Case Studies

Ysgol Hafod Lon – Wynne Construction

The Challenge

Gwynedd Council strive to secure benefits above and beyond the value of the schools themselves and does so by striving to secure additional wider community benefits on its high value building projects.

As part of the Council’s Strategic Plan, ‘Keeping the benefit local’ is a key driver to ensure that the local economy can prosper from the Council’s procurement spend. Such local benefit can centre on utilising the local supply base and where possible develop the local workforce and contractors with the necessary skills to complete such projects.

Having worked with the successful contractor previously, the Council were confident that Wynne Construction shared the Council’s aims and would do their utmost to achieve positive results.

The Response

By following the Client based approach of the National Skills Academy for Construction, the Council were able to set clear targets, incorporating core and non-core aspirations as part of the contract. Core targets were set from a training perspective, based on the overall value of the project.

Wynne Construction and Gwynedd Council used a variety of sources to promote a Meet the Buyer event for the project so as to ensure that local subcontractors were aware of potential future opportunities.

By the end of the project, 69% of spend associated with the project remained within 30 miles of the site. To secure results in terms of upskilling the supply chain, Wynne Construction subsequently set targets as part of the appointment process for their subcontractors and excellent results were achieved in terms of upskilling of the supply chain which included NVQs, Supervisor training and Leadership and management training.

The Results

This particular project successfully met the challenge through all parties supporting the Council’s aims of ‘Keeping the benefit local’.

Examples were identified where the local supply chain fulfilled elements of the project, and as a result of the work secured, were able to fill temporary and permanent jobs within the local area.

As a result of this :

• 1 permanent job created as a result of the project
• 3 permanent jobs retained as a result of the project
• 5 temporary jobs retained as a result of the project
• 69% of spend associated with the project remained within 30 miles of site
• 750 weeks of NVQ2/3 training achieved by a local subcontractor
• Total of 132 weeks of Supervisory and Leadership & management training achieved by 3 subcontractors, with 76 of those weeks achieved by a Gwynedd based company

In an effort to promote the benefits achieved and show the positive impact projects of this nature can have locally, the Council produced a brief video (video shot in April 2016). The two local subcontractors featured demonstrate the importance of such projects for the local area and what opportunities they have been able to offer as a result.

Transferable Solutions

Gwynedd Council has already been able to follow the same principles in terms of its next School project in Bangor, by replicating the Client based approach of the National Skills Academy for Construction when setting its targets for the successful contractor.

Again, it will work closely with Wynne Construction – the successful contractor and its supply chain, to successfully meet the objectives of the Council of ‘Keeping the benefit local’.

The results secured on the Meirionnydd Dwyfor Special Education school gives us the confidence and assurance of what is possible, moving forward on future projects and Gwynedd Council are pleased to share and communicate these achievements throughout the project.