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New funding for London housing construction jobs

London's leading housing associations have allocated new funding for building homes in the capital, which is also likely to stimulate local construction recruitment.

The Homes and Communities Agency last week allocated £350 million to the G15 group of housing associations under its broader £1.8 billion affordable housing programme.

Now the G15 have themselves announced that they will invest £2 billion of funding derived from private and other sources over the next four years into construction work on more than 13,000 new affordable homes in London.

Keith Exford, the group's chair, remarked: "G15 associations are now in negotiation over contract terms and subject to reaching agreement on a number of important detailed points, we have shown we are willing to put our balance sheets on the line to help provide the housing so desperately needed by Londoners."

It is the government's intention that construction work will take place on 170,000 affordable homes nationwide by March 2015, of which approximately 90% are expected to be delivered by housing associations.

Construction jobs in London

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

Central London housing scheme could aid construction recruitment

Proposals for a new residential development in central London have been given the green light, potentially paving the way for the creation of new local jobs in construction.

Westminster council has approved plans to redevelop the 1.5-hectare former premises of the North Westminster Community School in Paddington and is currently seeking a buyer to undertake this project.

The council's proposals for the site involve construction work on five buildings between 11 and 17 storeys tall, which would contain 434 new homes, as well as commercial space and areas for community use.

Alastair Moss, chairman of the council's planning committee, commented: "This is a thoughtful scheme on what is a challenging site."

He added: "The quality of the housing is particularly strong and the designs set a high bar for the site."

Earlier this year, Land Securities submitted proposals for an office development in Victoria to Westminster council, which if approved could also have positive implications for construction recruitment in the district.

Construction jobs in London

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

HCA awards funding for housing construction jobs

The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) has allocated new funding for the delivery of affordable homes, in a move likely to stimulate construction recruitment across England.

Nearly 150 housing associations, local authorities, house builders and other organisations have successfully bid for £1.8 billion of funding between them through the HCA's Affordable Homes Programme.

This latest allocation of funding is expected to support construction work on 80,000 homes throughout England, as part of a wider drive to build around 170,000 new affordable homes between 2011 and 2015.

HCA chief executive Pat Ritchie commented: "We expect to not only deliver exceptional value for money, but also a programme that has a strong fit with local priorities as we move into the delivery phase of the Affordable Homes Programme."

Last month, the HCA released figures indicating that it had commenced construction work on 57,605 new homes over the 12 months to the end of March 2011, which was 65% higher than its target for that period.

Browse construction jobs

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

Construction work starts on NI family housing scheme

A new family housing development has gotten underway in Northern Ireland and will also generate new jobs in construction in the province.

Social development minister Nelson McCausland officially launched the start of construction work on Ulidia Housing Association's £18.5 million project at Ballymacoss in Lisburn.

This development will comprise 124 new houses, as well as 22 apartments for people in urgent housing need, all of which will be built to high energy efficiency standards and is also anticipated to create new local construction jobs.

Mr McCausland remarked: "In addition to providing much needed housing, this new site will provide an immediate major boost to the local construction industry with work continuing over the next 18 month period."

Last month, the minister also launched construction work on a £7 million family housing development in the Ballysillan area of Belfast, which could help to further stimulate construction recruitment in Northern Ireland.

Construction jobs in Northern Ireland

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

Mansell to compete for social housing construction jobs

A social housing provider has given Mansell the opportunity to deliver new homes in east London and Essex, which could bolster construction recruitment in these areas.

The developer has managed to secure a place on both price bands of East Thames Group's four-year new build contractors framework, meaning it will be able to bid for construction work on projects both worth less than and more than £5 million.

Active panel members will be able to participate in mini-competitions for construction jobs as they arise, with there already being a known pipeline of nine available developments worth £138 million in total.

Marcus Keys, Mansell's affordable housing director, commented: "We are delighted to have been chosen by East Thames Group to create much needed high quality homes in and around London."

Last week, Mansell was also appointed by social housing organisation Orbit Heart of England to build a £13 million extra care scheme in Bedford, which could create further jobs in construction in the south-east.

Construction jobs in the South East

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

London tipped to see prime housing construction work growth

The volume of luxury housing being built in London will rise substantially over the next decade, a new report has forecast, potentially fuelling growth in construction jobs too.

Built asset consultancy EC Harris has predicted that construction work is already underway or will take place on new prime residential developments of around 9,000 units, worth approximately £21 billion in total, in central London by 2020.

Furthermore, its research also indicated that up to £8 billion of new development in this sector - equivalent to more than 4,000 units - could come to the market in 2014-15 alone, with trended sales value growth expected to rise to between 6-to-8% per year after 2012.

EC Harris head of private residential business Mike Farmer asserted that London would "continue to offer opportunity for appropriately organised and experienced developers and those new entrants who seek the right specialist advice and adopt a considered approach".

A recent survey by Drivers Jonas Deloitte also revealed that construction work was currently underway on 6.4 million square feet of office space in London, up by 137% on levels six months previously, which could also stimulate construction recruitment in the capital.

Construction jobs in London

Tue, 5 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

Taylor Wimpey figures bode well for construction recruitment

Taylor Wimpey's housing development programme has continued apace since the start of this year, potentially facilitating the creation of new construction jobs.

In its latest trading statement, the house building group stated that the housing market had remained stable over recent months and that it expected to have completed construction work on 4,550 homes over the first half of 2011.

Furthermore, Taylor Wimpey also revealed that it has acquired 5,527 plots on 55 new sites since the year began and that it has entered an agreement with Haworth Estates to obtain a further 16 strategic sites where it could deliver up to another 4,000 homes.

Group chief executive Peter Redfern commented: "We are well positioned to deliver further margin improvement in the UK, beyond our double digit operating margin target for 2012, through the development of our extensive strategic land portfolio."

Last month, Willmott Dixon and Savills announced they were entering a new joint venture to deliver private rented housing in tandem with local public sector bodies and private sector landowners, which could also generate new jobs in construction.

Browse construction jobs

Mon, 4 Jul 2011 16:00:00 15JulGMT

Galliford Try wins healthcare construction jobs

Galliford Try has secured new projects in the healthcare sector that could also have positive implications for construction recruitment.

Firstly, the group has been awarded a £29 million contract to build the Hagley Road retirement village in Birmingham for the ExtraCare Charitable Trust, with construction work set to start on this development in October.

Chief executive Greg Fitzgerald commented: "This award is testament to our proven track record in delivering not only high-quality residential schemes, but also the community facilities that make these self-contained developments a real success."

Moreover, Galliford Try has also reached financial close on the next stage of the South East Essex Local Improvement Finance Trust programme, comprising two construction jobs for the district's primary care trust in Westcliff worth £5 million and £5.3 million respectively.

Earlier this week, the group revealed that it had also secured a £50 million contract to help build a gas plant in the Shetland Islands and a £23 million contract to build a west London residential scheme, both of which could also generate new jobs in construction.

Construction jobs in the West Midlands

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 16:00:00 15JunGMT

Joint venture plans housing construction jobs

Willmott Dixon and Savills have entered a new joint venture to deliver private rented housing, which could stimulate construction recruitment across the country.

The two firms intend to form regional partnerships with local public sector bodies and private sector landowners to build homes on land that would have otherwise gone undeveloped.

In particular, they aim to carry out construction work on private rented housing for people excluded from home ownership but ineligible for social housing and in locations where there is a shortage of good quality rented housing available.

Andrew Telfer, managing director of Willmott Dixon Regeneration, commented: "We hope it becomes an attractive means to provide much needed housing for the skilled young professionals that local authorities want to retain."

Earlier this month, Willmott Dixon released new figures showing that the construction group had made a turnover of £989.5 million for the 12 months to the end of Decmber 2010 and that it currently had over £1 billion of construction jobs on its order books.

Browse construction jobs

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 16:00:00 15JunGMT

Construction jobs in London to be created following Earl's Court planning submission

Plans have been submitted for an £8 billion scheme for Earl's Court that would include 7,500 homes and would result in considerable construction jobs for London.

The scheme, which has been proposed by developer CapCo, is planned to be built around the existing Olympia site and will take up some 77 acres.

Gary Yardley, director at CapCo, said: "The scale of economic regeneration is huge. It is incredibly rare to get such a big piece of land without multiple ownerships or listed buildings. London needs these jobs and these homes."

He said that the end goal is to build "big lateral apartments" which should "be affordable" to residents.

Stephen Greenhalgh, leader of Hammersmith & Fulham council, described the submission of the planning application as "an important milestone" in the project.

In January, it was reported in the press that CapCo had bought the Earls Court Exhibition Centre with plans to replace the building with 8,000 flats.

Construction jobs in London

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 16:00:00 15JunGMT