Tailored and customer-centric CIF services

Warneford Consulting provides a Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) bid management service, based on a no-win no fee basis.

Providing director-level service from conception to completion, Warneford Consulting has secured significant and estate-transforming successes for schools across the country.

Competition between the 5,5000 eligible academy schools to secure funding from the £500 million pot, is always fierce. Applicants must meet the DfE criteria and the bid must stand out from the crowd. That means choosing the right partner to advise on the project as well as preparing and submitting the submission is crucial.

We also support schools with Urgent Capital Support (UCS) bid management for projects that fall outside of the CIF window.

Our approach

Our services are provided on a no-win no-fee basis, with fees recovered through the DfE-awarded projects. As such we are implicitly motivated to ensure the correct project is selected for submission, is robustly prepared, and its delivery is a success.

So, how do you ensure your CIF bid stands out from the crowd?

In partnership and consultation with our clients and supply chain partners, we assess each potential project. This gives us time to understand and demonstrate the project need, the risk of school closure, and the current impact on the school’s ability to provide its core curriculum.

Our specialist supply chain undertakes innovative, targeted surveys, to capture the detailed evidence required to demonstrate life-expired key fabric and components failure.

Itemised cost plans are produced and benchmarked against contemporary rates. With an established UK network of quality-assured, accredited, and school-sector-experienced contractors – covering all building disciplines – we guarantee a robust tendering process that evidences the best value to the DfE.

Finally, Project Plans are developed in consultation with the school, ensuring staff and pupil safety and operational continuity throughout the project.

To discuss how Warneford Consulting can help your school adopt a more strategic approach to securing vital capital funding, please contact us.

CIF Services: Questions & Answers

How does a trust determine whether their school and project meet the ESFA’s qualifying Condition Improvement Fund criteria?
- Any academy trust with up to 5 schools/3,000 pupils are eligible to submit 2 bids per school.
- The ESFA publish guidance that highlights their hierarchy of project needs and indicates which the type of projects that are prioritised for funding
- The fund is aimed at ensuring that a school’s built environment and its teaching and learning spaces are safe, warm and dry.
- The volume of applications outstrips the number of awards by a ratio of circa 3:1 – so only those submissions that meet the funding criteria and evidence the greatest and most urgent of need will be funded.
How Much Does It Cost To Prepare And Submit A CIF Bid?
- CIF bid consultants and their supply chain work on a no win, no fee arrangement, with their professional fees being recovered through the ESFA’s funding award if the bid is successful.
- The specialised and time-consuming nature of CIF bid and project management is best delivered through experienced consultants, increasing the schools’ chances of success and ensuring that your time is not diverted away from school operations.
- The school can contribute to the success of the bid by providing supporting.condition, compliance and expenditure data and evidence of project need and by facilitating access for surveys and collection of evidence to support the application.
- The Project Cost section, which is weighted at 25% of the overall bid marks invites schools to make a financial contribution. Crucially, the scale of contribution has a significant impact on the chances of funding success.
What Does The Process Entail?
- Bid preparation begins with a one-to-one meeting with the school, to discuss the project need and understand in detail the impact that this has on the school. Existing school information is collected such as floor plans, condition, compliance, data and expenditure records.
- Depending on the quality of data and evidence held by the school, further targeted surveys may be required to better understand, quantify, and demonstrate the project need and develop an appropriate specification.
- Building condition and specialist surveys are co-ordinated by the CIF consultant to ensure that the requisite information is captured to support the bid.
- Bid preparation includes a robust pre-tendering exercise to provide trustees with visibility of project costs, ahead of their sign off for the investment.
- The bid is prepared and submitted in line with ESFA guidance and by the CIF deadline, traditionally in mid-December.
- Schools are provided with adequate time to review the quality and content of the bid prior to its submission.
What can I learn from the scores and feedback as to why the bid was unsuccessful?
The ESFA publishes the outcome of all CIF bids in the preceding year, typically April-May, along with the allocated scores and feedback on each of the 3 sections of each bid to every school. Marks are allocated and weighted as follows;
- Project Need: marked out of 20 and weighted at 60% of the overall award
- Project Cost: marked out of 15 and weighted at 25% of the overall award
- Project Planning: marked out of 15 and weighted at 15% of the overall award
What are the typical reasons for unsuccessful bids?
- Insufficient financial contribution made towards project costs by the school
- Lack of evidence or insufficient detail to demonstrate Project Need
- Poor market testing processes or submission of rates above the ESFA’s benchmark costs
- Non-specific or generic risk assessments and options appraisals, resulting in an unsatisfactory project planning response
Am I contractually tied to the last CIF Management Consultant I engaged?
- Unless you have signed a specific contract, you are free to engage a new/ different CIF consultant each year. You can also engage multiple consultants to bid different projects each year on your behalf.
- The scores and EFSA evaluator’s feedback provide a fair and transparent insight into why previous submissions were unsuccessful.
- If you are unsuccessful, you should ask to meet with your CIF consultant to go through the feedback in detail with them so that you can decide whether you remain confident in their services in respect of any future submissions.
What should we look for in a CIF consultant?
- As when engaging any professional, the consultant must be able to win your confidence and trust.
- You can determine their credentials and previous performance by asking for evidence of previous CIF successes and client references.
- You should also seek to understand the level of time, and commitment the consultant is prepared to invest in your bid(s). Relevant questions include:
  - Will I receive director-level point of contact throughout the preparation, submission, and delivery of the project?
  - How much time will the consultant spend understanding the specific needs of the school?
  - Is your bid just another one of hundreds of others being prepared that year?
  - Will your bid be afforded the care and attention required to ensure it stands out from the thousands of other submissions?

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Testimonials

I have enjoyed working with Warneford Consulting, preparing and submitting CIF applications. Tim will tell you what is and what is not possible and go the extra mile to ensure any bid is as robust as it can be.

Chris Honey

Trust Facilities Manager

I was most impressed with the speed with which Tim and his supply chain partners surveyed and produced reports in support of a number of the trust’s schools CIF submissions. Tim’s evident experience and knowledge is of great value to the trust and we look forward to continue working with him. He is very client focused and highly dependable.

David Harrison

Chief Operating Officer

Tim’s knowledge and expertise, especially on the technical side of preparing our CIF bid, was amazing. Tim knows how to source the best consultants and contractors to ensure that we have the best chance of securing a successful bid. The attention to detail that is given to the bid is phenomenal and it’s all done in a polite and professional manner. Tim enthuses positive relationships between his clients and potential contractors.

Nirmala Kumari

Trust Business Manager

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