POTHOLE and street light repairs in Wirral are set for a big change with the multimillion-pound contract currently held by BAM Nuttall (BAMN) coming to an end.

It means from October 1, the 1,200km of roads worth £2.48bn will be back under Wirral Council’s control – ending the four-year deal with the construction firm.

But that doesn’t mean an end for contracted jobs in the borough, and most of the work done on behalf of the council will still actually be commissioned after that date – a 65/35 split.

Highways contracts in Wirral are worth £6m a year, and cover both routine/reactive work such as street light and pothole repairs, as well as structural and planned work like road surfacing.

According to a report to be discussed by the audit risk and management committee on Monday, the former – worth £4m a year – will still be commissioned to outside workers. The latter – the smaller reactive jobs worth around £2m a year – will now be done by the council’s delivery services, support by some external sub-contracts 'where necessary.'

The document said: “This is work that was traditionally undertaken by resources directly employed by the main contractor and crucial to enabling the council to discharge its statutory responsibilities as a Highway Authority.”

Client-based functions such as highway inspections and work scheduling will continue to be carried out and controlled by the council, it added.

The document also said in terms of staffing, 25 BAMN employees will be eligible to transfer over to council employment.

With the current base of BAMN being the Prenton Depot – a building leased by Wirral Council – it will still be used as the operational HQ from October onwards.