Network Rail Case Study.

>> Executive Summary

PL Projects supported Network Rail’s East of Leeds Alliance during a critical transition period, providing targeted risk management and commercial management expertise to stabilise governance, improve collaboration, and enable confident progression into delivery.

The Alliance, formed to deliver a major programme of rail infrastructure improvements between Leeds and York, brought together four organisations working under an alliance model for the first time. While the model offered significant long-term benefits, the programme initially faced challenges associated with mobilisation, cultural integration, and the adoption of new governance and control processes.

PL Projects was embedded within the programme to address weaknesses in risk management and resolve emerging commercial tensions between the Alliance partners. Risk governance had fallen behind during the transition, resulting in inconsistent oversight, outdated risk registers, and unreliable reporting. At the same time, differing approaches to cost estimating created misalignment between the client’s funding expectations and the contractors’ delivery realities, threatening progress into delivery.

Through hands-on engagement, PL Projects refreshed and strengthened the programme’s risk management framework, re-establishing ownership, improving reporting quality, and enabling informed, proactive decision-making. In parallel, structured commercial reviews and facilitated discussions helped align estimating assumptions, rebuild trust, and shift behaviours towards a collective “one team” approach.

As a result of PL Projects’ intervention, the Alliance achieved improved governance, clearer visibility of risk exposure, and agreement on a realistic and deliverable cost estimate. These outcomes enabled the successful delivery of Phase 1 of the Leeds to York electrification programme and provided a stronger foundation for collaborative working across the Alliance.

The client.

Network Rail is responsible for owning, operating, and developing Britain’s railway infrastructure, working in partnership with industry stakeholders to deliver safe, reliable, and efficient rail services across the UK.

The East of Leeds Alliance was established to deliver a major programme of infrastructure improvements aimed at enhancing capacity, performance, and passenger experience on the strategic rail corridor between Leeds and York. The Alliance brought together Network Rail and its delivery partners under a collaborative alliance model, designed to promote shared ownership, collective decision-making, and aligned commercial outcomes.

This approach represented a significant shift from traditional delivery models and required new ways of working, integrated governance arrangements, and a strong focus on collaboration across organisational boundaries. The programme was technically complex, operationally challenging, and highly visible, making robust risk management and effective commercial alignment critical to its success.

The challenge.

The East of Leeds Alliance was established to deliver a major programme of rail infrastructure improvements between Leeds and York, bringing together four organisations under a new alliance delivery model. While the model was designed to promote collaboration and shared ownership, it represented a significant shift from traditional ways of working and introduced early challenges as the programme transitioned from mobilisation into delivery.

PL Projects joined the programme during this transition period, at a point where the Alliance was still embedding new governance arrangements, aligning organisational cultures, and establishing consistent controls across all partners. Alongside the inherent technical and operational complexity of delivering works on a live rail network, the programme faced pressure to maintain momentum while adapting to these new structures.

During this period, elements of project governance did not receive the level of focus required. In particular, risk management processes had fallen behind. Risk registers and associated logs were not being reviewed consistently, mitigation actions were outdated, and ownership of risks had become unclear as roles evolved within the Alliance. As a result, reporting lacked consistency and did not provide a reliable or current view of the programme’s overall risk exposure. This reduced confidence in contingency forecasting and limited the programme’s ability to proactively manage emerging risks.

At the same time, the Alliance faced a significant commercial challenge. The client, acting on behalf of the funders, was focused on delivering the programme within cost estimates developed approximately two years earlier. Contractors, however, were concerned that these estimates no longer reflected the current scope, risk profile, and market conditions, and therefore posed a risk to successful delivery.

This misalignment created tension between the parties, delayed agreement on commercial positions, and threatened to stall progress into delivery. Without intervention, there was a risk that the collaborative intent of the Alliance would be undermined, impacting both delivery confidence and programme outcomes.

The Solution.

PL Projects was engaged to provide targeted risk management and commercial management support, embedding experienced consultants within the Alliance to stabilise governance, strengthen collaboration, and support the programme’s progression into delivery.

Risk Management

PL Projects began by undertaking a detailed review of the existing risk management framework, including the programme risk register and supporting logs. This review identified that many risks had not been revisited for a prolonged period, with outdated actions, inconsistent scoring, and unclear ownership reducing the effectiveness of risk oversight.

Working directly with individual risk owners, PL Projects facilitated focused review sessions to refresh each risk. Likelihood and impact assessments were reassessed, mitigation actions were updated to reflect current delivery plans, and clear accountability was re-established. This hands-on engagement helped reintroduce discipline into the risk process and reinforced shared responsibility across the Alliance.

Following this refresh, PL Projects facilitated a collaborative risk workshop involving risk owners and wider project stakeholders. The workshop enabled open discussion of programme challenges, identification of new and emerging risks, closure of risks that were no longer relevant, and confirmation of ownership. The outcome was a streamlined, robust risk register that accurately reflected the programme’s current risk exposure and actively supported decision-making.

To strengthen governance further, PL Projects worked closely with the Project Controls team to enhance risk reporting. The existing dashboard was reviewed and developed to clearly demonstrate changes in risk exposure over time. An automated reporting solution was implemented, linking Active Risk Manager (ARM) to Excel, providing clear visual insight into overall risk value, open and closed risks, outstanding actions, and review status. This significantly improved transparency and confidence in the data used by both project and senior leadership teams.

Commercial Management

In parallel, PL Projects provided commercial management support to address the misalignment between the Alliance partners’ estimating approaches. Recognising that the issue extended beyond technical differences, our consultants focused on facilitating constructive dialogue and rebuilding trust.

PL Projects led a series of structured estimating, risk, and schedule review sessions, creating a neutral and collaborative environment where assumptions could be challenged openly and evidence-based discussions could take place. These sessions helped the parties develop a shared understanding of scope, risk, and delivery constraints, shifting behaviours away from entrenched positions and towards collective problem-solving.

Over time, this approach fostered greater alignment across the Alliance, reinforcing the principles of the alliance model and enabling agreement on a realistic and deliverable estimate for Phase 1 of the programme. This alignment provided a stable commercial foundation, supporting confident progression into delivery.

The Outcome.

PL Projects’ intervention delivered a step change in governance, collaboration, and delivery confidence across the East of Leeds Alliance. By bringing project personnel together to jointly own and manage risk, the programme moved from fragmented oversight to a more transparent, disciplined, and proactive approach. This reinforced shared accountability across organisational boundaries and significantly improved communication and decision-making.

Risk management became embedded as a core part of programme governance rather than a compliance activity. A structured review cadence was established, with fortnightly reviews held with a core group of risk owners and wider monthly reviews involving the full project team. This ensured risks were actively monitored, emerging threats were identified early, and mitigation actions were implemented in a timely and coordinated manner.

Enhanced reporting provided leadership with a clear and reliable view of the programme’s risk profile. Monthly dashboards presented key metrics, including overall risk exposure, priority risks, trends over time, and recently closed risks. This improved the quality of contingency forecasting and gave senior stakeholders confidence that decisions were being made using accurate, up-to-date information.

From a commercial perspective, PL Projects’ support realigned the Alliance around a shared and realistic cost position. Constructive engagement and evidence-based reviews enabled the parties to reach agreement on the estimate for Phase 1 of the programme, removing a critical barrier to progress. Crucially, this estimate was ultimately achieved, validating the collaborative approach and demonstrating the effectiveness of robust commercial governance within the alliance model.

Overall, PL Projects helped the East of Leeds Alliance transition successfully from a period of uncertainty into controlled and effective delivery. Through strengthened risk management, improved reporting, and aligned commercial decision-making, the programme progressed with greater confidence and stability, supporting the successful completion of Phase 1 of the Leeds to York electrification programme.

Conclusion:

The East of Leeds Alliance successfully progressed through a critical transition period and into effective delivery through the introduction of strengthened risk management, improved governance, and aligned commercial decision-making. By stabilising core controls and reinforcing collaborative behaviours, the programme was able to overcome early challenges associated with alliance mobilisation, cultural integration, and differing commercial perspectives.

PL Projects’ intervention re-established robust risk governance, providing the Alliance with accurate, timely insight into programme risk exposure and enabling proactive management of emerging issues. Enhanced reporting and structured review cycles supported informed decision-making, improved contingency forecasting, and increased confidence at both project and senior leadership levels.

Commercially, the introduction of structured estimating, risk, and schedule reviews enabled the Alliance to align around a realistic and deliverable cost position. This alignment removed a key barrier to progress, reduced tension between parties, and reinforced the collaborative principles underpinning the alliance model.

As a result, the programme stabilised rapidly, delivery confidence was restored, and Phase 1 of the Leeds to York electrification programme was completed in line with the agreed estimate. The approaches implemented by PL Projects provided not only immediate benefits to the programme but also established a repeatable and scalable foundation for ongoing alliance working and future phases of delivery.

Why PL Projects: A Trusted Partner in Alliance Delivery.

PL Projects is a trusted delivery partner for organisations managing complex, high-risk infrastructure programmes. Our work with Network Rail’s East of Leeds Alliance demonstrates our ability to stabilise programmes during periods of transition, strengthen governance, and enable collaborative delivery within alliance environments.

Operating at the intersection of risk, commercial management, and programme controls, PL Projects supported the Alliance at a critical point, helping it move from mobilisation uncertainty into controlled, confident delivery while maintaining the collaborative intent of the alliance model.

Experts in Alliance-Based Infrastructure Delivery

The East of Leeds Alliance brought together multiple organisations under a new delivery model to deliver a major rail enhancement programme on a live operational network. PL Projects brought deep experience of alliance and partnership-based delivery, understanding both the technical and behavioural challenges associated with aligning multiple parties around shared outcomes.

By embedding within the programme, we helped the Alliance establish consistent ways of working, reinforce collective ownership, and maintain momentum during a period of organisational and cultural transition.

Strengthening Risk Governance in Complex Delivery Environments

Effective risk management is critical on large-scale infrastructure programmes, particularly during periods of change. PL Projects re-established robust risk governance by refreshing risk ownership, improving review discipline, and ensuring that risk information was accurate, current, and actively used to support decision-making.

Through collaborative risk workshops, structured review cycles, and enhanced reporting, we transformed risk management from a fragmented process into a core governance function that supported contingency forecasting, prioritisation, and proactive mitigation.

Commercial Alignment that Enables Progress

Commercial misalignment can quickly undermine collaboration and stall delivery within alliance models. PL Projects provided experienced commercial support to help bridge differing perspectives between the client and contractors, focusing on evidence-based discussion and shared understanding rather than positional negotiation.

By facilitating structured estimating, risk, and schedule reviews, we helped the Alliance align around a realistic and deliverable cost position. This removed a critical barrier to progress, reduced tension between parties, and enabled the programme to proceed into delivery with confidence.

Governance and Assurance for Senior Stakeholders

PL Projects understands the importance of providing clear assurance to senior leaders on high-profile infrastructure programmes. We supported the Alliance by improving the quality, consistency, and transparency of reporting, ensuring leadership had a clear view of risk exposure, trends, and commercial position.

Accessible dashboards, defined review forums, and clear escalation routes enabled timely, informed decision-making and reinforced confidence in the programme’s controls.

A Partner Focused on Confidence, Collaboration, and Delivery

The successful delivery of Phase 1 of the Leeds to York electrification programme reflects PL Projects’ focus on enabling confidence and collaboration in complex delivery environments. By combining hands-on risk management, enhanced governance, and pragmatic commercial support, we helped the East of Leeds Alliance transition from uncertainty into effective delivery.

PL Projects’ work on the East of Leeds Alliance demonstrates our ability to support alliance-based infrastructure programmes by stabilising governance, aligning stakeholders, and delivering outcomes that stand up to scrutiny – making us a trusted partner for organisations delivering complex rail and infrastructure change.