Hull-headquartered Sewell Group has been recognised as one of the country’s top providers of public sector support at this year’s Operational Public Private Partnership Awards, with three awards going to partnerships which the company is involved in.
The York Schools public private partnership, which Sewell Group is a part of alongside York City Council, won the Public-Private Sector Collaboration Award.
The York Schools partnership was also highly commended for the Innovation Award, for its work remodelling Hob Moor School to create more places for students with special educational needs and disabilities.
Sewell Group was also highly commended in the Team of the Year category, for its work with Hull’s Citycare to make health centres in the city more sustainable.
Judges praised the partnerships for demonstrating commitment and multi-stakeholder collaboration, taking real initiative, and being a valuable example of excellence in delivery.
Tim Wigglesworth, Partnerships Director at Sewell Group said: “It’s fantastic that our work with public private partnerships has been recognised at a national level. Coming just a week after the government announced they would be using public private partnerships to create 250 new Neighbourhood Health Centres across the country, the Operational PPP Awards show how public private partnerships can have huge benefits for communities across the country.”
Jill Richards, Head Teacher at St Barnabas Primary School, said: “The York Schools partnership has been a great asset to our school, offering support and high-quality resources that have had a tangible impact on our children’s learning. The partnership’s commitment to genuine collaboration – uniting schools and local authorities – has created a shared vision for success. This unified approach has allowed us to not only enhance our learning spaces but also ensure our school thrives, ultimately providing the very best outcomes for every child.”
York Schools is a successful long-term public private partnership which runs the design, build, maintenance and operation of four primary schools in the city of York. Partners are City of York Council, private partner Sewell Education York, Sewell Facilities Management and the four schools. Through the partnership, Hob Moor School in York has been remodelled to allow it to provide places for 32 extra students with special educational needs and disabilities.
Citycare is an NHS LIFT public private partnership supporting health and social care delivery across the Humber region. Citycare has developed and delivered 13 health and well-being facilities across Hull, as well as supporting service providers and commissioners in making the best use from their existing properties. It has recently undertaken sustainability work for its health centres in the city, changing thousands of light fittings to energy efficient LEDs, adding photovoltaic panels to three health centres, and undertaking voltage optimisation work. These projects will help save the NHS thousands of pounds a year in energy bills, and help it on its journey to net zero.