Agenda item

David Adams (Deputy Director-Effectiveness, Sufficiency and Skills) and Christine McInnes (Corporate Director for Children, Young People and Education) were in attendance for the item:

1. Introduced the report seeking approval for an additional £400,000 to support the replacement of two modular classroom blocks at Dover Grammar School for Girls.

a)    Members were reminded that a previous decision had approved £1.4 million for the scheme and that planning permission had subsequently been secured. During progression through detailed design and building control processes, additional fire safety requirements had been identified.

b)    Advised that Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS), acting as a consultee to the building control process, had determined that fire appliances could not access the proposed building within required distances due to the constraints of the site. Officers explained that a sprinkler system, together with associated water storage and distribution infrastructure, was therefore required. These works had increased the project cost to £1.8 million.

2.In response to questions it was discussed:

a)    Members queried if an oversight in the planning phase had contributed to the issue. Officers explained that the issue had arisen through the building control process rather than the planning process and that the requirement related to fire protection standards associated with modern building regulations.

b)    Members queried whether the additional costs could be recovered from contractors or design consultants. Officers advised again that the issue had arisen due to technical requirements identified during regulatory review rather than design failings and therefore there was no realistic mechanism to recover the additional expenditure

c)    Responding to concerns regarding future projects, officers advised that lessons learned from the scheme would be incorporated into future school replacement programmes, particularly in relation to fire appliance access arrangements and regulatory requirements.

d)    Members questioned whether alternative building locations had been considered. Officers confirmed that all previous options had been revisited; however, alternative solutions would have involved substantially greater costs, additional planning complexity or significant operational challenges associated with the school site. The current proposal therefore remained the most cost-effective and practical option.

e)    In response to questions regarding the sprinkler infrastructure, officers advised that water pressure on the site was insufficient to support direct operation of the system and that dedicated underground water storage tanks would therefore be required.

f)      Officers confirmed that ongoing maintenance responsibilities for the sprinkler system would rest with the school following completion of the project and would be met through existing school revenue arrangements.

g)    Members acknowledged the increase in costs but noted the importance of replacing buildings that had reached the end of their operational life and recognised that continuing maintenance of the existing structures would not represent value for money.

RESOLVED to endorse the proposed decision, namely:

1) INCREASE the funding for the replacement of two modular classroom blocks at Dover Grammar School for Girls by £400,000, from £1.4 million to £1.8 million, to fund the installation of a sprinkler system and associated contingency costs.

2) DELEGATE authority to the Director of Infrastructure in consultation with the Director of Education and SEND, and the Head of Law to take relevant actions, including but not limited to negotiating, entering into and finalising the terms of relevant contracts, contract variations or other legal agreements, as required, to implement the decision; and

3) DELEGATE authority to the Director of Infrastructure to be the nominated Authority Representative within the relevant contractual agreements and to enter into such variations as envisaged under any of these contracts.