News

House builder Redrow has walked away from talks to merge with Bovis Homes after an initial approach was rejected by the southern house builder. This morning Redrow said it would not be in its shareholders’ best interests to increase its proposal above the level which was rejected by the board of Bovis. Its share and cash offer would have given Bovis a 32.4% stake in a merged house building business. The move leaves Galliford Try as the last remaining bidder still in discussions although its initial approach was also rejected by the Bovis board. Galliford Try’s current offer values Bovis at £1,191m and would make Galliford Try the 52.25% majority shareholder in the merged group. Under City takeover rules the firm now has until April 9 to…

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Bouygues/Laing O’Rourke has got the go-ahead to start pouring concrete on the first key structures for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station. The Office for Nuclear Regulation has approved first structural concrete for the ‘technical galleries’ of the power station. These are a series of underground reinforced concrete structures to be located beneath the site and some above-ground structures, connecting services such as cooling water and electricity to the two reactor units and other structures. Up to now the on-site construction activities have been limited to preparatory and enabling works, including the construction of several concrete batching plants and aggregate stores. Following First Nuclear Safety Concrete, the site workforce will grow rapidly to several thousand. Mike Finnerty, Director of ONR’s new reactors…

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Plans for two major new office blocks at the Newcastle Science Central site have moved forward with the appointment of Ryder Architecture. The site covers 24 acres Ryder will now work up designs for the first 100,000 sq ft building which will be followed by a similar sized second block. The office towers will form the gateway to the £350m Newcastle Science Central site which is being developed by Legal & General Capital, Newcastle City Council and Newcastle University. Sir Robert McAlpine picked-up the latest job on the site for the £29m Learning and Teaching Centre project for the University which is due to start in September. McAlpine also finished the flagship Core building on the site more than two years ago while Bowmer & Kirkand…

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Developer Peel has unveiled plans for the next phase of its vast Liverpool Waters scheme, releasing a raft of new construction plots. New Central Docks plan includes buildings up to 44 storeys high The firm said the eight new plots in the Central Docks area were attracting interest from investors and developers, with several groups visiting Liverpool to see the opportunities on offer first hand. It has already signed up a developer for a residential scheme and expects more than £300m of construction work to be underway across the historic docklands site by the end of the year. The Central Docks neighbourhood forms part of the £5bn scheme to transform 150 acres in the biggest regeneration project in the history of Liverpool. Peel has already agreed terms…

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The Classic Barn Company Our Background Our family business specializes in crafted English oak framed buildings, our business has grown from a small acorn to a grand old oak tree by simply sticking to good business ethics. Our ethos is simple. To create beautifully detailed oak framed barns that become renowned for their superior quality. Support this with a service that is both transparent and efficient to ensure each client receives excellent overall value, enabling our good name to be passed on. This ethos has won us numerous awards, appearances on TV and various publications. Campaign “The Best of British, facing Brexit”. So Brexit is on its way and apparently we all have a challenge. No one knows what effects are on the horizon but one things …

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Bovis Homes has confirmed it is in ongoing talks with Galliford Try about a possible merger. Bovis said that it has received proposals from Galliford Try and Redrow about a potential merger. Both initial approaches have been rebuffed but Bovis is still talking to Galliford Try. Bovis said: “The decision to reject the proposals was communicated to the two parties. “Redrow subsequently indicated that it was not willing to improve the terms of its proposal and discussions were terminated. Discussions with Galliford Try are ongoing.” The company added: “In the meantime, the Board is making good progress with plans to recover and improve group profitability and enhance return on capital employed. “The search for a new Chief Executive is also progressing well. “The Board of Bovis…

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Thousands of young people are being placed on “dead-end” classroom based construction courses which fail to equip them for a career in the industry. The Unite union has discovered that the number of classroom based construction courses increased by 14% last year – totally dwarfing the number of apprentices beginning their training. Unite is describing the courses as ‘dead-end’ because trainees are only usually able to achieve a technical qualification because they don’t have access to on-site training. The only qualification recognised in construction is the NVQ and this can’t be achieved without substantial site experience. An NVQ or equivalent qualification is necessary to acquire a Construction Sector Certification Scheme (CSCS) card required to work on sites. In most cases people undertaking classroom training…

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London Mayor Sadiq Khan has given the nod to Chelsea Football Club’s plans for a £500m stadium on the site of their existing Stamford Bridge ground. Plans for the new stadium will see Chelsea’s match-day capacity increase from 41,600 to 60,000 and will include the construction of an elevated walkway over the nearby District Line, linking the stadium to Fulham Broadway station. Chelsea will now begin looking for a contractor, with Multiplex, Mace and Sir Robert McAlpine tipped to be interested. His decision today further builds on his support for London football, including his move to give the green light to a new stadium for AFC Wimbledon, which sees the ‘Dons’ set to return to their Plough Lane home nearly three decades after leaving it in 1991.  Chelsea’s…

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Strong growth in UK construction workloads helped to take Carillion through the £5bn turnover barrier last year. According to 2016 results published this morning total group revenue jumped 14% to £5.2bn in 2016, helped by the uplift in UK construction turnover from £1.2bn to £1.5bn. Support services continues to be the main profit driver, although revenue growth at the division was more modest, up 7% to £2.71bn. Underlying margins across the business came under pressure, falling from 5.3% to 4.9%, due to decreases for Public Private Partnership projects and Middle East construction services. UK construction margins slipped from 3% to 2.7% – still an industry beating level for a major contractor. The squeeze saw group pre-tax profits slide 5% to £147m. Carillion …

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Nine construction tradesmen from Widnes and Liverpool have been sentenced for trying to steal £300,000 in an organised tax fraud. James Roberts was central to the scam The men, who worked as subcontractors including painters, decorators, builders, and roofers, submitted false claims for tax repayments. James Roberts, of Widnes, was at the centre of the conspiracy, which was uncovered by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigators. He was found to have made multiple fraudulent amendments to his own tax returns and allowed his bank account to be used by other members of the gang. Roberts’ partner, Natasha Sinnott, 22, of Bootle, helped the fraudsters by allowing the stolen taxes to be laundered through her bank account. The fraud was uncovered by the Income Tax Self-Assessment Repayments Taskforce…

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