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Liverpool council determined to keep school contracts local

Millions of pound worth of work is being offered up to Liverpool firms as part of the Mayor’s school rebuilding scheme.

The project will see 12 schools across Merseyside rebuilt through Mayor Joe Anderson’s Investment Plan for Secondary Schools scheme, as part of a rescue package for the scrapped Wave Six of Liverpool’s Building Schools for the Future programme.

Liverpool City Council said it is committed to keeping the work involved within the local business community, and firms will be able to bid for a slice of millions of pounds worth of contracts.

The council hopes the scheme will provide a boost to employment in Merseyside. as well as offering training opportunities to local people and hundreds of opportunities for apprenticeships.

Firms can get involved by attending the ‘Get Connected’ event at Liverpool Town Hall on 12th June, where representatives from construction firms Kier, Morgan Sindall and Willmott Dixon will talk about how they can be a part of the supply chain.

Officials from the city council will also explain how companies can become involved in the supply chain for the new school.

Mayor Joe Anderson said: “We’re making the most of every pound of spending on our new schools by ensuring it is not just pupils who benefit but local firms and their workforce as well.

“These are tough times for businesses and it is crucial that we make sure that money secured by Liverpool is spent in Liverpool.”

Liverpool companies have already benefitted from a project at Notre Dame Catholic College, which opens in September, after 60% of work carried out stayed within the city.

This included a series of contracts totalling just under £4m, which went to A&B Engineering in Old Swan, to carry out maintenance and engineering work.

£17m worth of work is also ready to begin on the new Archbishop Beck Sports College in Fazakerley, at the same time as an £18m project is due to begin at St John Bosco Catholic College in Croxteth.

Cabinet member for enterprise, employment and skills, Cllr Nick Small, commented: “This is boosting employment in Liverpool and giving young people the chance to get vital skills and training.”

Cllr Jane Corbett, Cabinet member for education, said: “This is part of our ambition to make sure that new schools are closely tied to the city’s regeneration and help build stronger communities, so that they are literally made in Liverpool.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .