eyes and ears of the service in one of the 9 'Localities' within Herefordshire. As a Locality Steward you will be the main contact for the public, elected members and other key stakeholders, responsible for understanding local needs. You will attend local meetings to identify, understand and develop outline solutions for key service related issues. You will undertake statutory inspections of the highway and public rights of way. The kind of people we are looking for will have a very strong sense of doing the right thing for the localities they look after. We want to talk to individuals who know how to build good relationships. They will need to be very good at listening. They'll need a very strong sense of personal responsibility for getting things done, and be highly customer focussed with experience of working positively with different sectors of the locality (members, parishes, public, community groups) They'll have good communication skills, both verbal and written, plus the ability to deal with difficult or confrontational situations. Technical Competencies: For this role drive, enthusiasm and tact are essential - training in the technical aspects of the role will be provided for the right candidates. A full driving licence is essential, plus GCSE English and Maths (or equivalent). You'll be PC Literate and have a knowledge of MS suite i.e. Word, Excel etc. 

 

Highways Supervisor 

Overview of the Role: 

We are looking for someone to be responsible for the delivery and programing of works across the highways routine and reactive business area. You will need to work with the locality stewards and the depot managers to develop a program of works that reflects the needs of the localities within the county, assisting the depot managers in the management of staff allocated to this business area.

 

Part of your role will be to manage productivity and quality of works in this business area, dealing with emergency defects and related incidents across the network and to provide technical guidance to this business area. Technical Competencies Operational safety related qualification (IOSH / NEBOSH) NRSWA ideally Units 1 to 16 3 years (minimum) Highways Maintenance operational experience GCSE English and Maths (or equivalent). 

 

Works Programmer 

Overview of the role: your job will be to programme all the activities on our network, from grass cutting and litter picking to the construction of major schemes in order to assist in making our work efficient whilst minimising its impact on the public. You will have excellent planning and organisational skills, good communication skills both verbal and written. Good presentation, influencing and motivation skills. You will be target-driven, have a flexible attitude and willingness to travel to multiple site locations. 

 

Technical Competencies: You will have significant experience of programme management for a complex, interconnected and constantly changing series of activities. A recognised programme management qualification is desirable, as is an understanding of working on the public highway. 

 

For further information on these and other opportunities candidates will need to visit the Balfour Beatty careers website http://www.balfourbeattyservices.com/careers/ or they can email [Click Here to Email Your CV] More vacancies will be advertised next week. 

 

At Balfour Beatty we value diversity and celebrate individual differences. We believe diversity of people, skills and abilities helps the business continue to grow as a strong, dynamic and innovative organisation. We believe everyone should be recruited and promoted on the basis of their personal ability, contribution and potential. We promote, support and maintain a culture of fairness, respect and equal opportunity for all. 

[Denise Lloyd]

Strange they are advertising for new staff yet making 30 redundant.  I see they too have also got the talk that now makes 3 of them  HC/HH and BB must have all had the same tutor on how to talk a total load of codswallop without actually saying anything.

[Glenda Powell]

Denise, as I said in a previous post when BB to over from Amey they gave Amey staff a job telling them their contract would be reviewed after 3-6 months, the 3-6 months is up, so I can only thing they chose the best of Amey staff and let the others go. Like there are more staff going at the council, some of them having been there years.

[Jim Kenyon]

Spent the morning in Tupsley with a the Belfour Beatty road and path "pot hole" inspector we identified 5x cat one pot holes AND they were fixed today we also marked up 15 x cat twos which they have 28 days to fix they are trying hard but there is a new way of thinking required most of the repairs are quick fixes not perminant I shared some of his frustrations and I have some ideas which make sence and in the long run would work better now the difficult job getting the council administration to listen.

 

update folks all these repairs above have now been carried out and instead of "just kicking it in"large patches have been done so they should be good for many years we now have a locality manager for Hereford and I'm please to say it is mike who is a switched on guy that I'm looking forward to working with,mike was the chap that who used to inspect the roads he can now ensure repairs are made how he wants it doing not the old way.

[megilleland]

What's this locality chap thing JIm. How does he fit into reporting a problem? Is he on the phone for the public to contact?

[Jim Kenyon]

What's this locality chap thing JIm. How does he fit into reporting a problem? Is he on the phone for the public to contact?

He will look after his patch and be the first point of contact for councillors things will still be reported the same way to bblivingplaces but they will land on his desk,he phoned me today to say he got the job and I'm meeting him for a brew next week.

[megilleland]

Jim in the BB job description above (post 23) for Locality Stewards, BB are creating 13 positions for 9 Localities. Can you tell me how these posts are going to be distributed across the county - where are the other 4 going?

 

You mention that things will still be reported the same way to bblivingplaces. Can you explain how this works?. Will residents be able to have direct contact with BB? How are these Locality Stewards going to work with these other agencies on our estates. Our grass is cut by three different organisations and they all pass the buck if you raise issues with them.

 

localities_map.pdf

[Jim Kenyon]

The councillors me included will be having a full briefing on Tuesday at brockington towers, I will not be able to update you til at least the week after as I have a family bereavement to deal with so please be patience or perhaps one of the other councillors on here could update you.