Building the Education Revolution for the North Coast and New England Schools of NSW

February 2011 update from Marcus Moscos
Program Director for BER NSW

Tuesday, 1st February 2011:

Marcus Moscos

Welcome to The Reed Group's webpage about Building the Education Revolution (BER), a $16.2 billion national investment from the Australian Government in schools across the country as part of the Nation Building Economic Stimulus Plan. This investment was purpose designed to build learning environments to help children, families and communities participate in activities that will support achievement, develop learning potential and bring communities together.

It is 22 months since The Reed Group was announced as Managing Contractor for the New England and North Coast regions of NSW and we are now fast approaching the completion of the rollout. As I write, works are either complete or well underway at all schools within our regions.

Completed COLA at Tulloona Public School

Of the total 403 projects The Reed Group is responsible for; works are complete on 355 projects, leaving just 48 projects to go. At this time, it is anticipated that total completion of our program will be reached by the middle of 2011.

As Australia watched the devastating impacts of the Queensland flood disaster unfold across the state and into parts of northern New South Wales there are schools within our region that will experience delays to their works as a result of floodwaters closing, isolating or restricting access to sites. We also have a number of local contractors who are unable to get to schools as they personally affected by the floods, and the resulting delays and obstacles. The Reed Group is in contact with the main contractor and Principal for each affected school will keep them up to date with the latest information available.

As of the first day of Term 1 for 2011, many school communities were able to access and fully utilise their new facilities for the first time. A great deal of work has gone into making this possible by a number of local builders and subcontractors over the traditional Christmas and New Year break to ensure as many schools as possible have these facilities ready for the new school year. I acknowledge this huge effort, along with the efforts of my team who have continued to work through to keep the program moving.

Ebor Public School

The enthusiasm, commitment and dedication to deliver every one of our schools a new asset that adds value now, and into the future, is foremost in our mind. Given the size and scale of the BER program, it's no surprise that not much has been said or written about the administration or rollout of the program. As a business, The Reed Group fully appreciate the public focus on the program knowing the level of investment involved by the Australian Government, and we do not take lightly the responsibility of this job. It is important to remember the vast number of people involved in delivering this program. Beyond the appointed builders who are seen by Principals everyday on site, it's also jobs for truckies who deliver goods, crane operators who lift the buildings into position, local architects, arbourists and planners who work on the projects, fire experts to plan safety procedures and environmental consultants to map out the ecological impacts of the new buildings on local communities, just to name a few. There is also a strong flow-on benefit to many local non-construction related industries in these communities – local accommodation, services, car hire and catering businesses have been utilised by us and our counterparts throughout the program. The impact of the Economic Stimulus Package has been very real and tangible.

The Reed Group is committed to keeping our communities and stakeholders as up to date as possible. You can bookmark this page and use it as a primary source of current and relevant information for your area. If have a specific query you would like answered, I encourage you to send us an email to berenquiry@reedgroup.com.au or call us toll-free on 1800-18-7333.

Sincerely

Marcus Moscos
Program Director - BER NSW

The Reed Group

Associated PDF Press Release Documents

The Reed Group welcomes the establishment of the Federal Government's Commonwealth BER Implementation Taskforce Read more
Posted date: 15 April 2010

The Reed Group announces first successful tenderer for the New England region Read more
Posted date: 21 July 2009

The Reed Group announces first successful tenderer for the North Coast Region Read more
Posted date: 21 July 2009.

Information Forum Presentation for local suppliers and subcontractors Read more
Posted date: 16 July 2009

Managing Contractors for the New England and North Coast regions the Reed Group announce works on building the Education Revolution moving closer to a start date Read more
Posted date: 16 June 2009