BSF Programme Update

Programme Update:

Please note further detail about the monthly updates can be found by clicking on the monthly menu options to the left of this page.

September 2008: The Government approved Stockton Council's Strategy for Change Part 1.

February 2009: Stockton Council submits Strategy for Change Part 2 to the Government for approval.

May 2009: Northfield School is brought into Wave 6 of the BSF programme.

June 2009: Bidders' Day

June/July/August 2009: The Building Schools for the Future (BSF) Team are currently working on the Outline Business Case (OBC) which is due to be submitted to Partnership for Schools (PfS) at the beginning of September 2009.
The OBC is the key document which must be completed to gain formal approval for the BSF wave 6 project to move into procurement. The OBC builds on the work done in the development of the Strategy for Change and looks at what schemes are achievable and affordable in the BSF project.
It will be reviewed by PfS and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) to ensure that the project being proposed reflects the vision set out in our Strategy for Change, is affordable, offers value for money, will attract market interest and that the local authority is sufficiently resourced to deliver the procurement.

The document will be developed in line with the detailed guidance issued to Local Authorities by PfS. Some of the key areas that will be expanded on in the document are:

The context to the project including the corporate, educational and estates strategy.

The scope of the whole project including details of the sample schemes being put forward to the market and the selection of a Local Education Partnership to deliver the partnering services.

Confirmation of the affordability of the project scope based on the assumptions set out in the OBC.

The Authority's organisational structure established to deliver the project including post financial close structures to monitor the performance and relationship with the private sector partner.

The OBC needs to be approved by PfS and DCSF before we can begin the procurement stage of the programme.

August 2009: St Michael's RC Comprehensive School and St Patrick's RC Comprehensive School are brought into Wave 6 of the BSF programme.

December 2009: The Government approved Stockton's Wave 6 Outline Business Case and a notice advertising the BSF contract was placed in the Official Journal of the European Union marking the start of the 75 week procurement process.

January 2010: Decision paving the way for an exciting new era of secondary education in Stockton-on-Tees was made.

February 2010: Three private sector consortiums were short-listed to bid for the £180 million BSF contract.