Damning report found Bristol Beacon project was doomed as a cash catastrophe from outset
A report into the refurbishment of the Bristol Beacon has found that the project was potentially doomed as a cash catastrophe from the outset.
The lessons learned report ordered by auditors Grant Thornton found that no one was truly in charge of the project until it was too late.
The report was launched after the refurbishment’s costs almost tripled from £48m to £132m.
According to the findings the council failed to have effective arrangements in place to stop costs spiralling.
Independent consultants Arcadis, who authored the report, said the council ignored problems flagged by contractors working on the scheme about the state of the building,
It says the risks of costs spiralling were not properly assessed from the outset and there were no contingencies in place if more money was needed.
The report said: “Our findings indicate that the delivery of the Bristol Beacon was impacted by the inherent challenges associated with the complex stakeholder landscape as well as project specific factors, particularly those focused on project set up and initiation.”
A spokesperson for Bristol City Council said: “We’re grateful for the effort Arcadis have put into developing this report and to all those stakeholders who took time to inform this review. It’s clear from this report that the refurbishment of the Bristol Beacon was a project of huge scale and complexity, which experienced unpredictability throughout its lifetime.
“The recommendations put forward by the report authors will provide valuable insight for current and future project management across the council’s estate, particularly projects that involve multiple complex financial arrangements and heritage assets that are likely to be in worse condition than first predicted. Whilst we welcome the recommendations made to improve current and future project governance, resourcing and delivery, these elements are only part of the full story of the Beacon’s refurbishment.
“What falls outside the scope of this review is the impacts of multiple external factors including the global Covid pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, and social distancing measures. The latter days of the project were also impacted by substantial inflation of material and energy costs plus labour shortages in the sector as development restarted following the pandemic.
“These factors were reported on by the authority in January 2023. Learnings taken from this report and our experiences of delivering a major capital project in the face of significant external factors are being shared across the authority.”
