Protecting Council Assets Ahead of PFI Contract Expiry – Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service

Overview

As Cornwall Council’s Fire and Rescue Service PFI contract approached expiry, Local Partnerships helped the Council identify asset-condition risks while there was still time to act. Early condition surveys created a robust evidence base for engagement with the contractor, strengthening the Council’s position and enabling repairs and maintenance to be addressed before expiry. The contractor’s maintenance plan subsequently tripled in size, driving significantly more repair activity and improving the condition of fire stations across the estate. The work also strengthened the Council’s in-house capability, with a specialist team now in place to manage contract expiry and apply the learning across its wider PFI portfolio.

The Challenge

As the PFI contract approached expiry, Cornwall Council faced a significant risk around the condition of its fire station estate and the potential financial implications of asset deterioration.

The Council needed to:

• identify defects and maintenance issues before expiry
• establish a robust evidence base to support discussions with the contractor
• secure appropriate repairs and maintenance within the existing contract
• reduce the risk of significant costs transferring to the Council at hand-back
• build internal capability to manage a complex PFI expiry.

The challenge was to turn a clear understanding of asset condition into action early enough to make a difference.

Our Role

Local Partnerships provided specialist advice and practical support, combining PFI expiry, asset management and contractor engagement expertise to help the Council take a proactive approach to handback.

Our approach focused on establishing a clear evidence base, using it to support constructive discussions with the contractor and building the Council’s confidence and capability to manage the expiry process. We:

• established an early evidence base
  Local Partnerships supported an initial survey of six fire stations to assess asset condition and identify wider patterns across the estate. The findings gave the Council a clearer understanding of emerging issues and provided evidence to support action where contractual obligations applied.
• expanded the assessment across the estate
  Following the initial surveys, all remaining fire stations were surveyed. The findings were presented to the Council and contractor, creating a comprehensive evidence base for discussions about repairs and maintenance ahead of expiry.
• supported constructive contractor engagement
  The survey evidence enabled the Council to engage with the contractor from a stronger position and helped establish more regular and constructive dialogue around asset condition and required works.
• built internal capability
  The work also strengthened knowledge and confidence within the Council. A specialist team is now in place to manage expiry, with learning that can be applied across other PFI contracts.

The Outcome

The contractor’s maintenance plan tripled in size, resulting in significantly more repair and maintenance activity and improving the condition of the fire station estate ahead of contract expiry.

The Council also strengthened its internal capability to manage the expiry process and created knowledge that can be applied across its wider PFI portfolio.

The project demonstrates the value of starting PFI expiry planning early. Understanding asset condition before handback gives authorities the evidence and time to address issues while they remain within existing contractual arrangements, helping to reduce risk and strengthen their position for the transition ahead.

Local Partnerships’ expertise

• PFI contract expiry and handback
• Asset condition and lifecycle management
• Fire and Rescue Service infrastructure
• Contract management and commercial advice
• Evidence-based contractor engagement
• PFI expiry planning and capability