2-224 Commercial and Technical Support RIS Client

3.1.1. Our key objectives for this work are for the DfT RIS-Client team to have enhanced:

- capability to review business case and programme information from Highways England, so that we are better equipped to ask the right questions, correctly interpret the responses and so secure wider Government support for the project and programmes. This includes understanding of cost estimates/forecasts, delivery schedules and baselines;

- access to specialist technical knowledge and expertise that does not reside within the core team or the wider department, focussed on high risk and complex cases e.g. advice on cost estimation on specific schemes and on technical design and buildability issues, such as tunnelling;

- confidence in project delivery and outcomes. For example, allowing us to assure others in Government that we are comfortable that the broad scale of infrastructure proposed in major schemes is necessary to meet current design standards and traffic forecasts and that all key factors that could bring down costs and enhance the value for money of schemes have been considered;

- practices, principles and templates for its team's oversight of the RIS portfolio and Tier 1 (over £500m) schemes, covering governance planning risk management and change management. This will implement lessons learned since the start of RIS1 and ensure consistency of approach across future changes in the team;

- skills, learning and knowledge to undertake its role. We are looking to the CTS to explain and evidence the reasons for their advice and to assist the team in understanding where similar issues and principles could be applicable in other contexts/schemes.