In this edition of the Government Property Group newsletter – we launch our revamped website, provide an update on the universal design guidelines and introduce our new assurance function.

Government Property Group website launch!   

We’re very excited to announce that the new Government Property Group website is now live. While it may look visually the same, our property content has been completely refreshed and reorganised to make it as easy as possible for website users to find the advice they need.

All of GPG’s useful and informative guidance remains, packaged neatly and given its own dedicated online space.

If you want to see the hard work our property, content and digital experts have put in, you can visit any time.

Universal design guidelines - update  

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the Universal design guidelines. The responses received showed a high level of support for the guidelines. We’re expecting to publish the new guidelines on our website in June 2023.

The guidelines will help agencies create or upgrade a range of personal facilities in their workplaces. They are inclusive of disabled people, transgender, gender diverse and gender non-conforming communities.

The Universal design guidelines apply to:

• toilets, showers and change rooms
• parenting rooms and health (sick) rooms
• multi-purpose wellbeing spaces (that is, for prayer/karakia or quiet reflection)
• bike parking.

We've made several changes to the guidelines, as a result of your feedback.

• Provided target numbers to ensure flexibility in applying the guidelines.
• Adjusted the target ratio of gender-specific to all-gender facilities.
• Outlined the expectation required for agencies to incorporate these guidelines into projects.
• Removed technical specifications to make the guidelines simpler and more strategic. The detailed information will be included in the Building Performance Specification (BPS). Please see below for more information on the BPS.

We recognise incorporating guidelines is not always straight forward and we’re here to support you. If you’d like to know more and have projects underway or starting soon, please email the Planning and Advisory team.

Government office accommodation programme update

Bowen House

Bowen House on Lambton Quay in Wellington will set the standard as a unified public service workplace.

Work continues on the fitout design for Bowen House, which will allow us to showcase another example of agencies working collaboratively together. We’re still working through which agencies will occupy the building and how we will deliver services to those agencies and visitors to the shared working spaces.

The building will allow us to demonstrate:

• workspace and technology solutions that work across agencies
• a diverse and inclusive workplace
• a strong cultural narrative that weaves its way through the building and reinforces a unified Public Service.

Building Performance Specifications (BPS)

The building performance specification (BPS) is a baseline set of defined building specifications to help government agencies work with current and prospective landlords to create a modern, healthy, safe and environmentally responsible workplace.

Last year we began a review of the BPS document to create a more flexible and user-friendly document. We‘ve engaged several technical experts experienced in using the BPS from both tenant and landlord perspective to support us in this work.

We’ll also be seeking feedback from key stakeholders. If you have someone in your agency who is familiar with this document and wants to contribute to this important piece of work please contact us at info@gpg.govt.nz.

Government Property Portal -

new operational dashboard coming and the asset and facilities modules are live

The Government Property Portal (GPP) is our property management system designed to help agencies manage their property portfolios more effectively.

Latest updates:

• At the end of May we'll be upgrading the system to introduce new operational dashboards on the homepage. This will provide your agency with a consolidated overview of the operational information regarding your properties. This will make it easier to see how your portfolio is performing. 
  
• Asset and facilities management modules are both fully operational and accessible to all agencies.  If you are interested in learning more about these modules, please email us.

A reminder about the Vacancy Dashboard

This dashboard allows agencies to advertise any vacant space they may have to their fellow agencies. If you would like to advertise vacant space remember to:

• change the "Group Std Code" to "vacant" if you want to advertise available space
• make sure you have a financial year on the Group
• make sure you provide a contact detail (on the contacts tab) for an agency to get in touch.

If you have questions, please email us.

Property data initative 

Recently we asked agencies to review and update their property data in the Government Property Portal.

Thank you to those who took the time and made a concerted effort to bring their property data up to date and responded to our questions regarding your future property needs.

We really appreciate the time you took to complete this request. Your data helps inform the future direction of government office accommodation and allows us to forecast needs appropriately.

There are still a number of gaps in some agency’s property data.  Agencies are required to keep their property data accurate and up to date whenever they make changes to their portfolio, for example renewing a lease or completing a rent review. This is required by Cabinet for mandated agencies.

This initiative has illustrated how important it is to have an accurate picture of our government portfolio. We use this information to report back to Government and other stakeholders. It is critical in assisting us to develop the strategic direction for the government portfolio. For those agencies that haven’t provided all the necessary information, we will be in touch shortly.

We are intending to share a snapshot with agencies about what the data update has revealed, including where agencies sit in regards to the portfolio as we finalise our portfolio planning.

If you have any further questions, then please get in touch, either speak to your GPG property portfolio specialist or email us.

Government Property Group assurance function 

Last year we established a property assurance function to provide assurance across the government property system. We will work in partnership with agencies, providing advice and supporting capability building.

Our aim is to help agencies implement a fit for purpose assurance approach for their property investments. A planned assurance approach can improve the effectiveness of property projects, governance processes, risk management and internal controls.

The GPG assurance framework consists of 10 key workstreams including:

• governance
• project assurance
• risk management
• advisory and support
• financial management           
• quality assurance
• compliance
• performance reporting
• IT assurance
• research and valuation

What are the benefits of assurance? 

• Provide agencies with confidence that government property investments are managed effectively and can deliver expected outcomes.
• Identify any issues that may affect the property system and present practical recommendations to ensure the successful delivery of projects.
• Improved governance and risk management.
• Transparent decision-making.

How can we help you now

The GPG Assurance team is developing a range of frameworks, guidelines and tools to support agencies. In addition, the team is available to support agencies with specialised advisory services and system wide insights.  

We will keep you updated as the assurance function continues to develop.

If you would like to find out more or need assurance advise, email the GPG Assurance team. 

Quickfire updates

• Save the date! Wednesday 21 June, 10am- Property Knowledge Hour – Health and safety in the workplace, including H&S by Design (HSbD). Join us to learn more about how we can make our workplaces safe, including in the design process. Register for the webinar.
• Property consultancy services - evaluators wanted - The current property consultancy services contract expires in March 2024. We've completed early market engagement and received positive feedback from 82 suppliers. Once we've reviewed all feedback, we will develop the request for proposal (RFP) and evaluation plan.
  
  We're now looking for evaluators from property and procurement teams of eligible government agencies to support the planning and delivery of the RFP process.
  
  This is a valuable opportunity for your agency to get involved in evaluating and selecting providers to deliver your agency's property needs.
  
  If you're interested in being an evaluator or want to know more about the RFP process, email the PCS project team.
• Hub opportunities near you - We are keen to make sure everyone is aware of the exciting regional hub opportunities we are working on. These Hubs will provide agencies with the opportunity to co-locate in cities and regions throughout Aotearoa.
  
  We will be reaching out to agencies shortly about Hub opportunities around the motu to discuss if you're interested in working from one of these locations.
  
  We will be contacting you shortly to arrange a time to take you through the opportunities in more detail.
  
  In the meantime, if your agency is interested in co-locating in any of the hubs, email the Programme team.

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