Purpose

Decision on contract signing for a Main Contractor to complete the extension to Beatrice Tate Secondary School.

Decision

DECISION: To

1. Authorise the Corporate Director Childrens’ Services to award the the construction contract for the Beatrice Tate School Expansion Project to Alexander James Limited for the sum of £6,319,887.85.
2. Authorise the Corporate Director Childrens’ Services to agree and execute the final form of the construction contract and associated project documentation.
3. Approve the utilisation of independently assessed provisional sums as referenced in Appendix A, as permitted within the contract.
4. Note that the proposed contract execution will support the timely commencement of construction works and delivery of the expanded facilities by Q4 2027 – available at the start of the 2027 academic year.
5. Note the Equalities Impact Assessment (EqIA) set out in Section 4, which confirms that the project will have a positive impact by increasing specialist educational provision for children and young people with SEND. 

REASONS FOR DECISION:

1. Approval is required to enable construction works to commence immediately and maintain the target completion date of Q4 2027. Any delay will increase programme disruption, affect school operations and postpone the delivery of additional SEND places.
2. Delays would also affect the timely provision of vacant possession of the Southern Grove site, potentially impacting the Council’s housing development proposals within the Mayor’s Accelerated Housing Programme (MAHP) and delaying the delivery of affordable homes.
3. Further delay in contract execution is likely to result in increased construction costs due to ongoing inflationary and market pressures affecting material prices.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

1. There are no viable alternatives to the proposed contract execution. Delaying approval would increase project costs, extend the programme and delay the delivery of additional SEND places required to meet forecast demand.
2. Programme delays would also impact the Southern Grove housing programme and could increase reliance on expensive out-of-borough SEND placements due to insufficient in-borough capacity.
3. This bid was previously issued for open tender, after analysis AJC still represent better value for money. See Appendix B for further details.

Action by: Corporate Director of Children’s Services