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Dickinson Dees LLP completes £40m PFI project for Newcastle’s libraries

selected by City Council for one of the UK’s largest library projects

August 09, 2007

Dickinson Dees has provided legal advice for a £40m PFI project to rebuild two of Newcastle’s libraries. The firm was selected by Newcastle City Council to consult on one of the largest PFI deals ever undertaken in the libraries sector.

Under the scheme, a new state-of-the-art central library is being built in the city along with a regional branch in High Heaton, north of the city centre. Both have been designed to provide easy access to information and house the very latest ICT equipment.

Extensive local collections, previously stored out of sight, will also be on show in an environmentally controlled show case when the new City Library reopens to the public in Summer 2009. These include the works of Thomas Bewick, the 18th century engraver, and the Thomlinson Library, an 18th Century collection of books which became the core of Newcastle’s first public library.

The project, headed by Dickinson Dees partner, Iain Greenshields, involved a core team of four, drawing on expertise from right across the firm. They have provided advice on issues such as building and maintenance contracts and local government procurement.

“This project is about establishing contemporary buildings to house our public libraries and new ICT facilities. Dickinson Dees’ experience of major PFI projects across the country made it the ideal choice for the scheme,” said Tony Durcan, Head of Culture, Libraries and Lifelong Learning at Newcastle City Council. “The firm has been a great help in bringing this project off the drawing board and into the real world.”

“Since the project began we’ve built up an excellent working relationship with the Council. Now construction on these projects is starting it’s exciting to see the plans become a reality,” said Iain Greenshields, partner at Dickinson Dees.

This sees the completion of the second project for Newcastle City Council by Dickinson Dees in so many days. Dickinson Dees has extended its Building Schools for the Future expertise by providing legal advice to Newcastle City Council on its £180m project to renovate the city’s education landscape. The Newcastle scheme is the first BSF scheme in the North East to be signed, representing the biggest ever investment in schools in the city which will transform teaching and learning.

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About the company

Dickinson Dees is one of the UK’s leading law firms. Based in the North East of England, with 78 partners and 925 people in all, the firm provides legal services to corporate, commercial, public sector and private clients across the UK.

Dickinson Dees prides itself on the high quality and personal service it offers clients, providing complete transparency from pitch to proposal to project. Its stable partnership and high growth rate make it one of the most successful law firms in the UK today.

The firm counts some of the UK’s largest organisations amongst its clients including major banks, industry and retailers. It also supports some of Britain’s fastest growing dynamic young businesses. Recent multimillion pound deals have included work for major national plcs. It also has a large public sector client base including local authorities across the country from London to the North East, major health and other public service institutions as well as national and regional government departments and organisations.

A national business with strong regional roots, Dickinson Dees attracts legal talent locally and from across the nation to join its five offices across Newcastle, Tees Valley, Yorkshire and London. Its partners sit on some of the UK’s most important public and private sector bodies including Family Law Association, Royal Town Planning Institute, STEP - Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioners and The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Contact details

For further press information and photography please contact:

Patrick Hussey at LEWIS, the PR agency

Tel: +44 (0) 161 601 7740

Fax: +44 (0) 161 601 7741

Email: dickinsondees@lewispr.com

Website: www.lewispr.com

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