Transparency data

Freeports: Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) appointment letter

Updated 13 November 2024

Letter sent to Carmen Suarez & Jessica Blakely (job share), Senior Responsible Owner for the Freeports Programme.

Letter sent from Jeremy Pocklington, CB, Permanent Secretary of Department for Levelling up, Housing & Communities; and Nick Smallwood, Chief Executive Officer of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

Date: 16 August 2022

Subject: Appointment as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the Freeports programme

We are writing to confirm your appointment as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) of the Freeports Programme with effect from 19 April 2022. This letter sets out your responsibilities and the support you can expect from your department and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

As SRO, you are directly accountable to Emran Mian, Director General for the Regeneration Group, under the oversight of the Permanent Secretary, Jeremy Pocklington, CB, as accounting officer for the Department for Levelling up, Housing & Communities, and Lia Nici, Minister for Levelling up, The Union and Constitution.

Your Freeports Programme forms part of the Regeneration Portfolio, under the oversight of the Chair of the Regeneration Portfolio and is included in the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP).

You have personal responsibility for the delivery of the Freeports Programme and will be held accountable for the delivery of its objectives, with policy intent and outcomes expected. This encompasses securing and protecting its vision, ensuring that it is governed responsibly, reported on honestly, escalated appropriately and for influencing the context, culture, and operating environment of the Freeports Programme. You are also responsible for ensuring the ongoing viability of the Freeports Programme and recommending its pause or termination if appropriate. Where issues arise which you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these to Regeneration Portfolio Board.

You remain accountable to ministers, as set out in the Civil Service Code, and should deliver the project in accordance with the objectives and policy intent as set by ministers.

In addition to your internal accountabilities, SROs for GMPP projects and programmes are personally accountable to Parliamentary Select Committees. This means that, from the date of this letter, you will be held personally accountable to and could be called by Select Committees to account for and explain the decisions and actions you have taken to deliver the Freeports Programme.

It is important to be clear that your accountability relates only to implementation, within the agreed terms in this letter; it will remain for the minister to account for the relevant policy decisions and development.

More information on this is set out in Giving Evidence to Select Committees - Guidance for Civil Servants, sometimes known as the Osmotherly Rules. Information on the roles and responsibilities of the SRO are detailed in the Infrastructure and Project Authority’s guidance on the role of the senior responsible owner. You should also make yourself familiar with the Government Functional Standard for Project Delivery, the requirements of the Government Project Delivery Framework, and the guidance and requirements for project delivery as set by Department for Levelling up, Housing & Communities Central Portfolio Office.

Time commitment and tenure

This role will require at least 0.5 FTE to enable effective delivery of the role and execute your responsibilities in full. It is noted that you have left 0.2 FTE in your total resource allocation flexible to cater for additional demands on your time, most notably those that might arise from this or other GMPP responsibilities and that you will be drawing on the synergies of managing programmes in similar policy landscapes.  

You are expected to undertake this role until programme closure, planned for December 2026. Progress towards this will be reflected in your personal objectives. Any changes to the agreed time commitment or tenure of the role, as set out above, will require both departmental and Infrastructure & Projects Authority consent.

Objectives and performance criteria

The policy intent supported by the Freeports Programme is to bring together ports, local authorities, businesses and other key local stakeholders to create national hubs for trade, innovation, commerce and global investment in all 4 nations across the UK. They will regenerate communities, attracting new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities across the country.

Any proposed changes to scope which impacts on this intent or the realisation of benefits must be authorised by the Freeports Programme Board and may be subject to further levels of approval.

The vision of the Freeports Programme is to be a flagship government programme that will play an important part in the UK’s post-Covid economic recovery and contribute to realising the levelling up agenda, bringing jobs, investment and prosperity to some of our most deprived communities across the four nations of the UK with targeted and effective support. And its objectives are to:

• Establish Freeports as national hubs for global trade and investment across the UK
• Trade: increase in trade throughput through the designated Freeport area
• Investment: increase in investment within Freeport boundary area, surrounding area and nationally
• Promote regeneration and job creation
• Employment: increased number of jobs and average wages in deprived areas in and around the Freeport
• Economic activity: increase in economic specialisation in activities high in GVA relative to the current makeup of the local economy
• Create a hotbed of innovation
• Innovation: Increased local involvement and funding in R&D and innovation
• Productivity: Increased productivity in each target region, through increased capacity to absorb innovation

Your personal objectives and performance criteria which relate to the Freeports Programme are:

• ensuring the assessment of bids are performed with fairness, propriety and conducted in line with the criteria set out in the prospectus;
• overseeing the successful administration and delivery of the programme, in accordance with policy objectives set out by ministers; and
• ensuring the project is governed capably, effectively and transparently.

You are expected to run your project in accordance with the Government Functional Standard for Project Delivery, the other Functional Standards as applicable to this Freeports Programme and the requirements of the Government Project Delivery Framework.

Extent and limit of accountability

Finance and Controls

HM Treasury spending controls will apply on the basis set out within the department’s delegated authority letter. Where the Freeports Programme exceeds the delegated authority set by HM Treasury, the Treasury Approval Point process will apply, and the details of each approval process must be agreed with your HM Treasury spending team. You should consult departmental finance colleagues on how to go about this.

You should note that where expenditure is considered novel, contentious, repercussive, or likely to result in costs to other parts of the public sector, HM Treasury approval will be required, regardless of whether the programme expenditure exceeds the delegated authority set by HM Treasury. If in doubt about whether approval is required you should, in the first instance, consult departmental finance colleagues before raising with the relevant HM Treasury spending team.

The overall estimated budget, resourcing requirements and tolerances for your programme will be agreed as part of the approval process. You will be expected to deliver within these tolerances and report quarterly on these as part of GMPP reporting.

You should operate at all times within the rules set out in Managing Public Money. In addition, you must be mindful of, and act in accordance with, the specific HM Treasury delegated limits and Cabinet Office controls relevant to Freeports Programme. Information on these controls can be found here: Cabinet Office controls.

Delegated authority

You are authorised to:

• approve expenditure up to the budget delegation for the programme, which is £224 million;
• agree programme rescheduling within the agreed Spending Review period that is agreed until Financial Year 24/25, but rescheduling beyond that must be agreed with HM Treasury;
• recommend to the Director General for the Regeneration Group and the Regeneration Portfolio Board the need to either pause or terminate the programme where necessary and in a timely manner.

These authority limits are subject to change and other conditions or tolerances may be set as part of the business case approval and ongoing monitoring processes which you should then operate within.

Where issues arise which take you outside of these authority limits which you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these issues to the Director General for the Regeneration Group and the Regeneration Portfolio Board.

Appointments

You should appoint a full time programme director to support you in the management of this programme and make other appointments as required for the control and delivery of your programme within your delegated authority.

Governance and assurance

You should pay attention to ensuring effective governance for the Freeports Programme, including the establishment of a programme board with appropriate membership and clear terms of reference.

As primary owner, you must ensure that the programme secures business case approval from Freeports Programme Board, CO and HMT. You should also ensure that the programme remains aligned to the strategic outcomes, costs, timescales, and benefits in line with the approved business case as well as monitoring the context within which the programme is being delivered to ensure it remains valid.

Where a change impacts the scope, costs, benefits, or planned delivery milestones agreed as part of an agreed business case, you are responsible for following the agreed change request approval process and setting a new, approved, business case baseline.

You should ensure that an accounting officer assessment is completed alongside the approval of the Outline Business Case and that this is published on GOV.UK as part of the government’s transparency requirements on major projects. You are responsible for bringing to the attention of the accounting officer any material changes in the programme which could require a new accounting officer assessment to be completed and published. Guidance on completing accounting officer assessments for major projects is available from HM Treasury.

Although you are directly accountable for this programme, you are also expected to support delivery of the department’s overall strategic objectives. This means that you are expected to work collaboratively with other SROs and project directors in adjacent projects and programmes and with the Regeneration portfolio management office and portfolio director to manage dependencies, resources, schedules, and funding to support delivery of the overall change the department needs to achieve its strategic objectives.

You should ensure that appropriate and proportionate assurance is in place and agree on the level and frequency of assurance reviews through the maintenance of an integrated assurance and approvals plan. You should develop this plan and its maintenance in collaboration with the Departmental Assurance Coordinator and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

Programme status, reporting and transparency requirements

The programme status at the date of your appointment is reflected in the most recent quarterly return on the programme to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and is the agreed position as you assume formal ownership of the programme.

You are responsible for ensuring the honest and timely reporting on the position of the programme to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority while it remains on the GMPP and for providing reports and information to the Regeneration portfolio management office as required. Reporting should include carbon measurement, and other sustainable development goals demonstrating evidence that the project contributes to an overarching environmental strategy and is aligned with defined Net Zero pathways. Information on the programme will be published annually by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

As part of the government’s commitment to transparency on major infrastructure projects, you are responsible for publishing on GOV.UK:

• A summary of the accounting officer assessment completed in line with the approval of the Outline Business Case and summaries of any subsequent assessments should they be required;
• A summary of the HM Treasury approved Full Business Case; and
• A close out report after the programme has completed.

Development and support

As SRO of a GMPP programme, you are required to complete the Major Projects Leadership Academy, and you have agreed to enrol on a cohort in the near future. The Head of Profession in the Department for Levelling up, Housing & Communities can provide further information on the application process.

To widen experience and understanding of the role, SROs are also expected to become accredited assurance reviewers and to lead or participate in such reviews for other government departments, the wider public sector, and other areas of the Department for Levelling up, Housing & Communities as appropriate. Becoming an assurance reviewer and completing a review will form part of your time at the Major Projects Leadership Academy. To maintain your accreditation, you will be required to participate in a review at least once every 12 months.

The department will assist you in securing the necessary resources to support the programme, and will set clear guidance, requirements and standards, which align to the Government Functional Standard on Project Delivery, to enable good governance and effective delivery. You will be part of the department’s cohort of major project leaders who will be expected to support each other, share good practice and lessons learned and to collectively develop solutions. You should liaise with the department’s Head of Profession for project delivery to discuss the maintenance and development of your delivery and leadership skills.

The Infrastructure and Projects Authority will be available to you for support, advice, and assurance throughout the programme’s time on the GMPP.

Following approval of the business case and entry onto the Regeneration Portfolio, the Regeneration Portfolio Board will provide ongoing oversight and support and will take steps to help resolve and escalate risks, issues or constraints that are acting as a blocker to successful delivery.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you every success in your role as SRO.

Yours sincerely,

Jeremy Pocklington

Permanent Secretary

DLUHC

Date: 16 August 2022

Nick Smallwood

Chief Executive Officer

Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Date: 16 August 2022

Confirmation of acceptance of appointment

I confirm that I accept the appointment of Senior Responsible Owner for the programme, including my personal accountability for implementation, as set out in the letter above.

Carmen Suarez

Date: 5 October 2022

Jessica Blakely

Date: 5 October 2022