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Is this what they call a consultation? ‘Your feedback: Please provide more stops at Clapham Junction not less. South Western Railway response: we will continue with our original plans to reduce services in the peak and shoulder peak periods.’
But they have made a small concession: ‘We are amending the plans to ensure both Clapham Junction and Woking calls are maintained in off-peak West of England services.’ 
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Ever wondered why Highways fill potholes in poor weather conditions, and then the job has to be done again? It’s down to the ‘liability to repair’, a madness of the outsourcing system.
The most common complaint in parish councils the last few weeks has been that pothole repairs by Skanska, Devon’s Highways contractor, are too often failing, leading to the same hole being filled two or even three times in a short period. (While of course, holes which are not classed as ‘safety defects’ are left unfilled, as per the contract the Council has given them.)
When I asked about this, I was told that while Skanska’s work is mostly of a good standard, they are filling too many holes when roads are pouring with water or frozen. And the explanation for this – they have a contractual ‘liability to repair’ within certain deadlines (often ‘next day’). It seems to be another madness of the outsourcing system – if Devon didn’t need to specify the contractor’s liabilities so tightly, a more sensible approach to repairs could be adopted. Bring it all back in-house?
The high price of outsourcing: effects of Devon Highways contract changeover still being felt one year on
A full year after Skanska replaced South West Highways as the maintenance contractor for Devon Highways, the effects of the changeover are still being felt. Draining cleaning equipment ordered by the new contractor is still arriving, 12 months after they took over.
It is clear that all involved greatly underestimated the transition costs. A ‘demobilising’ effect in the last 6 months of the old contract was followed by low operational efficiency in the first couple of months of the new one, and Skanska have spent the last year learning how to do the job. (SWH, which originally took over Devon’s own direct labour department, had been doing it for 20 years).
The difficulties of transferring 250 staff to the new contractor and of managing the software transition were also underestimated. It all makes me wonder if provider changeovers – even when they’re planned and orderly and there isn’t a Carillion-style failure – aren’t a major downside of outsourcing Council services.
While we’re thinking about this, do remember that planning for Devon’s NHS Integrated Care System (formerly known as the Accountable Care System) has included provision for the effects of ‘provider failure’. Is this acceptable? Delays in filling potholes are one thing – delays in the NHS caused by costly handovers between providers could be quite another, even if planned.
I will be a member of a task group on Highways set up yesterday by Devon County Council’s Corporate Infrastructure and Regulatory Services Scrutiny Committee.
Devon has lowest uptake in UK in Phase 2 of superfast broadband
At Devon County Council’s Corporate Infrastructure and Regulatory Services Scrutiny Committee yesterday, campaigner Guy Cashmore told members that (up to September) Devon had the lowest uptake in the BDUK Phase 2 rollout – 5 per cent compared to a national average of 25 per cent. Cabinet member, Cllr Stuart Barker, who represents Devon on the board of Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS), said that he was nevertheless confident that the target of 95 per cent of homes with super fast broadband by 2020 would be achieved.
The Committee approved a careful task group report on the rollout, with important recommendations for improved transparency, but my proposal that CDS board meetings should be open to the public (albeit with commercially sensitive discussions reserved) was defeated by 6-4.
£2.5m HoTSW money to improve mobile coverage in SW – but some operators say they don’t need the investment
At Devon County Council’s Corporate Infrastructure and Regulatory Services Scrutiny Committee yesterday, I asked how and when the £2.5m that the Heart of the South West Local Economic Partnership obtained to eliminate ‘not-spots’ in Devon and Somerset would be used.
Keri Denton, Head of Economy, told me that it had proved difficult to plan an effective intervention, as some mobile operators had told the Council they didn’t need the investment. She said, however, that others were interested, and they were continuing to look into how the money could be used to improve mobile coverage.
Dorset pushing new National Park which includes East Devon AONB – why aren’t Devon and EDDC involved?
Foster carers and Exmouth breastfeeding group protest cuts at Devon County Council
About twenty Devon County Council foster carers came to support four of their number who addressed the council (left) over changes to their contracts which they say will stop them from being able to continue in their work. (At the budget meeting, Independents had proposed extra funding for foster care rather than increasing reserves.)
Just before this, a representative of Busom Buddies Breastfeeding Support Group in Exmouth presented a petition with 600 signatures to Leader John Hart (right), calling on the Council to restore funding for their full-time worker who is essential for the valuable work the group does in helping mothers who have difficulty with breastfeeding.
Conservative complacency on rural broadband roll-out on display at Devon County Council
Devon County Council managed not to spend £2 million it was supposed to contribute to Connecting Devon and Somerset’s roll-out of broadband and mobile phone coverage in rural areas, because CDS didn’t need the money. When I pointed out that many people were having to wait far too long, and asked if the money couldn’t be used to speed things up, Conservative Cabinet Member Cllr Stuart Barker said that that was up to CDS, not Devon County Council to decide.
