From shoddy buildings to bed shortages, inadequate staffing levels to poor working conditions, staff have almost nothing good to say about the new PFI hospitals.

In a report for UNISON by John Lister of London Health Emergency, 'The PFI Experience: voices from the frontline', there is constant mention of poor design leading to offices which are too small, corridors which are too narrow, doors which don’t stay open long enough for porters to get trolleys through them, wards whose design makes it hard for nurses to keep an eye on patients.

The brand new, state-of-the-art Carlisle hospital has stories so horrifying they’re hard to believe.

Raw sewage was found to be backing up in the drains beneath the department where all the instruments for theatre are sterilised.

The report says "it appears the building contractors got away with it: the Trust had to pay”.

In addition the porters were told to clean the toilets, and then serve meals, drinks, make toast for patients. Without being allowed time to change their overalls, this could present a serious infection risk, especially to vulnerable patients.

In order to make profits out of the hospitals, it’s clear that the contractors are cutting corners on staffing levels.

It is that since the Carlisle hospital opened in 1999, numbers of cleaners and porters have roughly halved, though the company is still being paid the same amount by the Trust as the facilities provider.

“Across the whole hospital there are only four cleaners to do all that needs to be done at night," sayd the UNISON convenor for the hospital. "Is the hospital clean? No.”

But the contractor is still making its profit margins.

Two years ago, the multinational WS Atkins won a £100 million five-year contract with Southwark to improve its failing education system.

WS Atkins had no experience in education, though its then chief executive, Robin Southwell, formerly of BAE Systems, tellingly said education was a “target rich environment”.

But he has since resigned, WS Atkins failed to make profits out of Southwark schools, and last September 80% of the company’s share value was wiped out. So last month they pulled out of the Southwark contract.

As there was no contingency plan in place for such an eventuality, staff and pupils will certainly bear the brunt of the chaos.

Meanwhile, for want of any better ideas, the council and the Department for Education and Skills are putting together a tender for another company to run the schools for a year.

“It’s been appalling,” says branch secretary John Mulrenan. “When it came to light that 80% of the company’s share value had been wiped out, it was immediately clear that cuts were being made from the education services to bail out the rest of the company.

There was a freeze on recruitment, with huge numbers of vacancies, including educational social workers, unfilled. Bills went unpaid.

The council had to underwrite the utility bills because Atkins hadn’t paid them.

Since last September it’s been a downward spiral from a very low base.”

Atkins has blamed its withdrawal on the fact that Southwark altered the terms of the deal, making it no longer financially viable.

The council claims it was only acting on government guidance. The government claims they were only guidelines.

But Local Education Authorities have to deal with these kinds of complexities on a day-to-day basis, without the privilege of being able to just walk away from a difficult situation.

“Atkins brought no benefit to the children of Southwark, so in that sense we’re happy to see them go,” says John Mulrenan. “But it’s appalling that they can just abandon the contract. They are not accountable to the local community. They are only accountable to their shareholders.”