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The Art of The Possible
Turning the experience of expiry on its head
The whole process of the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) expiry in schools is fraught with frustration and danger. You only have to look at the recent problems with the schools in Stoke-on-Trent where the PFI company behind the contract went into liquidation, leaving unfinished building lifecycle work and huge repair bills.
We won't lie to you or sugarcoat the issues. Having supported 47 schools and associated trusts through an expiry experience, we know a school or academy trust is not suddenly going to find itself in the driving seat through the expiry process once its PFI contract ends.
We have seen, however, that there are ways of all parties working together so that expiry can be an opportunity for schools and academy trusts to regain control and flexibility. Handback, as expiry is known within the contract, can be a time for innovative planning, business strategising and managing change. Let’s explore how to transform a potential crisis into a moment of empowerment and development.
A new way of working
A headteacher’s and/or Academy Trust CEO’s ability to influence the process is largely based on their relationships with others, whether that’s the Local Authority, the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), the Facilities Management (FM) contractor or the Department for Education (DfE).
That said, you can improve the outcome by demanding to be involved and by working to the School Agreement’s and Project Agreement’s contractual obligations. This will enable you to achieve better results through contractual interpretation and by ensuring others meet their obligations.
Regaining control and flexibility
The ‘art of the possible’ is often overused when referring to managing change, but it is highly relevant here. PFI expiry is a problem for every organisation involved, yet it is also a potential liberator. Every school and trust should be able to determine its own future. And expiry is a handback process that does exactly that. It gives control back to the educationalists.
Once the decision making is handed back to you and your leadership team, you will have greater flexibility to manage your asset (i.e. your school) in-house. And you will have the power to retender services under a new, more flexible model, rather than being constrained by a decades-old contract.
Expiry is a time to explore new ways forward, overcome limitations and set realistic goals.
Start planning early
It was only two years before expiry that people realised the full extent of the problems with the Stoke-on-Trent contract. The NISTA (formerly IPA) recommends that local authorities, headteachers and/or academy trusts should start planning at least seven years before expiry, and work collaboratively to ensure a smooth, cost-effective transition. In fact, we’d go as far as to say ten years before expiry. That way, you have more time to ensure any lifecycle works and essential maintenance are completed, key documentation is transferred in order to mitigate risk, and explore more possibilities for innovative developments.
Start thinking several years out from expiry what you want your school or trust to look like the day after handback and you’ll be in a position to influence the entire process.
Not an end but a beginning
Thinking outside the box may be a cliche but the end of expiry is the time when everything is up for consideration. It could be the start of a new way of operating for your school. Look at every aspect with fresh eyes.
You can consider where you focus your investment. Do your priorities need to shift? Think about the services you’re providing. Explore different Facilities Management models. Do you want to have your catering in house or via a specialist provider? Look at your staffing levels. Do you need caretakers and cleaners as defined under the contract or more flexibility? Do you want to change your core hours and extend the length of the day? Can you provide breakfast clubs and after school clubs? Are there new ways for income generation? Could you offer the building for wider community use?
Consider the way you designate your space inside. Should you have more open plan, less open plan? What about your use of the external space? Now is the time to review your whole estate in the light of your current and future needs. Think radically as to what the most effective use could be.
And what about your corporate identity, branding and colour schemes? Now could be the time for a new start.
A new adventure
Expiry is an opportunity to re-examine all your contracts and renegotiate better value for money. on the open market, rather than being locked into rigid, often expensive, long-term deals.
You’ll be able to reassess what services you deliver and choose whether to bring services in-house or form new, more flexible partnerships. It’s even been the case in Stoke-on-Trent where the trusts’ schools have managed to negotiate a better service for a reduced price with the same FM provider.
Use the expiry process to redefine your offering and celebrate the end of 25 years of being subject to contractual restrictions and limitations. The opportunities are endless. Expiry can bring with it a new freedom.
Photo by Benjamin Davies.
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