Case study 1

The importance of effective monitoring during delivery of a

contract

A small district council commissioned a large international company to run its

kerbside litter collection and litter picking in the borough.

After 12 months of running the service an operative was killed after being hit by a
lorry whilst working on a high speed dual carriageway.

Although the contractor had devised procedures for the operation based on the New
Roads and Streetworks guidance, the resulting investigation found inadequacies in
the working procedures that failed to address all the risks. It also found that
sufficient detail about the risk management procedures had not been shared with
the client. Finally, there was no record of monitoring or inspection by the
commissioning officer.

This case highlights the importance of:

i) the Client and contractors sharing all relevant information, and

ii) the Client having suitable procedures for monitoring and review of
operations carried out on their behalf

Doing this successfully means all partners work together to identify and rectify any
deficiencies in the risk management procedures.