Scheme will generate ‘£1.7m annual savings’

PULBIC service organisations across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire are to benefit from £2,485,000 through the Invest to Save scheme starting in 2015-16, Finance and Government Minister Jane Hutt has announced.

The funding will save a total of £1,765,000 a year at six organisations, which are among ten across Wales which will benefit from a total of £5m through the Invest to Save scheme during 2015-16 leading to annual estimated savings of £3m for public sector organisations.

The schemes are:

• Hywel Dda University Health Board will receive £281,000 that will produce £228,000 annual savings fie a scheme to replace all medical infusion pumps across all of their sites. The pumps control the supply of fluids and drugs to patients and after their introduction the machines will be universal to the health board. This will not only generate savings from the Board negotiating cheaper consumables but will also reduce the clinical risk presented by staff having to deal with different types of equipment.
• Powys Teaching Health Board will receive £277,000 for Children’s Continuing Care that will save £309,000 a year. The funding will allow the health board to become less reliant on private nursing agencies to deliver the clinical element of many of their Children’s Continuing Care packages. The project involves delivering care through investment in the local Welsh NHS service and the use of third sector service providers.
• Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Services will receive £280,000 for its Safe as Houses Project that will generate annual savings of £765,000. The scheme aims to reduce hospital admissions, crime and ambulance service costs. Home safety will concentrate on reducing the risk of falls, heating and the general condition of properties to ensure that they are not detrimental to the health of the occupants. The crime reduction element comes in via security assessments of properties and the provision of advice.
• Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Services will also receive £165,000 to convert 57 stations in Mid and West Wales to LED lighting, generating annual savings of £55,000
• Carmarthenshire County Council is to receive £1,407,000 to contribute to the Council’s aim of replacing 12,000 traditional sodium street lights. The project will reduce C02 emissions by approximately 1,000 tonnes per annum. The cash releasing benefits of the project are £400,000 a year which includes reduced energy consumption costs and maintenance.
• The National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth will receive £75,000 for the installation of 200 Photovoltaic Cells on the roof of the Library. The estimated generating capacity of these panels is 37,000 kWh which will significantly reduce the Library’s reliance on grid electricity and produce annual savings of £8,000 per annum.

The successful Invest to Save fund helps public sector organisations deliver improvements to frontline services across Wales and generate cash efficiency savings.

Jane Hutt said: “I am delighted to be able to announce today that ten new projects across Wales will benefit from a total investment of £5m through our innovative Invest to Save scheme.

“At a time of increasing budgetary pressures, these projects are expected to generate £3m of vital savings per annum for public sector organisations and improve efficiencies.

“This round of funding, as well as including a range of energy efficiency projects, will also see a number of preventative investment projects which have the potential to make a significant impact on public spending and the lives and well being of communities the length and breadth of the country. I look forward to hearing their progress over the coming months.”

The Minister also encouraged the Welsh public service to make proposals for the next round of Invest to Save, worth approximately £20 million in 2016-17.