Audit Committee publishes report on Senedd building project

The National Assembly for Wales’s Audit Committee publishes its report on the building of the Senedd today (Wednesday).  The Committee has been examining the management, by the Welsh Assembly Government of the procurement of the Senedd following the project restarting in 2002.  Their findings outlined in the report can be summarised as follows:

• The Senedd is an iconic building with outstanding environmental credentials;

• Even though the Senedd was significantly more expensive than first estimated, the Welsh Assembly Government and its partners did all it  reasonably could to keep costs to a minimum.  Unlike many other large-scale public sector construction projects, the project came in broadly on budget despite the challenges presented by its high specification and unique features;

• The procurement process was handled well in difficult circumstances although the delay in commissioning the state of the art IT system caused problems;

• The successful delivery of the building was a result of good project management by a highly effective team with a clear and shared vision and purpose.

Chair of the Audit Committee David Melding AM said: “The Senedd is an iconic building in Wales which has attracted enormous interest particularly for its innovative environmental and sustainability features.  It is serving the Assembly well as a home and has been hugely popular with visitors, 300,000 of which came through the doors within one year of opening.  While there were problems with rising costs with the original project, it is reassuring that when it restarted sound measures were in place to control costs and ensure it was completed satisfactorily.  I am glad that the Committee can give the project its positive support and that we can be satisfied that lessons have been learnt that will help future building projects “

A copy of the report will shortly be available at the following page: http://www.assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-guide-docs-pub/bus-business-documents/bus-business-documents-doc-laid.htm

Audit Committee Homepage:

http://www.assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-committees/bus-committees-third1/bus-committees-third-ac-home.htm

Notes to editors:

1. The first phase of the project begins in 1997 but it was stopped in 2001 due to a number of problems most significantly rising costs.   The Welsh Assembly Government restarted the project in 2002 with revised arrangements for managing the project and a different procurement route.   This report focuses on the arrangements for the latter.   The building finally opened in 2006.  

2. On the basis of a report from the Auditor General for Wales ^[ Wales Audit Office, The Senedd, March 2008^] the Committee took evidence from Claire Clancy Chief Executive and Clerk to the Assembly; Dianne Bevan, Chief Operating Officer, National Assembly for Wales; David Richards, Head of the Governance in Health Project; and Richard Wilson, Construction Programme Director for the project.