Market Place public realm, Great Yarmouth

Greyfriars Project Management is currently leading on the client-side project management for Great Yarmouth Borough Council’s Market Place public realm works. This £4.3m heritage project to redevelop Great Yarmouth’s Market Place aims to sympathetically improve the functionality of the space whilst being sensitive to the location’s heritage.

The project, which is supported by the Future High Street Fund, will deliver improved public realm and landscaping to complement the historic setting and make the market brighter and more inviting.

The redevelopment in the heart of the historic Market Place will support the wider town centre economy and forms part of Great Yarmouth Borough Council’s town centre regeneration project that will revive the high streets as a vibrant economic, cultural and community hub.

Working on behalf of the client, Great Yarmouth Borough Council, Greyfriars Project Management is providing project and programme management expertise and has direct responsibility for RIBA Stage 1 – 7. We are using a proven methodology developed through our significant experience delivering projects from inception to completion.

On project initiation, and in line with PRINCE2 practice, we worked with our client to produce a project initiation document (PID). A carefully considered PID is a crucial starting point to a project and can often determine a scheme’s success. Without one, a project can quickly lose direction and risk scope creep and budget / time overruns.

The PID establishes clear governance and reporting arrangements for the project and defines the roles and responsibilities of those involved including at project board and strategic levels, aided by terms of reference for all meetings. Project scope and communications and stakeholder protocols were also established.

Working closely with our client, we have identified key internal stakeholders and used a series of workshops to develop a robust set of objectives for benchmarking the project as it moves through each RIBA Stage. An interactive ‘Miro’ board is used to capture ideas, issues and constraints during the workshops and allows attendees to access and add additional information. This is an important record that can be referred to as the project progresses.

Greyfriars Project Management understands the importance of financial control and reporting and has a range of project finance tools to monitor and forecast spend profiles on the project. We work proactively with the Great Yarmouth Borough Council finance officers to ensure actual and forecasted spends are accurately monitored and that financial rules, regulations and procedures are followed. We understand how important financial reporting is and adapt our tools to suit the project and reporting requirements. Our team has significant experience in project finance monitoring and controls and supports the Market Place project by providing reports to assist in grant draw down.

Greyfriars Project Management conducts whole life cycle costing analyses throughout a project to maximise cost and time savings. For example, the wider client team is being engaged to develop a palette of materials that will meet the project’s aesthetic, functionality and future maintenance needs. The process is also used to identify the most efficient construction techniques and effectively challenge the construction issue drawings.

The project plans are currently out to public consultation to ensure they meet the needs of residents, visitors, businesses, and community organisations that use the town centre. Work is expected to start in autumn 2022.