The Preferred Scheme
The Scheme is being developed under the PRINCE2 Project Management System – this sees the project being advanced through nine discrete stages with stage gateways between each stage. For more information on the stages of the project please look at the website’s The Project page.
The ‘Preferred Scheme’ is a term used to describe the concept of the Scheme at the end of Project Stage 3 (Option Appraisal Process). It is only a snap-shot of the Scheme at that point in time so that the project team can define progress at that point, and more importantly so that it is possible to determine the scope for the next stage of the project – i.e. Stage 4 (The Outline Design).
The Preferred Scheme is determined at the end of the Options Appraisal Process (OAP) and might be termed the assumed best combination of individual flood risk reduction option through which the project may achieve the Project Objectives. For simplicity this is described as the Preferred Scheme. For more information on the Outline Design please visit the website’s Outline Design Page.
Has a Preferred Scheme been determined / approved?
The Preferred Scheme was approved by meeting of East Lothian Council Cabinet on 21th January 2020. For more information on this meeting please review the meeting documentation which is publically available on the Council’s website.
The achievement of a Preferred Scheme does not mean that the Scheme is designed or that a final decision has been taken on any of the options. An Outline Design has not been done on the options that sit behind the Preferred Scheme, therefore it is simply not possible to verify that any of the options are environmentally / technically / economically etc. feasible, and / or whether they would be deemed acceptable by all stakeholders and the people of Musselburgh. An understanding of this will only be available at the end of the Outline Design.
How will the Preferred Scheme reduce flood risk to Musselburgh?
At a flood engineering level the Preferred Scheme uses five different flood risk reduction techniques working together to achieve the desired level of flood protection for the town. The combined effect of all these components is required to provide the necessary standard of protection, and none are sufficient on their own. These five techniques are:
The project team identified these measures at the conclusion of the OAP as the determined best combination of catchment, sustainable, natural and traditional engineering interventions to provide the required standard of protection. Further detail of the main interventions is provided in two Schematic Overview Maps prepared to summarise the Preferred Scheme at the end of Stage 3.
Figure 1 Overview of Preferred Scheme
Figure 2 Overview of Preferred Scheme
The design is however not done and the Scheme is committed to continuing to evolve the design through a consultative process with the people of Musselburgh. To find out how you can be involved in the design please look at the website’s Consultation page.
Summary of the Options Appraisal Process (OAP)
The project team undertook a comprehensive OAP during Project Stage 3 (Options Appraisal Process). This process involved extensive consultation with regulatory officer, key stakeholders and the people of Musselburgh. For more information on the categories of consultation, please look at the website’s Outline Design page.
During this stage, in 2019, the project team held two major Public Consultations with the people of Musselburgh – a Call for Information on Historic Flooding Events in February 2019 and a Public Exhibition on the OAP Process in July 2019.
The project team are aware of the importance of providing full details on these two events from 2019. They will therefore both receive a dedicated new website page under the Consultation section when the new Local Consultation Area Group pages are added at the end of November 2021. Furthermore, at that point the project team will add further information on the OAP to this page.
We fully respect that you may be disappointed by the lack of this information at this time, however just now we are prioritising getting this website live rather than perfect and highlight that this information is linked to the new pages required for the Local Consultation Aras Group meetings. As such we respectfully ask you to be patient with us for a few more weeks until we conclude the consultation process and upload these new pages.
The full detail of the Preferred Scheme
At the end of the Options Appraisal Process Jacobs, in their role as the project’s Design Consultant, determined the preferred combination of flood risk management options – which was termed the ‘Preferred Scheme’. The conclusion of this process and the determination of the ‘Preferred Scheme’ was recorded through the ‘Preferred Scheme Report’ – this report is provided in full for your visibility and review – see below.
The report was considered by the Scheme’s Project Board and thereafter presented to East Lothian Council’s Cabinet in January 2020. The acceptance of the ‘Preferred Scheme’ by Cabinet brought to a conclusion Project Stage 3 (The Options Appraisal Process).
The report captures a major piece of work undertaken during 2018 and 2019 and captures the Project Team’s understanding at that moment in time: however it must be highlighted that this ‘Preferred Scheme’ was always a concept and this concept was derived from the data available to the Project Team at that point in time. The ‘Preferred Scheme’ should not be interpreted as the Scheme’s design as when it was determined a design had not yet been undertaken.