Main News Desk

Dickinson Dees takes £45million Fire & Rescue Services PFI to market

~ leading law firm shares best practice guide for emergency services ~

September 24, 2008

Dickinson Dees LLP has launched a guide to successful PFI programmes in the emergency services sector.

This follows the achievement of a major milestone with a £45million project between Merseyside, Lancashire and Cumbria Fire & Rescue Authorities, which will see 16 new stations built across the North West.

The leading law firm has been working with the Authorities since late 2006, advising on the Outline Business Case (OBC) which has included the resolution of all legal aspects as they arose throughout the project.

All locations now have outline planning permission and work is set to commence in late 2010.

The twelve-strong team from Dickinson Dees included experts in procurement, employment, property, banking and construction, led by partner Kevin Robertson. After working on this programme and advising on sister schemes for Northumbria, Durham and Tyne & Wear Fire & Rescue Authorities, Kevin has put together his best practice top five tips for successfully taking a PFI scheme to the construction stage.

Ensure that you free up enough resource right from the start, this will help the project keep to time and within budget by securing enough people to work on the project
Check that all parts of all sites are actually owned by the Authority and not a third party. If this is not the case check if a deal can be made to purchase the land.
Who else shares use of the site? Are there any other parties such as the ambulance service in close proximity as occupation rights may need to be formalised.
Consider what services you want to be provided by the PFI partner, for example, provisions for cleaning or catering. You also need to consider who you currently employ and any TUPE transfer implications.
If a communication mast exists on the proposed site, check the implications of moving it under the relevant telecommunications legislation as this can turn into a complicated and costly procedure.

“It is fantastic to see the project reach the stage where this scheme can be brought to market - all the more so because this was a complicated process due to the number of different parties involved.” Said Kevin Robertson, partner at Dickinson Dees. “The bringing of this scheme to market represents a significant step towards the provision of new, high quality fire & rescue facilities right across the North West and we are delighted to have been able to reach this milestone.”

(398 words)

Executive quote

About the company

NOTES TO EDITORS
About Dickinson Dees LLP (http://www.dickinson-dees.com)
Dickinson Dees is one of the UK’s leading law firms. Based in the North East of England, with 81 partners and 937 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 more information or photography please contact Patrick Hussey at LEWIS PR:
Phone: 0161 601 7740
Email: dickinsondees@lewispr.com

Recent Press Releases

2010 Archive

2009 Archive

2008 Archive

2007 Archive

Jump to:

Main News Desk

Dickinson Dees takes £45million Fire & Rescue Services PFI to market

Executive quote

About the company

Contact details

Related links