Transparency data

Remediation Programme: Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) appointment

Updated 13 November 2024

Letter sent to: Richard Goodman, Senior Responsible Owner for the Single Remediation Portfolio

Letter sent from: Sarah Healey, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government; and Nick Smallwood, Chief Executive Officer of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Date: November 2024

Subject: Appointment as Senior Responsible Owner for the Remediation Programme

We are writing to confirm your appointment as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the Single Remediation Portfolio, which took effect from 26 June 2023. This letter sets out your responsibilities and the support you can expect from your department and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

SRO Accountabilities

As SRO and Director General for Safer and Greener Buildings, you are directly accountable to the Permanent Secretary as Accounting Officer for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Alex Norris, Minister of State for Local Growth and Building Safety.

The Single Remediation Portfolio will be under the oversight of the Remediation Strategy and Investment Board, and the Remediation Policy & Delivery Board and is included in the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP).

You have personal responsibility for overseeing the delivery of the portfolio and will be accountable for the delivery of overarching strategic objective for the remediation portfolio. This is to bring all affected buildings over 11 metres with unsafe cladding to the minimum life-safety standard quickly, completely, proportionately and consistently. 

There are five separate remediation programmes. The Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) Remediation Programme (18m+) and the Building Safety Fund (BSF) (non-ACM) Remediation Programme (18m+) are led by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). MHCLG has delegated delivery responsibility to Homes England (HE) for the Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS). HE are accountable for the delivery of the CSS programme, MHCLG will retain responsibility for setting objectives and policy.

Two further programmes, Responsible Actors Scheme (RAS) and Social Housing Remediation are both non-government led programmes with delivery sitting with Developers and Registered Providers respectively, although MHCLG retains oversight and administration within the portfolio.

You are responsible for ensuring the ongoing viability of the Single Remediation Portfolio and recommending its pause or termination if appropriate. Where issues arise, which you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these to the MHCLG Executive Team.

You remain accountable to Ministers, as set out in the Civil Service Code, and should deliver the portfolio 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 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 Single Remediation Portfolio.

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.

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 MHCLG Central Delivery Unit

Time commitment and tenure

This role will require at least 35% of your time to enable effective delivery of the role and execute your responsibilities in full.

You are required to undertake this role until the portfolio objectives are achieved with the projection to remediate all eligible buildings with unsafe cladding by 2035. The portfolio objectives are to bring all affected buildings to the minimum life-safety standard quickly, completely, proportionately, and consistently, while ensuring that residents are considered throughout the remediation process, delivering value for money and pursuing those responsible for the cost of remediation.

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.

If you cease acting as SRO for your portfolio, please email the MHCLG Grants Centre of Excellence Team with details of the replacement SRO. This is to ensure that both departmental and wider Government Grant Information System records are accurate and can be updated. You are also responsible for ensuring there is a smooth, informed handover to the new SRO.

Objectives and performance criteria

The ONE MHCLG Plan sets out the objective to ensure that the vision of all our remediation programmes is to bring all affected buildings to the minimum life-safety standard quickly, completely, proportionately, and consistently, while ensuring that residents are considered throughout the remediation process, delivering value for money and pursuing those responsible for the cost of remediation. The objectives are to:

• Increase the Pace of Remediation Across the Portfolio – ensure that buildings move through and complete the remediation process as quickly as possible.
• Deliver Risk-Based and Proportionate Remediation – ensuring the greatest risks are prioritised and fire-risk assessors are following PAS 9980 guidance when undertaking assessments.
• Ensure Buildings are Mortgageable and Insurable – work with the financial sector to unlock the mortgage market and address the practices driving such high insurance premiums.
• Ensure Quality Remediation – ensure that the work done to fix fire-safety risks in affected buildings achieves the minimum life-safety standard and that, as far as possible, work is done ‘right first time’.
• Integrate residents’ voice – make sure residents are informed and considered throughout the remediation process, and that reasonable and appropriate steps are taken to mitigate impacts on residents.
• Ensure Value for Money – ensure that unit costs are as predictable, consistent and as low as possible and that we achieve cost efficiencies across the portfolio.

Your personal objectives and performance criteria which relate to the Single Remediation Portfolio are to deliver the above objectives to its agreed timescales and budget.

As SRO, 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 programme and the requirements of the Government Project Delivery Framework.

Extent and limit of accountability

Finance and Controls

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

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

The overall estimated budget, resourcing requirements and tolerances for your portfolio 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 Treasury delegated limits and Cabinet Office spending controls relevant to The Single Remediation Portfolio. Information on these controls can be found here: Cabinet Office controls.

Delegated authority

You are authorised to:

• approve expenditure against your budget delegation for the Single Remediation Portfolio.

• recommend to the Minister of State for Housing and Planning and the MHCLG 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 you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these issues to the Remediation Portfolio Boards, the Executive Team and if required, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning.

Appointments

Individual SROs are already in place for the five programmes across the portfolio. It is planned to issue individual letters confirming their appointments in their respective roles.

They are all in position to support you in the management of the portfolio and you can make other appointments as required for the control and delivery of the portfolio within your delegated authority.

Governance and assurance

You should pay attention to ensuring continued effective governance for the portfolio including the portfolio boards with appropriate membership and clear terms of reference.

You should also ensure that the portfolio 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 portfolio 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 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 portfolio 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 portfolio, 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, directors general, and project directors in adjacent projects and programmes and with the Central Delivery Unit and portfolio directors 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.

Portfolio Status, reporting and transparency requirements

The status of the Remediation Portfolio at the date of your appointment is reflected in the most recent quarterly GMPP return 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 portfolio to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority while it remains on the GMPP and for providing reports and information to the MHCLG Central Delivery Unit as required. In future, reporting should include carbon measurement, and other sustainable development goals in accordance with evolving government policy and standards. Information on the portfolio will be published annually by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

You are responsible for publishing on GOV.UK a summary of the Accounting Officer Assessment completed in line with the approval of the Full Business Case and summaries of any subsequent assessments should they be required.

Development and support

As a graduate of the Major Projects Leadership Academy, you are expected to maintain your continuing professional development as a project leader, including your status as an accredited assurance reviewer. 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 portfolio  , 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 portfolio’s time on the GMPP.

Following approval of the Single Remediation Portfolio full business case, the Portfolio Strategy & Investment Board and the Portfolio Policy & Delivery Board will both provide ongoing oversight and support and will take steps to help resolve and escalate risks, issues or constraints that are acting as blockers to successful delivery.

Government Grant Functional Standards

Where you are an SRO of one or more grant-funded initiatives, you should operate at all times within the rules set out in the Government Grant Functional Standard and Managing Public Money. Minimum Requirement One of the Government Grant Functional Standard provides background and specific guidance on your SRO role obligations and responsibilities. In addition, you must be mindful of, and act in accordance with, the specific HM Treasury delegated limits and Cabinet Office controls applicable to the relevant grant-funded initiative(s).

You are also responsible for familiarising yourself with relevant information and good practice documentation from the Cabinet Office Grant Centre of Excellence website, including the Code of Conduct for Recipients of Government Grants

In addition, it is also your responsibility to undertake the SRO training provided by the Cabinet Office Grant Centre of Excellence on an annual basis. This can be accessed at SRO learning – Grant Centre of Excellence (civilservice.gov.uk) (registration on the Centre of Excellence Portal is required). You are also responsible for ensuring that any staff involved in the design, development or delivery of grant-funded initiatives, within your remit, complete the required minimum mandatory grant management e-learning. Details can be found in the Grant Learning section of the MHCLG Grants Community Hub.

You should also ensure that there is a process in place to ensure that all key documents for grant-related initiatives are retained in the appropriate way and for the correct length of time. This should include documentary evidence of all key decisions taken in the development of the grant scheme, as well as invoices, receipts and accounting records provided by the grant recipient as detailed in the grant agreement. This should be on a shared drive and be accessible by key staff, auditors and the MHCLG Grants Centre of Excellence when required.

The MHCLG Grant Centre of Excellence team and Cabinet Office Government Grant Management Function (GGMF) colleagues are available to provide further support and advice on the Government Grant Functional Standards and best practice.

The new MHCLG Grants Community Hub also offers useful information and resources, including essential documents, templates, training and guidance to inform grant-making across the department. The Cabinet Office GGMF website also has a resources library which you are encouraged to access and review: Standard documents – Grant Centre of Excellence (civilservice.gov.uk)

On receipt of this letter, please sign it electronically and send a copy of the signed version to the MHCLG Grant Centre of Excellence team at Grants.Champion@communities.gov.uk This is to ensure the department complies with the requirement for departmental SRO letters for grants to be uploaded into the Government Grant Information System.

Yours sincerely,

Sarah Healey
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Nick Smallwood
Chief Executive Officer, Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Confirmation of acceptance of appointment

Confirm that I accept the appointment of Senior Responsible Owner for the Single Remediation Portfolio, including my personal accountability for implementation, as set out in the letter above.

Richard Goodman

7 November 2024