5 ways to improve energy efficiency in municipal buildings

The UK has cut carbon emissions by more than 40% since 1990. We are the first major economy to pass laws committing to net zero by 2050.

The built environment is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impact and, through its provision of buildings for millions of citizens accessing public services, the public sector will continue to play a significant role in the country’s journey towards net zero. 

Energy efficiency and management in the heating and cooling of public buildings is going to be crucial and there is huge potential for the changes the public sector makes to its estate to be a force for good – enabling the UK to build back better and greener. 

The challenges of energy efficiency and heat decarbonisation for local government 

In the government’s Net Zero Strategy launched in October, local authorities are identified as ‘integral’ in the battle for net zero, with the government estimating that 82% of all UK emissions are within the scope of influence of local authorities. During the COP26 summit in Glasgow there was a dedicated local and regional government day. The focus of the day was on cities, regions and the built environment, with the LGA taking forward its key messages on the ‘unique and powerful’ role of councils in climate change.

Local government is already at the forefront of the fight against climate change but it can be challenging to stay on top of the emerging obligations and opportunities. For some local authorities decarbonisation is not happening fast enough. Many have not yet finalised plans on how they meet their own targets as well as the UK wide goals set by the government. 

Barriers include a lack of inter-departmental and stakeholder coordination, lack of access to affordable and readily available energy efficiency technologies, and limited capacity and experience, which prevents many local authorities from gathering sufficient information about their energy performance. 

Budget constraints can also make meeting the high up-front costs of energy efficiency upgrade projects difficult and grant funding, such as the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, can be oversubscribed.

However, the returns of improving energy efficiency can be substantially high. Often energy efficiency technologies repay their initial capital cost within the first few years. 

Positive steps towards carbon net zero

Energy efficiency projects represent an investment opportunity for local authorities but knowing where to start can be challenging. 

The vast majority of buildings local authorities will need in 2050 have already been built; therefore, the principal question is how can they alter their municipally-owned buildings and building stock to make them more energy efficient? One tact is to begin by retrofitting and decarbonising the buildings most likely to be in use for decades, such as council offices, town halls, libraries and leisure centres.

A ‘whole building’ approach needs to be taken to heat decarbonisation, through combining low carbon heating system upgrades with energy efficiency measures. The solutions are all interlinked. 

Start by understanding your data. Do you know where your primary energy consumption is coming from? Only once you understand where you are wasting energy can you then start to implement change.

It may not be obvious which improvements and changes will make the biggest impact on energy use in your municipal building. An energy audit can help you understand the most effective options for energy efficiency improvements. An audit can be carried out professionally or you may choose to carry out your own.

Based on the data you collect or from the results of the audit, you can identify potential areas for improvement and changes that you can make, prioritising your options based on the resources available to you.

Write an action plan based on your priorities and use it to allocate resources and timings to implement improvements to the building. You can then identify short, medium and long term actions including:

Switching to LED lighting

Lighting accounts for nearly 5% of global CO2 emissions. A global switch to energy efficient light emitting diode (LED) technology could save over 1,400 million tons of CO2 and avoid the construction of 1,250 power stations. 

With savings of up to 50-70%, LED lighting has been recognised as one of the most actionable and ready-to-implement technologies for cities to transition to a low carbon economy and peak emissions in the next decade.

Air source heat pumps and heat networks

In terms of carbon reduction, installing heat pumps is probably the single most important thing you can do. ​​From the point of view of running costs you can save money on your heating bills immediately by replacing older, less efficient boilers. It is important to note that this will likely increase your electricity demand which is something that you will need to consider within your business case and financial forecast. 

Heat pumps are critical but local authorities should also consider heat networks. A heat network – sometimes called district heating – is a distribution system of insulated pipes that takes heat from a central source and delivers it to a number of domestic or non-domestic buildings. They provide a unique opportunity to exploit larger scale – and often lower cost – renewable and recovered heat sources that otherwise cannot be used.

There may be a private heat network already established that you can connect to or you might look to create your own.

Choosing renewable energy sources

Local governments can dramatically reduce their carbon footprint by purchasing or directly generating electricity from clean, renewable sources. 

Options include generating renewable energy on-site e.g through solar panels on a municipal building and purchasing green power through power purchasing agreements  – a long-term supply contract of renewable power at a fixed price, giving you certainty on both your cost of power and its origin.

Scaling up smart building technology 

Central and local government organisations are integrating advanced technology solutions into operations, ecosystems, and maintenance regimes. 

Introducing IoT solutions based on sensors and data is a cost-effective way to tackle energy inefficiencies from heating to lighting. Designing and deploying automation into systems, buildings management, operations, and ecosystems at scale can deliver enhanced capacity while also helping building managers focus on more complex operational processes. 

Automating operational processes saves money, time, and resource allocation.

Investing in retrofits

Energy efficiency retrofitting presents an opportunity to upgrade the energy performance of public sector buildings for their ongoing life. Energy-efficiency retrofits can reduce the operational costs, particularly in older buildings for example by improving insulation, water efficiency and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. 

It can be a big process however, involving upgrading the fabric of the whole building, which can be intrusive and disruptive, but the long-term cost saving can be worth the upheaval. 

How Government Commercial Agency can help

At GCA we offer a suite of ‘end to end’ energy saving solutions that will help to deliver decarbonisation for the public sector. 

Our CNZ experts will help you look at your needs in a different way and encourage suppliers to innovate on your behalf.  Whether you have a single requirement or need an integrated solution, let’s work together to make the UK a cleaner, greener country.

We have created a series of 3 step guides to help you on your journey to carbon net zero, whether you’re just starting or already well underway. 

Visit our webpage to find out more. 

Crown Commercial Service recognised as great place to work for carers

Two people holding handsCrown Commercial Service (CCS) has been recognised as a Carer Confident Level 1 Active employer – the benchmarking certification offered by Employers for Carers.

CCS also received special recognition for achieving the maximum points for every  Carer Confident employer standard within the Level 1 Active category.

Carer Confident is a benchmarking scheme offered by Employers for Carers. It helps employers to support their staff who are also carers. The Carer Confident certificate is given to UK employers who have an inclusive workplace where carers are recognised, respected and supported.

CCS exceeded all the Carer Confident standards by offering a wide range of policies and processes to help staff balance work and caring. The support includes our Carers Network, mental health first-aiders, a listener scheme and other policies that help staff to balance both work and caring.

Richard Denney, Director, Corporate Pillar, and Inclusion and Diversity Champion said:

I’m delighted that CCS has been recognised as a Carer Confident employer. It is so important that we have an inclusive workplace where we can all be ourselves.

We have staff who are carers and we want them to know that we recognise and support them. At CCS our colleagues can engage in both work and caring, and they can be brilliant at both.

Our network for carers

CCS offers a supportive workplace so that staff can be carers while also feeling engaged and productive in their work.

Our Carers Network is fundamental to this support. The network sets out in one place all the policies and support available to staff who are also carers. It helps managers understand how they can effectively support carers in the workplace.

Adina Barnett, a member of our Carers Network explained:

When my caring responsibilities started, my manager and colleagues supported me in so many ways by checking in, providing the option to change my work pattern and offering their support and kindness at any time. They reassured me that I was doing a good job when I genuinely felt like I was letting everybody down.

Policies supporting carers at work

Support for carers who work at CCS also includes

Carers’ charter: The carers’ charter sets out the policies and support available for staff who have caring responsibilities – available both internally and externally.

Carers’ passports: Each carer has a passport. This is an ongoing record of discussions between the carer and line manager – noting any flexible arrangements needed. It is a document that the carer can take with them if, or when, they move to new roles across CCS or within the wider civil service.  

Carers’ community chat: Carers’ community chat is a platform with a discussion forum so that carers can share experiences, information and support.

Employers for carers – digital platform: Our staff can also access a wide range of free digital tools and resources provided by the charity, Carers UK.

CCS delivers value to the NHS for Vehicle Purchase and Vehicle Telematics

The requirement

NHS Trusts are tasked with delivering critical medical services and require vehicles that are fit for purpose in meeting their operational requirements.

The solution

In order to meet its operational fleet requirements, the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust ordered 51 RAV4 fully converted and fitted with Telematics to replace its diesel fleet with vehicles that are more environmentally efficient, yet equally capable of carrying crews and equipment. The Toyota RAV4 Hybrid was selected for its qualities to serve as a new rapid response vehicle for NHS paramedic teams. The Trust chose to use Crown Commercial Service to source the vehicles using the vehicle purchase framework agreement (RM6060) as well as the vehicle telematics solutions that they required.

The vehicle purchase framework agreement provides access to a full range of motor vehicles including vehicles that are both currently available and those that will be developed and brought to market during the term of the framework. These include cars, light commercial vehicles, motorbikes, heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), buses and coaches. Customers can also obtain bespoke conversions which manufacturers are able to provide as part of a turnkey solution.

The results

The new SUVs are being supplied by Toyota and will be covering up to 40,000 miles a year, working the length and breadth of Wales. Toyota is also providing additional support, organising training for NHS vehicle technicians so they can service and maintain the vehicles to manufacturer’s standards, minimising the time they have to be off the road.

Following a comprehensive technical evaluation and a detailed procurement process via CCS, Ortus Telematics were selected to provide its Datapoint product to be installed into the vehicles. The Trust were seeking to implement a vehicle telematics solution to enable the them to adopt a more proactive approach towards driver training and also provide data relating to driver identification and assist with more effective and efficient utilisation of vehicles:

The Trust is taking delivery of RAV4 Hybrid Design models, equipped with Toyota’s AWD-i intelligent all-wheel drive so they are better equipped to access remote locations and deal with hazardous driving conditions such as ice and snow. The standard provision of Toyota Safety Sense active safety and driver assistance systems ensures the crews have the best possible protection while on the road.

The Trust’s fleet manager David Holmes, said: “Our vehicles have to meet strict reliability and carrying capacity criteria as they perform a vital function helping the people of Wales. Not only does the RAV4 Hybrid meet our requirements, it is also helping us reduce the environmental impact of our fleet.”

Toyota are appointed to Lots 1 and 2 of the RM6060 Vehicle Purchase framework agreement to provide cars and light commercial vehicles. Ortus are a supplier on Lot 1 of the new RM6143 Vehicle Telematics framework supplying vehicle telematics hardware, software and associated products.

Get involved

Visit our website to find further information on the Crown Commercial Service fleet framework agreements. If you would like to find out how you could benefit from using these agreements, please contact us at info@crowncommercial.gov.uk.

14 NHS trusts save £4 million on mobile voice and data services

The requirement

Purchasing mobile voice and data services is often a routine purchase for many NHS trusts, regularly resulting in varied contract end dates. This can create a barrier to switching suppliers to gain better value, as potential savings may be reduced or lost due to early termination charges. 

At CCS, through our regular bulk buying opportunities, our aggregation team helps health customers by combining their mobile voice and data requirements with other organisations. This collective buying power helps CCS achieve competitive pricing and favourable terms from suppliers, which increases savings for our customers.

The contracts were delivered through further competitions run via Lot 6 of our Network Services 2 framework.

The solution

In the last 12 months, 14 NHS customers have taken part in our mobile voice and data aggregations, which are run 3 to 4 times per year. 

Before each aggregation, we engage with the public sector to gauge interest in upcoming opportunities. Based upon approximate volumes, we identify minimum indicative savings and ceiling prices. These are guaranteed minimum savings that customers can expect to receive.

Customers can then confirm their volume commitment, tariff requirements, any other customer-specific requirements by signing a Call-Off Order Form and Letter of Intent. This confirms the customers’ commitment to buy. 

From this point, CCS runs the aggregation, identifies the supplier who can offer the best quality and price for the requirements, and presents each customer with a standalone contract. The process from the customer confirming their requirements to award takes around 6 weeks.

The results

Through the last 4 mobile voice and data aggregations, 14 NHS customers saved £3.9 million – an average saving of 70%. 

By bringing together health customers with similar needs, our aggregations mean organisations can harness bulk buying power to unlock greater savings. Customer requirements ranged from 14 to 7,000 connections, and the savings delivered were 23% above the benchmarked rate.

Of these customers, 2 had joined a previous aggregation, and despite the large savings achieved through their initial aggregation, were still able to save another 68%. 

Add power to your procurement with CSS

Taking part in an aggregation means many of the usual further competition procurement steps are handled by CCS, saving you precious time and resources. We will draft all documentation, build the specification and run the procurement. 

This is a fully managed service, provided and funded by CCS, and is a tried and tested approach that has delivered significant savings to the public sector. 

Our next Mobile Voice and Data Services aggregation (NFC142) is now open for expressions of interest from customers. You have until mid-January 2022 to submit your requirements, with a formal contract award set to take place in March 2022. 

  • If you would like to take part, please complete our online form quoting ‘NFC142 mobile voice and data aggregation’ in the comment box and a member of our team will be in touch. 
  • Learn more about Network Services 2 via the webpage.
  • To find out more about aggregation, visit our website or watch our webinar

Customer newsletters for September

Welcome to our CCS customer newsletters for September. You can read the latest news most relevant to the sector you work in by selecting the appropriate link below:

If you don’t currently receive one of our CCS customer newsletters, you can sign up by completing this short form. Each month, we’ll send you the newsletter most relevant to you, based on your organisation. 

You will also find a full list of all the commercial agreements we offer, alongside details of how we can help you build policy considerations into your procurement, in our interactive digital brochure.

Crown Commercial Service and UKCloud launch new MoU for multi-cloud services

The new MoU will enable the delivery of flexible and secure multi-cloud services, underpinned by preferential commercial terms to ensure public sector organisations achieve maximum value for money. 

This MoU ensures that you continue to have the benefit of choice and options of multi-cloud alongside the more proprietary options available from the cloud providers. Multi-cloud extends the typical sole focus of newly developed cloud-native applications to also support the modernisation of existing and legacy IT. This represents a significant opportunity for organisations to save cost, increase resilience and become more agile while transforming essential services for UK citizens.

UKCloud offers additional benefits that align with the One Government Cloud Strategy, including social value and a commitment to carbon negativity.  

Establishing new routes to market and supporting the digital ambitions of organisations across the entire public sector has been a strategic deliverable for CCS and this MoU marks a great milestone in delivering value and operational choice.

For further information please contact Andy Bright from UKCloud at abright@ukcloud.com. To speak to a member of our team, please complete this form.

Modular Building Solutions framework supports rapid roll-out of COVID testing sites

The requirement

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for testing sites began to rapidly increase. In an effort to protect and safeguard public health, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) was tasked with the job of facilitating a roll-out of testing sites across the UK.

The solution

Modular buildings provided the ideal solution for DHSC as they are significantly quicker to build and offer improved safety, reduced risk, and greater certainty of completion on time and budget. 

DHSC used our Modular Building Solutions framework to source suitable suppliers who could meet their requirements. This framework has been designed to help the entire public sector with their permanent or temporary modular and portable buildings, which can be purchased or hired, and designed and fabricated to the customer’s exact specification.

Premier Modular, one of our modular building and offsite construction specialists, secured one of the contracts with DHSC. Their initial contract required 25 testing sites across the UK and was soon extended to up to 50 sites nationwide – from Portsmouth right the way up to Inverness. 

Each standalone testing site had a 110sqm purpose-designed testing building pre-fitted with eight patient cubicles, hygienic walls, separate staff entrance and exit, test collection, and drop off zones and a family testing room. Premier was also contracted to supply a number of other facilities for the testing sites, including a PPE room, stores, test preparation, staff rest room, kitchenette and toilets. They also provided essential services such as a water supply, alarm systems and electricity generators, reducing procurement time for DHSC.

As modular buildings are constructed off-site, Premier was able to continue operating safely and at capacity from the very start of the pandemic in March 2020. They maintained social distancing measures in a controlled factory environment, which helped to reduce the number of subcontractors operating on construction sites during the pandemic. They were also able to recruit around 100 new workers during the pandemic because of the increase in demand for temporary modular buildings. 

The geographical spread of testing sites required strong logistics and detailed project management from Premier. Their team reduced site installation to as little as 3 days, including testing, commissioning, service connections, handover, and inductions.

Our construction category team supported the client  with specialists in  offsite solutions, supporting strategic and operational decision making to ensure clarity of specification was brought to an evolving requirement. As the speed of demand out-stripped the immediate availability , our construction team used the Alliance Contract to enable full collaboration between multiple suppliers, working openly to resolve problems and ensuring all suppliers were working towards the clients common goal. 

The results

Due to the success of the project, Premier’s project team received a highly commended award in the ‘Best COVID-19 Project Team Award’ category, announced at the Building Better Healthcare Awards in London in November 2021.

Paul Jones, Category Lead, Crown Commercial Service said:

I was completely overwhelmed and proud of the response and collaboration between suppliers and all the hard working teams shown in the response to the covid test sites. The engagement and support given to the client to turn a difficult requirement into a fast and slick deployment really showed the benefits of dealing directly with the building manufacturers. The team work shown during this project has made the Alliance strong and we are seeing that positivity in the procurements we are doing currently.

Ian Astley, Regional Director, Premier Modular said: 

Working with CCS on the COVID-19 testing site schemes was a really positive experience, despite the extremely short lead times for each project and the wide geographical spread of the sites. The criteria for the submissions were clearly defined and the scope very well presented. The DHSC and CCS were, as always, a pleasure to work with throughout and we look forward to collaborating on future modular building projects.

Let us bring power to your procurement

Our Modular Building Solutions framework offers the public sector an alternative to traditionally built accommodation.

To find out how we can help future proof your estate, your way:

*Image courtesy of Premier Modular

The Crown Prosecution Service improve their user experience with our Technology Services 2 framework

The requirement

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) works from 14 key regional sites with links to courts and police forces across the UK. 

They required a service desk provider who could manage all of their service user contacts, critical operational services integration and management (SIAM). 

They also required the supplier to receive, triage and manage calls to resolution, along with reviewing the incidents raised and suggesting continuous improvements to the services provided across all the CPS ICT suppliers. 

Despite the fact that they operate across a multi-supplier environment, the CPS wanted to ensure that their user experience was seamless, and that users had access to the help and support they required. 

The solution 

The CPS used our Technology Services 2 framework to find a supplier who could meet their requirements.      

CGI’s 5-star certified service desk was successful in securing the contract.

It acted as the single point of contact for users to obtain assistance and support for all ICT services within the CPS multi-supplier environment. They were able to provide CPS with the following solutions:

  • service desk: the 24 hour a day service provided a single point of contact for users seeking assistance relating to any ICT services. It is responsible for logging tickets from multiple channels including phone calls, email, WebChat and the self-service user portal, as well as managing incidents through to resolution by co-ordinating with other suppliers operating in the CPS’s multi-supplier model.
  • IT service management (ITSM): services to configure, manage and maintain the ITSM. This includes incident management, problem management, service level/priority management, request fulfilment management, service asset and configuration management, knowledge management and service level and MI reporting.
  • managing the multi-supplier operational environment: operational service management and monitoring across all services relating to the ICT environment, the CPS and other suppliers. This includes managing major incidents to resolution, managing cross-supplier problem management process and maintaining the master configuration management database (CMDB).  
  • supplier provided services: delivery of services such as customer satisfaction, IT service continuity management, knowledge management and service, security and issue escalation to support CGI’s own service desk provision.  
  • continuous service improvement: consistently develop to improve the overall service to CPS users. Improvements implemented to date include ticket trending to identify user-training needs, development of ServiceNow dashboards for use by all CPS suppliers and enhancements to major incident reporting.  

The results 

The CGI 5-star certified service desk, which is located in the UK, now manages in excess of 13,000 contacts per month for CPS and has helped deliver the following results:

  • a responsive approach during COVID-19 to facilitate rapid changes in processes and working practices to enable CPS to adapt to evolving business challenges 
  • reduced call waiting times achieved through accurate demand forecasting and workforce availability planning from analysis of call patterns and trends
  • reduced timescales for reporting and recommendations on cost reduction
  • a better user experience through the availability of multiple contact channels, including a user portal with knowledge and self-help articles
  • operational integration to provide CPS users with a seamless service across its multi-supplier environment.

Fiona James, Deputy Director of Digital, Digital Technology Service at CPS said:

CGI continues to demonstrate its commitment to CPS, its users and multiple suppliers by working collaboratively, managing change to minimise the impacts, as well as proactive management of incidents and requests. 

Let us add power to your procurement

Our Technology Services 2 framework has now been replaced by Technology Services 3, which includes new features including reduced timescales, pre-defined terms and conditions and over 250 suppliers, of which 64% are SMEs. 

To find out more about our Technology Services 3 framework, register for our complimentary customer webinars on 15 September at 10am and 21 September at 2pm. 

Modern slavery: read Crown Commercial Service’s modern slavery statement

Crown Commercial Service has published its first annual modern slavery statement – setting out the positive steps the UK’s largest public procurement organisation has taken to identify, prevent and mitigate the risks of modern slavery in its own operations and supply chains.

The statement covers 5 key reporting areas including CCS’s approach to risk management, policy implementation and training. The statement also provides details of CCS’s longer-term commitments to tackling modern slavery and preventing other labour abuses from occurring in its supply chains.

It covers the period 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021, and is available now through the Home Office’s Modern Slavery Statement Registry.

Simon Tse, CEO of Crown Commercial Service said:

We are committed to doing everything in our power to reassure the general public and our customers that public spending on goods and services is not funding modern slavery and human rights abuses.

Managing modern slavery risk effectively is a huge challenge that will require vigilance, as we seek to build back fairer.

The statement explains where CCS judges the risk of modern slavery to be highest, and actions taken to manage that risk. It also sets out our future goals and plans to tackle modern slavery in our supply chains.

Developing a consistent approach to modern slavery

CCS has been playing an active role in developing the Government’s strategy and policies to tackle modern slavery in government supply chains since 2016. 

The organisation jointly developed these policies with the Home Office and Cabinet Office, in consultation with the cross-government Modern Slavery and Procurement Implementation Group.

CCS is also taking steps to ensure that suppliers who fall in scope of Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act and have an annual turnover of at least £36 million, are publishing an annually updated modern slavery statement on their website, through our contract compliance and supplier management processes.

In the past year, the organisation has worked alongside researchers from the University of Liverpool, looking at the impact of Covid-19 on modern slavery risk management.

Find out more

To find out more about how you can help to stamp out modern slavery in supply chains, visit the Responsible Buying Decisions pages.

Employee reward and recognition: the benefits of going digital

With a question mark hanging over traditional in person festive celebrations, end of year reward or gift has come into sharper focus.

The benefits of digital reward schemes

Under challenging circumstances employees have continued to deliver public services, many while adjusting to more permanent hybrid working arrangements.

For a number of years now, digital reward and recognition has been developing into the new standard, offering simplicity, speed, and choice. They can also enable a more engaging and personalised experience. And, particularly when employees are unlikely to be in a central location to distribute gifts, reward schemes that are easy to deliver digitally are proving to be the most beneficial.

The impact of reward on employees

When reward schemes are done well, the impact can be high – 61% of staff say receiving end-of-year recognition makes them feel appreciated.

The reward doesn’t have to be expensive. For staff, it really is the thought that counts. Research consistently shows that employees are happy with rewards worth between £21-£50. Often, a cash reward won’t cut it. What really matters is that you provide an engaging way to say thank you. For example, 70% of employees say they’d like to choose their own reward by receiving vouchers or gift cards. More than half (58%) say they’d like to receive something other than cash at year end. (Statistics taken from 2015 and 2017 Edenred Christmas Reward Research.)

Find out more

A digital reward and recognition scheme is available through our Employee Benefits framework. Plus, the single supplier on the framework, Edenred, has produced a guide on how to reward employees this year end and plan a long term recognition strategy for a hybrid world.

You can find a full list of all the commercial agreements we offer, alongside details of how we can help you build policy considerations into your procurement, in our interactive digital brochure.