WASTE

Our Waste team help clients to plan strategically, solve complex commercial issues, manage programmes or projects effectively and increase delivery confidence.

We have worked closely with DEFRA for several years managing its Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme and to initiate its savings Programme in 2013/14, which has already secured £145 million of savings. We provide an interface between the policy of central government and local delivery. Our teams offer extensive technical, commercial and procurement experience gained across public and private sector environments. 

Waste services’ resources: how councils and contractors may collaborate in response to the COVID-19 emergency

 

Since the start of the COVID-19 emergency there has been a sharp and significant shift in levels of demand in particular segments of the waste services industry. Domestic purchasing patterns have changed, there has been a decline in demand in areas such as trade and commercial waste and many Household Waste Recycling Centres have been closed.

This situation is creating an imbalance in the amount of resources available to deal with different types of waste supply, with shortages of staff in some areas and under-utilisation in others. Guidance is being updated regularly by government and the waste management industry in relation to local authorities and waste and recycling. Critical advice and guidance may be found at these sources via the embedded links:

We have produced a briefing note, “Waste services’ resources: how councils and contractors may collaborate in response to the COVID-19 emergency” to provide further guidance for waste authorities that are experiencing difficulties in balancing waste services resources as a consequence of contracting arrangements that are coming under stress because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Click here to access “Waste services’ resources: how councils and contractors may collaborate in response to the COVID-19 emergency”

In 2019 – 20 we helped our clients achieve:

Waste – England
We supported the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in the delivery of its Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme that helped 26 authorities manage their operational waste Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts with direct one-to-one support. We helped Defra support 40 authorities via its network groups and undertook contract management reviews and contract management training to help the public sector secure value for money from the contracted services.

We supported local authorities to prepare for the expiry of their PFI contracts and the re-procurement of facilities, and supported Defra with the review of projects that have met particularly complex contract challenges.

We undertook strategic waste management system reviews for councils within combined authority areas, which manage 24% of the municipal solid waste in England. This work identifies the potential service and environmental performance improvement and savings opportunities that arise from greater collaboration, consistent with the Resources and Waste Strategy and the EU Circular Economy aspirations. It drives a common understanding across local and central government and demonstrates that significant increases in recycling are possible for modest budget increases.

Our work with the Tees Valley councils showed that the joint procurement of a new energy recovery facility would provide long-term benefits. Waste from Newcastle City Council and Durham County Council increase the scale of the project and reduce annual project costs by a further £100m over the project term, illustrating the substantial benefits of collaborative working.

Waste – Wales 

The final facility in the Welsh Government’s Waste Infrastructure Procurement Programme, the 190,000 tonnes per annum Parc Adfer Energy from Waste facility in North East Wales, reached full service commencement in December 2019. We provided commercial and programme management support to help complete the delivery phase of the programme that comprises two Energy from Waste and five anaerobic digestion facilities. We supported the 17 local authorities in the food waste programme and the 14 local authorities in the residual waste programme. This support, which includes commercial advice, contract management reviews and contract team training, aims to ensure the public sector’s investment in the programme is safeguarded.

In order to facilitate reduced frequency residual waste collections and achieve higher recycling rates the Welsh Government is prioritising the collection and treatment of absorbent hygiene products. With our co-ordination, and capital funding provided by the Welsh Government, 16 of the 22 local authorities in Wales have now agreed to collect this waste-stream separately. Working in partnership with the Welsh Government, participating local authorities and the Welsh Local Government Association, we have established a new governance and delivery structure to procure and deliver a treatment solution that demonstrates the benefits of local partnership and collaboration.

We supported the first sub-regional project for wood waste treatment. It seeks to create a cost-effective route for local authority wood waste to be recycled at scale rather than being sent to biomass incineration thus increasing overall recycling rates.

We have worked with the Welsh Government, local authorities and fleet manufacturers to establish the viability, cost and environmental benefits of a move towards an electrically-powered waste and recycling collection fleet.

 

 

For more information about what we have helped our clients achieve, see our 2019-20 impact report.

IMPACT REPORT 2019 - 2020

TESTIMONIALS

Local Partnerships’ abillity to step back from a problem and take a look at the bigger picture has been of great value to us. This has been very evident across all the work on which Local Partnerships provides support to Defra. In particular I would highlight the work with combined authorities to help take  a broader and more strategic viewpoint on their collective waste management challenges.

Tony Hitching, Programme Manager, Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme, Defra

The relationship with Local Partnerships gives me invaluable access to commercial, procurement and project delivery expertise. They work flexibly, responding to our changing priorities.

Jasper Roberts, Deputy Director, Waste & Resource Efficiency Devision, Welsh Government 

RESOURCES

Main Contact

Duncan Powell

Programme Director – Waste

 

Mobile: 07747 441 504
Email: duncan.powell@localpartnerships.gov.uk

Main Contact

Martin Pollard

Programme Director – Waste

 

Mobile: 07900 341 489
Email: martin.pollard@localpartnerships.gov.uk

OTHER AREAS OF OUR WORK

 
HOUSING

 
INFRASTRUCTURE

CLIMATE
RESPONSE

COMMERCIALISATION AND REORGANISATION

 
ENERGY

 
RE:FIT

 
ASSURANCE

HEALTH AND
SOCIAL CARE

PPP, PFI
AND MIM

 
WASTE

How can local government best utilise digital channels to communicate with residents about the climate crisis? #READ: https://t.co/Ie78yZte8R

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