The Prime Minister has advised that from today (19th January 2021) Government is no longer asking people to work from home, recommending they speak to their employers about arrangements for returning to the office.  Employers are reminded to follow the Working Safely guidance (see below).

He also confirmed that the COVID‐19 ‘Plan B’ restrictions in England will end next Wednesday 26 January.  An end to ‘Plan B’ means the COVID Pass will no longer be required to enter certain venues and face coverings will not be mandatory in any setting although people will still be advised to wear them in crowded and enclosed spaces where they come into contact with others they do not normally meet.

The legal requirement to self‐isolate after testing positive for COVID‐19 will remain in place. However, an individual may now stop self‐isolating if they take a lateral flow test from day 5 onwards and another one at least 24 hours later, and both results are negative and they do not have a high temperature. The Build UK COVID‐19 flowchart continues to be updated in line with the latest rules.

In Scotland, the restrictions introduced in response to Omicron will be lifted from 24 January. However, individuals should continue to work from home wherever possible and face coverings will remain mandatory in certain settings.  Further announcements are anticipated for Wales and Northern Ireland in the coming days.

• You can read the full statement from the Prime Minister here
• Companies are still recommended to follow the Site Operating Procedures
• Government Working Safely During COVID-19 Guidelines have been updated here
• The FIS COVD-19 Hub is available here

Small companies have always found it hard to get paid on time from the larger businesses which is why the Finishes and Interiors Sector (FIS) is greatly encouraged by the interventions of the Office of the Small Business Commissioner (OSBC) in tackling the late payment epidemic.

The OSBC works with signatories to the Prompt Payment Code (PPC) to help  businesses get paid . The PPC was created by the UK government in 2008 in response to a call from businesses for a change in payment culture. It sets out requirements for paying supplier invoices. Whilst the Code is not mandatory, it can be included as a requirement for tendering.

When a signatory’s payment practice is challenged (the complaint can be instigated via a simple webform here), the PPC administrators, the OSBC, will investigate. They cannot mediate a resolution. Their role is to decide on whether or not the signatory is complying with the code and if not, what action should be taken. The PPC Compliance Board can determine that the payment practice is non-compliant, and the signatory may be removed from the Code, which in turn may impact future tenders. However, in many cases the fact that the OSBC has been complained to, prompts the customer to resolve the dispute with their supplier.

This process was tested by FIS Member, Tapper Interiors, who started three contracts for a main contractor between July and September of 2020, with a total contract value of around £500k. The contracts were finalised between Feburary and April 2021. At no point did the company receive complaints about the quality of its work or progress on site, and no disputes were registered. Most payments were late by a few weeks or so, according to the issued payment schedule and required much chasing.

Commenting, Helen Tapper Business Operations Director at Tapper Interiors said: “It was incredibly hard to get any contact with any of the Quantity Surveyors involved and therefore almost impossible to chase, as their accounts department don’t accept calls. In October 2020, having submitted three applications in September for the three contracts, we were informed that the directors had decided not to release any money that month. We were at the end of a very difficult trading year and were owed approx £80k across the three contracts. This would have caused us problems, but luckily I still had some CBILLS money that covered the shortfall.”

The company eventually received the money at the end of November. The payments continued to be erratic until March, when they stopped altogether. They were issued agreed payment sheets on all three contracts between February and April but no money was released as ‘cashflow was tight’.

Continuing she said: “This was a clear breach of The Construction Act but we got nowhere until I contacted FIS who confirmed that the contractor was a signatory of the PPC and recommended us to the Office of the Small Business Commissioner (OSBC). This was in September. After the intervention by the OSBC we received all agreed payments at the end of October. I was honestly a bit sceptical and was starting to think this was a forlorn hope, but the OSBC team was great and once I had provided the initial information, it was all resolved relatively quickly. We do still have retention outstanding, payable shortly, which will be an interesting battle.”

Jacqueline Moore, Casework Manager at the Office of the Small Business Commissioner responded: “A big proportion of the disputes we see are sadly in construction, partly due to culture, but also related to the complexity of contracts and payment processes. We are here to investigate whether signatories are complying with the PPC rules to which they have committed. While we can’t intervene to resolve the payment dispute our investigation of compliance often prompts payment. We have to be mindful that the late, delayed or non-payment of one or two, or perhaps even several invoices, may not mean the firm is non-compliant because the commitment signatories make is to pay at least 95% of invoices within the set time frame. However, we find that firms that have voluntarily signed up to the PPC and made the necessary commitments on payments are very anxious to ensure they remain compliant and aren’t suspended form the Code. We work closely with FIS, which has been a vocal supporter of the PPC. We were glad to act on Helen’s complaint and are very pleased that her payment situation has subsequently been resolved. We’d encourage others to come and talk to us.”

FIS CEO Iain McIlwee stated: “I have been really impressed with the team at the Office of the Small Business Commissioner and the new Commissioner Liz Barclay who comes with a real desire to make a difference. The Prompt Payment Code is a useful tool for small suppliers wishing to work with ethical customers and we can see from the recent experience of our member that the OSBC can offer tangible support. If you aren’t getting paid and your customer is a signatory to the PPC, ask the OSBC to investigate.

The PPC is being ratcheted in again this April, however, I would like to see the Code underpinned further with a set of principles and behaviours that would help signatories avoid payment disputes with their suppliers in the first place. I would like to see government backing-up the PPC by ensuring all public sector procurement requires code compliance and companies removed from contracts and frameworks if they repeatedly fall short of the requirements. Late payment is only part of the problem. The scope of the Code should be extended to embrace principles from the Conflict Avoidance Pledge and I would like to see a more detailed role for the OSBC that goes beyond just enforcing the Code, and working with the businesses in the supply chain to improve culture.

For further information or for any questions please contact the FIS at info@thefis.org or call 0121 707 0077

FIS offers members contractual advice and support via our Contractual and Legal Toolkit and helpline.  We are encouraging all in the industry to addopt the Conflict Abvoidance Process and sign the Conflict Avoidance Pledge to help reduce the unnacceptable level of disputes and poor contractual managment that is evident in the construction sector – see the section Avoiding Disputes – the Conflicts Avoidance Process here.  

The aims of the task force is to identify and fill emerging ‘green skills’ gaps and shortages within Central London’s commercial built environment, in order to meet London’s Net Zero carbon targets.

The task force will convene senior leaders from across the built environment to drive change in this important area, including representation from local authorities, national government, employers, industry bodies (including FIS) and training providers.  We are keen to support this work and would encourage our members working in London to complete this short questionnaire; answers to this survey will inform the work of the task force.

We are delighted to announce the launch of a new service for FIS members in 2022.  FIS have partnered with Digital Construction Skills (DCS) to give you free access to the Digital Construction Helpline. This service is FREE TO FIS MEMBERS.  There are no forms to fill in, simply book a 15, 30 or 60 minute call with a digital construction specialist who can help you:

• Get started on your digital journey
• Address a specific problem or challenge you are facing in your business
• Identify the funding and support available to help you on your digital journey
• Narrow down the technologies which could most benefit your business
• Select the right digital tools based on your needs, budget and specific circumstances.
• Identify skills gaps which are holding back digital progress in your business

This service is aimed at business owners, directors or senior managers with responsibility for business improvement or digital change in your company.  The DCS digital construction specialists have recent, real-world experience on the front line of the construction industry and are specialists in the technical and commercial aspects of digital construction including digitalising information flow as well as physical elements such as 3D models and reality capture – they are supported by CITB funding.  This service is ideal for you if any of the following apply to you:

• You haven’t yet explored how digital tools can help you, but know there is room for improvement in your business
• You have identified where you could improve your processes or activities using digital solutions and are ready to get started
• You have already started selecting or implementing digital tools but have hit challenges or simply stalled
• You would like to increase your profitability, grow your business or tender for bigger jobs
• You would like to access other funding and support available which can help you with digital enablement

Here’s what others have said about the support they have received:

“Digital Construction Skills helped us access funding to help us train our staff in a new digital platform we are rolling out across our business.” – Andy Dalrymple, Managing Director, Mackenzie Construction

“Within our first session with Digital Construction Skills, we identified the types of digital tools which could help us save time and money and ruled out the ones that weren’t relevant to us.” – Keith Burrell, CEO, Procladd (Scotland) Ltd

Commenting on the new service FIS CEO, Iain McIlwee stated:

“It is great to partner with DCS to support the work of our Digital Construction Working Group. This is an area we know we are lagging a bit relative to other parts of the economy and where massive opportunity is mirrored by often impenetrable language.  Our starting point is looking at the tools we can use to help improve productivity, but also helping to improve relationships, information exchange and deliver against the requirements of the Golden Thread.  As well as the introduction of the new helpline and mentoring service, the programme this year will see a number regular workshops, built on successful integration of technology within businesses in our community.   These workshops and structured feedback through the helpline will help us to sections of our Digital Spine concept and ensure we are supporting transformation in our sector, but more importantly to help individual businesses to make the right decisions about embracing digital technology in their business.”

The helpline can be accessed via 0121 707 0077.

You can secure your space on the next interactive online workshop (focussed on Cost Management Software) here.

You can access the FIS Digital Spine here.

 

The CLC Site Operating Procedures have been republished to provide up to date guidance for sites in response to the Omicron variant. The Site Operating Procedures ‐ Version 9 incorporates the following key changes:

• A revised introduction to recognise that working with COVID‐19 is now ‘business as usual’ for the industry
• Appropriate language to reflect the current situation on site, for example ‘managing’ rather than ‘restricting’ numbers of workers
• Removing out of date references to when to go to work, shielding etc.

The Build UK COVID‐19 flowchart also continues to be updated in line with the latest rules on self‐isolation. Anyone who is asymptomatic and receives a positive lateral flow test in England is now no longer required to take a PCR test, guidance for the rest of the UK is available through the FIS COVID-19 Hub.

Download the CLC Site Operating Procedures here

Paul Cossell, Vice Chair of ISG, has been elected as the new Build UK Chair. Paul has served as a Director on the Build UK Board since September 2020 and replaces Andy Steele, who stepped down in November 2021.

Commenting on his appointment, Paul said:

“It is a privilege to be the new Chair of Build UK. I believe passionately in the value of a powerful voice representing our industry at the highest levels. Throughout the pandemic, as we tackle the multi‐generational challenge of building greener, better and faster and the associated need to attract the brightest and best talent into our industry, Build UK has proved to be a dynamic force for transformational change.”