Recommendation 2

The poor condition of some property and the failure to maintain it is regularly affecting the provision of key public services. Risks relating to property condition have materialised, taking property out of use and impacting functionality of properties such as prison cells, law courts, schools, hospitals, defence estate and museums. Over 4,100 cells closed due to dilapidation and an average of 5,400 clinical service incidents occur in the NHS each year due to property and infrastructure failures. These are localised incidents where the level of disruption results in the organisation temporarily or permanently losing its ability to deliver services, which can include closing departments, suspending services and cancelling appointments. The government estate is potentially at further risk from issues that have yet to emerge, like the emergency repair works that needed to be carried out to address the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) and asbestos across the government estate. RAAC is less durable concrete that can seriously risk the safety of buildings where it is present, whereas asbestos poses a health risk. Departments are required to prepare Strategic Asset Management Plans (SAMPs) to document their planned approach to the maintenance of their estates, as well as the management of risks. At the moment, not all plans include comprehensive risk analysis and mitigation. These plans are expected to consider future risks, and the OGP is encouraging departments to take a longer view of their portfolio in their SAMPs going forward. recommendation a. The Cabinet Office should require departments to include explicit analysis of the risks across their portfolio in their updated SAMPs. b. The Cabinet Office should update the Committee by April 2026 on how it is supporting departments to minimise the risks posed by poor maintenance on their estate. 5