Soft Facilities Management Contract implementation for Central & North West London NHS Foundation Trust
Overview
Following the expiry of its previous contract and a substantial change in needs CNWL required a new Soft FM contract to cover over 120 buildings and a number of different inpatient and outpatient services including Mental Health, Community Health and Learning Disabilities.
Client Requirement
The primary objective of this project was to provide a fit for purpose, value for money and innovative contract to the Trust for the provision of Soft FM services, which would support the diverse provision of clinical services within CNWL and be flexible to the organisations ever changing needs.
Following the award of the contract to Outsourced Client Solutions (OCS) Group Ltd, CNWL required the implementation and evolution of all relevant existing and new services. The new Soft FM contract would initially be worth at least 9 million per year with scope for it to substantially grow as additional services were added.
Our Approach
The new Soft FM contract would cover the same core areas as the previous contract such as cleaning, catering and front of house, but it would also include a number of new additions including a substantial reconciliation of waste services, linen and laundry, pest control and window cleaning services.
large, growing and varied portfolio of services it was clear that the approach taken with the previous Soft FM contract was not future proofed or fit for purpose going forward. It was essential that the next Soft FM contract evolved in the same way that the Trust had done.
With CNWL’s As OCS were the incumbent provider it was essential that post award the new contract was not seen or treated as business as usual. A comprehensive mobilisation programme was developed, underpinned by scheduled individual implementation plans set out by service area. In addition a communication plan was progressed to ensure that front line staff knew that this was a new fresh contract and service arrangement.
A number of changes were made to the core services which continued within the new contract including new specifications and procedures. In addition to moving to a full hostess catering service we worked closely with the client and the contractor to bring in innovation such as the transfer of ward provisions and snack provisions to OCS, freeing up essential time for clinical staff. It was important that these changes were treated and seen as a new approach rather than a refresh.
The previous contract did not include waste services which meant that the Trust had a number of local contracts and agreements across a large number of providers. Between January 2016 and July 2016 we worked with OCS and CNWL services to transfer the vast majority of these onto the main contract seamlessly. This transfer was completed in phases to ensure a clear and comprehensive focus and to align with contract trigger dates.
In addition a number of other services were added to the new contract which had previously been provided locally or by other individual providers, particularly pest control and linen and laundry.
Outcome & Benefits
This contract award and implementation process delivered a Soft FM contract which covers almost all FM services under one umbrella. This has significantly streamlined the number of suppliers improving efficiency and consistency whilst also giving greater control and assurance of performance and quality.
The project provided the consistent approach to Soft FM that an organisation the size of CNWL needed, whilst also having the flexibility to adjust to specific service and site needs. This is essential given the complexity and diversity of the CNWL portfolio.
The OCS contract continues to deliver on all its Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) and targets each and every month whilst providing best value to the Trust.
The implementation of managed ward and snack provisions and the transfer of additional catering services has helped maximise the time available to ward staff to deliver patient care.
Additionally the transfer of waste services has delivered a significantly streamlined and improved service which is achieving zero to landfill and producing significant financial savings with no quality implications.