The government’s reform programme, which began in 2014/15, has delivered better value for money for taxpayers, led to more efficient planning of road maintenance and upgrades and provided greater confidence for the supply chain, the report said.

The changes involved the move from the Highways Agency to Highways England (now National Highways), a government-owned company. It was accompanied by a five-year funding deal to allow for better planning for the ongoing work to maintain the strategic road network (SRN) – motorways and major A-roads.

This was supported by a threefold increase in investment into the network, which rose to £4.5 billion per annum, as well as new monitoring and watchdog roles overseen by the Office of Rail and Road and Transport Focus.

Ipsos Mori and Risk Solution have evaluated the reforms through a series of reports published in 2016 and 2019.

Today, the third and final evaluation is published drawing on interviews with external stakeholders, suppliers and road user groups, as well as reviews of National Highways’ work.

The changes were designed to improve road users’ experience, provide value for money to taxpayers and support growth through facilitating quicker and more efficient journeys across the country.

Overall, today’s report says that the reforms “have been effective in improving how the SRN is managed, and that they have had positive effects on value for money and road users’ experience”. It has also led to significant efficiency savings being made, it says.

The introduction of five-year Road Investment Strategies has provided National Highways with greater funding certainty over longer periods, leading to increased reliability and flexibility regarding project delivery and supplier procurement.

Nick Harris, Chief Executive at National Highways, said:

Having secure long-term investment in place has made an enormous difference to the way we operate, allowing us to be more strategic and innovative in our management of the network and in our relationships with our stakeholders.

Ultimately our focus is on ensuring that the strategic road network is as safe and secure as possible, and greater financial security means we have more freedom in considering the best methods of supporting that approach and our customers.

The report said that:

National Highways has made £1.45 billion of efficiency savings in the first five years compared with a target of £1.21 billion. This was in the context of significant growth within the organisation and delivering a much-expanded programme of work.

• Stakeholders believed the changes had allowed National Highways to “identify and focus on the most important long-term priorities rather than frequently switching between issues attracting attention at a particular time, and has more scope to consider what will be needed in future”;
• The move away from the Highways Agency to an independent government-owned company had led to “better consideration of the needs and experiences of its customers”, including those people and organisations using the SRN as well as communities near the network;
• The funding certainty had, interviewees said, “led to more stability in the enhancement programme with fewer projects being cancelled at short notice, and better planning and coordination of work”;
• There was greater certainty for suppliers through the use of longer-term contracts and contracting directly with smaller suppliers, resulting in “greater efficiency in the management of the SRN”;
• The increased confidence was thought to have encouraged the supply chain to “invest in capabilities and infrastructure, and improve ways of working through innovation”;
• The creation of formal highways monitor and watchdog roles has led to National Highways having greater accountability and focus on customer and outcome-based performance.

The evaluation comes as National Highways publishes its latest efficiency report. The company is continuing to reach its targets on delivering better value for money for the taxpayer, with a cumulative year two efficiency milestone of £471 million reached.

View the Evaluation of Roads Reform report.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the National Highways customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the National Highways press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

A cohort of Sellafield Ltd Project Management Degree Apprentices have graduated at Carlisle Cathedral this week.

These students are one of the first in the country to graduate with a Level 6 Integrated Degree in Project Management.

The 4-year degree apprenticeship is delivered in collaboration with the University of Cumbria.

During this time, they have completed a number of professional qualifications and training courses, such as the Association for Project Management – Project Management Qualification (APM PMQ).

Their apprenticeship has involved a combination of academic learning and practical project experience across Sellafield Ltd.

Placements have taken place across the project professions including construction, commissioning and pre-operations, risk, project controls and project management.

The final stage of their apprenticeship was successful completion at the end point assessment which consists of a professional discussion and a work based project report.

After graduation, the apprentices will be placed in project delivery roles across Sellafield Ltd, ranging from areas such as: legacy ponds, various value streams and the Sellafield Information Services Organisation (ISO).

Now that they are qualified, our apprentices will begin their journey to progress through Sellafield Ltd’s APM accredited project management career pathway.

Andy Sharples, Project Director, Sellafield said:

Congratulations to our project management degree apprentices who have recently graduated from the University of Cumbria.

The success of this programme is a combination of fantastic candidates, a dedicated apprenticeship team and placement managers who ensure it’s a success, year on year.

These graduates will be central to delivering our purpose of creating a clean and safe environment for future generations.

Their exceptional degree results are a reflection of their hard work and efforts – they are a credit to our organisation. I wish them every success for their future with us.

University of Cumbria, Associate Professor of Workforce Education and Development Ian Sinker, said:

Our graduation ceremony demonstrates the breadth of our employer partnerships and reinforces our role in contributing to workforce development, with our longstanding relationship with Sellafield Ltd an integral part of this. 

We are delighted that our first project management degree apprentices have graduated this summer, completing their 4-year journey.

Graduating alongside this first group from Sellafield Ltd have been other graduates from Rolls-Royce and other employers.

We are proud to deliver Sellafield Ltd’s Project Academy, now in its 7th year, and securing a new contract with Sellafield Ltd for the future delivery of this project management degree apprenticeship.

Objectives

The UK supports the right of human rights defenders to carry out their work and voice their opinions freely and safely. The British Embassy Manila is seeking a proposal which supports the following objectives:

• promote a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders
• increase access to justice and legal support of human rights defenders

All bids should be in pounds sterling (GBP). We are accepting bids from a minimum of £15,000 to a maximum of £40,000 to support projects in this area. Proposals covering more than one objective are welcome. Please keep bids within the limits set out above.

Approval process

Project bids will be shortlisted and approved by the British Embassy Manila’s programme Board. To apply for funding, interested organisations must submit a concept note to the Programme manager (details below). The concept note should provide the information required to enable he programme team to make an initial assessment of whether the bidder will be able to qualify for the second round of selection.

If the concept note is successful in the first stage, the implementer will be asked to submit a full proposal and an activity-based budget (ABB). There is likely to be a short turnaround time for this. The full proposal will then be submitted to the Embassy Programme board and the FCDO in London.

Managerial and financial aspects

• any organisation can apply for funding. We do not accept project bids submitted by individuals
• please note that payment will be made in arrears. We cannot make pre-payments; successful bidders should make payments and be reimbursed by the Embassy. The implementer must have an active bank account in the name of the organisation to which we can transfer reimbursements electronically
• organisations must prove that they are able to manage the project sum in a satisfactory manner; the embassy may request reports by auditors

Exemptions

We regret that we are unable to fund:

• academic courses
• charitable activities
• commercial activities
• infrastructure or construction projects

Co-financing

A partnership framework to support the broader engagement of a project is welcome and can strengthen your bid. Please make sure to specify your other source(s) of funding in the concept note.

Evaluation of project bids

The aim of the project should be concise, feasible and sustainable. The expected outcomes should be measurable and the target group should be clearly defined and involved in project implementation.

The assessment criteria will include the following:

• financial and operational capacity
• relevance
• methodology
• sustainability
• value for money
• impact

Reporting

The embassy will require monthly financial reports and quarterly project progress reports (narrative and financial) from implementers. The first payment will be made upon the receipt of a monthly financial report. When the project has been completed the implementer shall prepare and send a final report to the Embassy within the period specified in the contract.

Timeline

Deadline for submission of concept note is 31 July 2022.

Successful applicants will implement their project until 28 February 2022. All payment requests and reporting should be finalised by 15 March 2022. You are advised to plan project activities accordingly.

Completed concept notes should be sent by email to Cara.SanPedro@fcdo.gov.uk. Please include reference number of the call in the subject line. If the project concept note is successful in the first stage, the applicant will then be asked to submit a full proposal and an activity-based budged (ABB).

Successful applicants will be informed of the result in the week commencing 8 August 2022.