For those who don’t know me, I’m Neil, your friendly neighbourhood property consultant and Chartered Building Surveyor.
I am the managing director of Orange Peel Consultancy, and I specialise in public sector procurement, dispute avoidance and resolution.
I chair a strategic core group with the Look Ahead property team, and three construction firm partners, AD Construction, 1st Stop and Gilmartins. We meet regularly to discuss how repairs and planned works are delivered to our portfolio of properties to ensure they are improved and maintained to a good standard for our residents.
It’s my role to act as a “critical friend”, acting independently and working with both Look Ahead and the contractors to ensure that relationships are strong and that the team is focused on delivering good quality work to Look Ahead’s properties. I am a qualified mediator and adjudicator too, which means I can help resolves any disputes that may arise, but also, promote collaborative working in the team to avoid disputes occurring in the first place.
By and large, everything gels smoothly; we have great working relationships after all. Earlier this year, we fundraised for Look Ahead by participating in a sponsored walk organised by the London Homeless Collective. Representatives from each of the contractors participated and I did too, although I only took on the shorter 5k walk! In addition, AD Construction is hosting a golf day in September, with all proceeds from the day going to Look Ahead. This is something that has come out of the collaborative approach to delivering social value through these contracts.
A group of volunteers including Neil (back row fourth from the left) and staff from Look Ahead's construction firm partners gather to take on the London Walk to raise funds for Look Ahead.
There’s a lot to think about when it comes to the kinds of projects we work on, the brief of the commissioning authority, the ins and outs of the works themselves. Everyone has their own approach, and disagreements can arise at times, it’s natural. We have in place, an early warning mechanism and dispute avoidance process which is a robust and transparent process for helping to “nip in the bud” any emerging dispute. This approach says a lot about the way Look Ahead manage their relationships.
This matters, because there is so much that we can achieve together for the people Look Ahead supports, who belong at the heart of our work.
Recently for instance, Look Ahead, AD Construction and the local council teamed up to renovate a bungalow in Hertfordshire. Look Ahead will soon use the property to offer a homely and bespoke supported living service designed for an individual with a learning disability. The service gives the customer the opportunity to be part of the community after a long-term hospital placement, and to access meaningful activities within the local area and beyond.
A newly renovated bungalow that will soon deliver a supported living service for an adult with a learning disability.
Ensuring processes like this run smoothly is crucial. The sooner renovations are completed, the sooner a person can move in and start a better chapter in their life.
All these activities signify that Look Ahead is willing to listen, learn and collaborate which in turn helps support better customer outcomes too. It’s a partnership I’m proud of. If I had to sum up Look Ahead’s work in a sentence, I’d say: “property done properly.”
