CJ Awards 2009: Client of the Year

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council's project team is a trailblazer for the government's £45bn schools programme.

The judges noted that the council had made notable achievements in the development of a procurement and evaluation strategy for bids.

The project achieved one of the fastest financial closes in the sector and lower project management costs than typically seen within other local authority education projects.

A robust information exchange between the team and bidders resulted in a clear audit trial.

In-depth bidder and council engagement helped deliver affordable designs. Bidders were presented with 130-plus detailed sub-evaluation weightings prior to bidding to ensure compliance at final bid stage.

In this capacity, Sandwell MBC is being held up by the Public Private Partnership Programme as an exemplar of best practice.

Sandwell is advising other local authorities in the Midlands and at the behest of Partnership for Schools Sandwell advised Poole and Bournemouth on their scheme.

The judges said: "There is a good deal of promise in what the council is doing and we look forward to a future strong entry with the results of their efforts."