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The Development of a Policy on Architecture for Scotland: Report on the Public Consultation

11.0 THE PUBLIC SECTOR AS CLIENT

11.1 Respondents generally welcomed the emphasis given in the framework document to the role of the public sector as client in the promotion of good architecture and design. Respondents felt that the public sector’s approach to promoting excellence in design should be clearly evident at all levels of public investment. In particular, respondents endorsed the view that the public sector should lead by example through its own commissioning practice.

11.2 Various ways of demonstrating a commitment to good design quality in the built environment were suggested by respondents, including:

• prioritising design quality in procurement;
• adopting tendering procedures based on best value rather than the lowest cost;
• introducing greater flexibility in capital and revenue budgeting;
• placing greater emphasis on whole life costs and sustainability;
• providing training for project sponsors;
• demonstrating a clear commitment on access issues; and
• making greater use of appropriate architectural competitions.

11.3 Respondents were critical of the quality of design in building work carried out by those agencies and institutions which receive public funding. Health Board Trusts, Transport Authorities and Police Authorities were cited as examples. A recurring criticism of these agencies was their perceived failure to see design as a priority in development. It was suggested that the Scottish Executive should re-establish links with agencies and enterprise companies working in the public sector to ensure design quality is a positive requirement of procurement practice. There was also a call for more integrated working across agencies, for example on transport systems. Work on the Jubilee Line in London was cited as an example in this area where there had been a strong commitment to design quality. Some respondents felt that lessons could be learned from the approach taken to Lottery funded projects, where clear and audited criteria on design were used as conditions of grant. The quality of some of the projects funded by the Scottish Arts Council was felt to demonstrate the merit of this approach.

11.4 Many respondents expressed strong reservations about the use of PFI/PPP as the preferred means of procurement in the public sector. Respondents’ comments on PFI/PPP are recorded more fully under Topic 8.0. In summary, respondents suggested that the PFI/PPP approach militated against good design, failed to embrace the social and cultural goals of construction, encouraged a conservative and standardised approach to design and adversely affected the relationship between client, design team and the users. Whilst the more vociferous critics of PFI/PPP argued for its abandonment, others suggested that it should at least be reviewed, particularly with regard to its effectiveness in achieving good design.

11.5 Several respondents called for a greater use of design competitions in the public sector as a means of improving standards of building design. It was felt that this would increase transparency in the selection of consultants and give greater opportunity to a wider range of firms to work in the public sector. Respondents noted that competitions were used as a matter of course for public projects in Germany and Finland and that, as a consequence, a high standard of design in the public sector had been achieved in those countries. Respondents suggested that similarly effective patronage by the public sector in Scotland would encourage a growth of confidence amongst Scottish designers.

11.6 A number of respondents suggested that a non-affiliated panel or body should be established with the remit of reviewing and vetting proposals for all major publicly financed buildings in Scotland.

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