Challenge
The UK Government announced a capital grant Fund for smaller abattoirs in England in February 2023, anticipating the Fund would help maintain a productive and efficient smaller abattoir sector, support the availability of local high-quality produce, and promote local rural economies.
Following Ministerial announcement and the approval of the funding package by the Farming and Countryside Partnership, it fell to the Policy leads in the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) Red Meat and Dairy team to deliver the scheme in what was a very tight timeframe.
The team faced significant implementation hurdles. They were new to formal Project Management and sought a framework to effectively manage the delivery and launch across multiple stakeholders. They required a "light touch" approach due to limited time and budget constraints, while still ensuring robust planning and reporting capabilities.
Solution
Methods implemented a streamlined yet effective Project Management approach by:
- creating a new Steering Group structure for rapid progress reviews and decision-making, comprising the Senior Leadership Team and subgroup leads across Governance, Delivery, Communications, Finance, and Legal. They established clear Terms of Reference and implemented weekly meetings with structured protocols
- introducing essential Project Management tools including a Plan on a Page, detailed MS Project Plan, RAIDD logs, and Action Trackers. They established a weekly reporting system to the Senior Responsible Officer and provided a Principal Consultant and Project Support officer to manage the service. The team developed a comprehensive PMO Handbook aligned with Defra public sector standards and provided additional resources for stakeholder management and communications planning
- focusing on knowledge transfer throughout the implementation to the Policy Team, ensuring they understood Project Management fundamentals and could utilise the tools effectively for future initiatives. This flexible resourcing model allowed them to address new requirements with specialist resources while maintaining continuity.
Impact
- The Smaller Abattoir Grant Fund successfully launched on December 13th, 2023, meeting the critical deadline.
- Executive Leadership Team (ELT) gained confidence in Programme Management and delivery capabilities.
- Policy Team acquired valuable Project Management skills and practical tools for future initiatives.
- The "light touch" approach proved highly effective, receiving positive feedback from both ELT and Policy Team.
- Established sustainable Project Management practices through knowledge transfer and documentation.
- Created lasting improvement in the Policy Team's ability to deliver new initiatives.
- Successfully implemented a governance framework that enhanced visibility and control while maintaining efficiency.
- Demonstrated the effectiveness of Methods' flexible resourcing model in meeting evolving project needs.
- Set a foundation for future policy initiatives through improved Project Management capabilities within the team.
The project not only achieved its immediate goals but also left a lasting positive impact on the organisation's Project Management capabilities.