Agenda item

This item was circulated prior to the meeting for reasons as set out in the minutes.

(An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the Minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency. Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Member's intention to raise a matter under this heading.)

This item had been accepted as urgent by the Chair on the grounds that the Committee was due to receive an update report from Electricity North West (ENW) on Street Lighting. However, in light of recent changes to the provision of street lighting in Lancashire it was felt that the Committee should receive an update from the County Council on this matter.

The Chair welcomed Shaun Capper, Assistant Director Environmental Services - South, and Martin Dunwell, Design Group Manager North, to the meeting.

The Committee was informed that for a significant length of time, the council had been working towards opening up the market for the provision of street lighting connection services with accredited independent connection providers (ICP). As of 23 April 2012, the council had developed a contract with a number of ICPs to carry out such work on Lancashire's network of street lights. It was hoped that the benefits of such a move would provide the council with greater and tighter control of connection work to be done by working directly with ICPs effectively acting as the council's sub contractors, rather than through the electricity companies. It was also hoped that the council would save an estimated 15-40% on costs. Officers re-iterated that the council had only entered into the new arrangements two weeks ago and that the new arrangements were still in their infancy.

Councillors were invited to ask questions and raise any comments in relation to the new arrangements, a summary of which is provided below:

·  One councillor asked if the new arrangement would improve the time taken to make connections. The Committee was informed that through a new commissioning process and improved work programming, the council would know in advance when work was scheduled so that planning work could be done in advance. It was highlighted that this new arrangement provided much tighter control that the council did not have with ENW under previous arrangements.

·  A question was asked in relation to how much the council would save with the new arrangement. It was reported that depending on the type of work to be carried out the council could save between 15 and 40%. On how much the council spent in any given year for connection work, the Committee was informed that depending on the work programme for the year the council would spend somewhere in the region of £500K to £750K.

·  Councillors were pleased to hear of the new arrangements and asked whether there were any penalties in place if there were any delays with connections to be carried out by ICPs. The Committee was informed that performance was measured through the Guaranteed Standards of Performance (GSOP) which had transferred from the Electricity companies to the ICPs. For example; for the connection of a new single unit a maximum of 35 working days had been imposed with a penalty charged imposed for failure to carry out the work every day after that. Whilst it was acknowledged that this was a nationally set timescale, councillors expressed concerns that 35 days represented too great a timescale.

·  Councillors also queried the length of time taken to rectify faults on the network. It was reported that faults would still be managed by ENW and that the guaranteed standards of service would still apply. A threshold of 20 working days applied to all faults.

·  Councillors asked if ICPs would take over responsibility for the council's programme of re-lamping and whether the use of LED lighting would become the standard for all replacements – in particular on new housing developments. The Committee was informed that the council's Highways Service would continue to be responsible for the re-lamping programme. On LED lighting, councillors were informed that wherever appropriate the council would look to fit or specify the use of LEDs. However, the Committee noted that conventional lighting sources may still be required on larger/main roads as the illumination factor of LEDs would not be strong enough for such a purpose. The Committee was informed that LEDs were manufactured to light up relatively narrow roads. One councillor suggested that perhaps the implementation of 20mph zones should be a consideration for when planning for street lighting on new housing developments irrespective of road width/type.

·  A question was asked in relation to whether ICPs could sub-contract work out to companies whom the council had no working relationship with and whether there would be an element of 'cherry picking' from the list of ICPs. It was reported that contracts were not able to be sub-contracted out. The new arrangements would mean that if the first ICP could not meet the requirements of the council then other ICPs would be approached to carry out the work instead.

Overall, councillors welcomed the efficiencies that the new arrangements would have on street lighting connections. It was suggested that an update report be provided to the Committee.

Resolved: That;

  i.  The report be noted;

  ii.  An update report on Street Lighting and Independent Connection Providers be presented to the Committee in six to nine months.