Construction news

• Cladding contractor goes into administration

  02-03-2023 08:21 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Building envelope specialist Jessella Limited has fallen into administration with FRP Advisory Trading Ltd now in charge of the company.
  The St Albans based firm specialised in facade contracts up to £15m and has worked on a host of major residential jobs across London and the South east.
  Latest accounts for Jessella for the year to March 31 2022 show a turnover of £39.8m generating a pre-tax profit of £1.4m.During the year the company employed 42 people and paid dividends of &
  
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• Holborn Circus refurb to start this year

  27-01-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  Developer Tishman Speyer is set to appoint a contractor shortly for the major refurbishment of its landmark Holborn Circus property in Farringdon.
  Construction is set to start in the second half of this year at the former headquarters of Sainsbury’s.
  Refurbishment will transform the building into a highly sustainable, contemporary office destination. Plans include the creation of new internal atriums, a reimagined ground floor and basement plus the addition of a new roof terrace.Tishman Sp
  
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• Tower crane drivers start strike action today

  27-01-2026 08:30 via constructionenquirer.com
  Work will be disrupted on some the country’s biggest construction sites today as strike action by tower crane drivers starts.
  Drivers at leading crane rental company Wolffkran, represented by Unite, will hold the first in a series of 24-hour strikes today then every fortnight after that.
  Around 90 drivers are union members among the crane rental giant’s 123 operators.The drivers are unhappy at the lack of pay rises over the last three years.
  But Wolffkran claimed it has made a &ldquo
  
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• Costain wins £123m M5 gigafactory junction job

  27-01-2026 08:14 via constructionenquirer.com
  Costain has secured the job to design and build a new junction on the M5 in Somerset to serve the UK’s biggest electric vehicle battery plant.
  Sir Robert McAlpine is building the £4bn gigafactory for Agratas at the Gravity site between Puriton and Woolavington, near Bridgwater.
  The five-year new junction project, dubbed ’22A’, was agreed for a £123m price and will alleviate pressure on the motorway.Constraints on the junction’s placement arise from the nearby
  
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• Muse lined up for 1,600 homes in Gateshead Baltic Quarter

  27-01-2026 08:13 via constructionenquirer.com
  Gateshead’s long-trailed Baltic Quarter regeneration has edged closer to reality after the council struck a pre-development deal with Muse and ECF to drive forward a 1,600-home mixed-use scheme.
  ECF – the joint venture between Homes England, Legal & General and Muse – will now work with Gateshead Council to shape funding, phasing and delivery of the long-term scheme. The Baltic Quarter sits at the heart of the council’s regeneration strategy launched last autumn.
  Earl
  
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• Arup Binnies JV picked to plan £600m southern water pipeline

  27-01-2026 07:25 via constructionenquirer.com
  An Arup Binnies JV has been drafted in to plan an 80km strategic water pipeline at the heart of Southern Water’s Thames to Southern Transfer scheme.
  As technical partner the JV will take the project through its design and planning phase as well as supporting procurement of a main contractor.
  The Thames to Southern Transfer (T2ST) will move up to 120 million litres of water a day from the planned White Horse Reservoir in Oxfordshire into Hampshire, easing pressure on over-abstracted rivers
  
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• Bolton turns to MEPC for £200m town centre reset

  26-01-2026 18:15 via constructionenquirer.com
  Bolton has appointed developer MEPC to reboot plans for the £200m redevelopment of the Crompton Place shopping centre after years of delays.
  The developer, now owned by global investment manager Federated Hermes, beat Urban Splash to take control of the stalled scheme, which will see the 280,000 sq ft centre demolished and replaced with a residential-led mixed-use development.
  The overhaul is aimed at resetting the historic heart of Bolton town centre, with new homes, reworked public space
  
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• Barratt Redrow to start 900-home London high rise scheme

  26-01-2026 09:07 via constructionenquirer.com
  Barratt Redrow is lining up a start on the first phase of its 900-home Bollo Lane regeneration in West London after clinching a forward funding deal with build to rent specialist Grainger.
  The agreement paves the way for construction of an opening tranche of 195 rental flats, marking Grainger’s first BTR partnership with a major housebuilder.
  The first phase has secured detailed planning consent and Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator, clearing the way for work to begin w
  
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• Tender prices set to rise by up to 5%

  26-01-2026 09:01 via constructionenquirer.com
  Construction tender prices are set to rise by up to 5% as capacity constraints threaten delivery of schemes.
  New data from professional services company Turner & Townsend in its Winter 2025 UK Market Intelligence report (UKMI) forecasts a rate of tender price inflation (TPI) of 3.5% per year across real estate and 5% for infrastructure through 2026 and 2027.
  The report warns that sustained cost escalation is putting pressure on the viability of new projects at a time of economic uncertainty.
  
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• Costain to exceed 4.5% margin target after strong year

  26-01-2026 08:48 via constructionenquirer.com
  Costain has capped another solid year of trading with margins beating its 4.5% run-rate target.
  In an end of year trading statement this morning, Costain said it also ended the year with a stronger than expected £190m cash pile and confidence in a step-change in performance ahead built on major contract wins.
  Work wins since include a utilities delivery partner role at Sellafield worth up to £1bn over 15 years, a five-year extension to its project controls contract with EDF valued at
  
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• Sizewell awards site safety gear contract

  26-01-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  Sizewell C has appointed Suffolk Safety Solutions as its primary supplier of personal protective equipment (PPE) across the giant nuclear construction site.
  Over the next three years, Suffolk Safety Solutions will supply Sizewell C’s growing workforce with essential safety wear, including hard hats, high-visibility clothing, and protective eyewear.
  The company is a partnership between PPE and workwear specialist Mathias & Sons Ltd and Suffolk-based portable accommodation provider Porta
  
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• Demolition starts for £250m Glasgow Charing Cross scheme

  26-01-2026 08:18 via constructionenquirer.com
  Demolition has kicked off at Glasgow’s Charing Cross Gateway, marking the first visible step towards a £250m transformation of a key city centre site.
  Reigart Contracts has moved onto the Elmbank Gardens plot after being appointed by CXG Glasgow to clear two 1960s-era buildings, paving the way for phase one of the 730,000sq ft complex spanning Elmbank Gardens and Tay House on Bath Street.The opening phase will deliver 750-bed student accommodation on land at the corner of Bath Street
  
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• Van Elle plugs into power grid boom as revenue jumps 16%

  26-01-2026 08:17 via constructionenquirer.com
  Van Elle is banking on the UK’s power grid upgrade boom to pull margins back up after a mixed first financial half that delivered strong top-line growth but thinner returns.
  The ground engineering specialist lifted revenue 16% to over £73m in the six months to 31 October 2025, powered by a jump in General Piling and another strong showing from Specialist Piling & Rail.
  But underlying operating profit dipped to £2.0m from £2.2m with operating margin squeezed to 2.8% fr
  
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• ‘James Bond’ builder fined for threats to HSE inspectors

  23-01-2026 14:25 via constructionenquirer.com
  A builder who threatened safety inspectors and told them his name was James Bond has been fined.
  David Robert Lane, 59, was the site manager of an extensive cottage refurbishment in Staffordshire when unsafe work caught the attention of two inspectors from the HSE.
  The pair had been carrying out routine inspections in the Rugeley area on 11 February 2025 when they saw two people on the site accessing a roof from the bucket of an excavator.There were around ten workers on the site and when the in
  
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• ‘James Bond’ builder fined after threats to HSE inspectors

  23-01-2026 14:25 via constructionenquirer.com
  A builder who threatened safety inspectors and told them his name was James Bond has been fined.
  David Robert Lane, 59, was the site manager of an extensive cottage refurbishment in Staffordshire when unsafe work caught the attention of two inspectors from the HSE.
  The pair had been carrying out routine inspections in the Rugeley area on 11 February 2025 when they saw two people on the site accessing a roof from the bucket of an excavator.There were around ten workers on the site and when the in
  
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• Another immigration raid on huge warehouse site

  23-01-2026 08:57 via constructionenquirer.com
  Immigration authorities staged another raid at the Panattoni Park warehouse construction site in Swindon this week.
  Last month Immigration Enforcement officers and Wiltshire Police swooped on the logistics site where Winvic is one of the main contractors.
  During the December raid 30 workers were arrested.In the latest operation yesterday around 200 workers were spoken to, all of whom were working legally.
  Chief Inspector Carly Nesbitt said: “This is a great result for everyone involved in
  
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• MPB lands £37m Midland Metro Phase 2 civils job

  23-01-2026 08:52 via constructionenquirer.com
  MPB Structures has landed a £37m civil engineering package on Phase 2 of the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro extension, cementing its growing role on the Midland Metro programme.
  The specialist concrete contractor has broken ground on the next stage of the scheme for the Midland Metro Alliance, building on its earlier delivery of the Delta Junction works on Phase 1.
  The Phase 2 package hands MPB responsibility for the full civils scope, covering more than 600m of new infrastructure along
  
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• Balfour to start £108m Middlewich bypass this spring

  23-01-2026 08:40 via constructionenquirer.com
  Construction will start on the delayed Middlewich Eastern Bypass in Cheshire this spring.
  Main contractor Balfour Beatty was due to start work last summer but the job was delayed by funding worries.
  Cheshire East Council has given the green light for work to begin with a £53.8m main construction deal signed on the £108m scheme.Councillor Mark Goldsmith, chair of the council’s highways and transport committee, said: “This is great news for Cheshire East and those who drive
  
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• MPs call for fraud probe in solid wall insulation scandal

  23-01-2026 08:26 via constructionenquirer.com
  MPs have called for the Serious Fraud Office to investigate the ECO insulation programme after warning suspected fraud is likely far higher than regulators have so far uncovered.
  In a blistering report, the Public Accounts Committee said the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero designed ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme with no single organisation responsible for preventing or detecting fraud.
  This created gaps in data, accountability and oversight that allowed abuse to flour
  
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• HS2 final tunnel drive to Euston starts next week

  23-01-2026 07:55 via constructionenquirer.com
  Skanska Costain Strabag joint venture is set to start boring HS2’s long-awaited Euston tunnels next week, with tunnelling works launching from Old Oak Common.
  A team from SCS will drive a 4.5-mile twin-bore tunnel linking Old Oak Common to Euston using two tunnel boring machines, Karen and Madeleine.The first machine, TBM Madeleine, will be launched on the upline next week, with the second machine, TBM Karen, following around a month later on the downline.
  Once fully operational, the TBMs
  
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• Wates and Mount Anvil seal deal to deliver 1,100-plus London homes

  22-01-2026 15:40 via constructionenquirer.com
  London’s Southwark Council has signed development agreements with Wates Residential and Mount Anvil to deliver more than 1,100 new homes across the borough.
  The deals will see at least 1,129 homes built across eight sites in Peckham, Camberwell, Rotherhithe and Bermondsey.
  Of the total pipeline, at least 360 homes will be council-owned and managed, with the remaining 769 homes delivered for sale and other tenures.Wates Residential will deliver four schemes at Wickway on the Gloucester Grov
  
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• Worker dies on Winvic warehouse site

  22-01-2026 09:07 via constructionenquirer.com
  A worker has died after an accident at a warehouse construction site in Kent yesterday where Winvic is the main contractor.
  The man in his 30s was declared dead at the scene in Sittingbourne where a new logistics centre is being built for frozen food giant Cook Classic.
  A spokesperson for Winvic Construction told KentOnline: “We are deeply saddened to confirm that a fatal incident occurred at our Sittingbourne site on Wednesday, January 21, involving a member of our subcontractor workforce
  
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• Contractor hunt begins for £5.7bn Thames Water reservoir

  22-01-2026 08:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  Thames Water has started the hunt for a main works contractor for its £5.7bn White Horse Reservoir project in Oxfordshire.
  The procurement is being run as a two-stage competition with early contractor involvement for what would be the biggest water infrastructure build in a generation.
  The 150bn-litre raw water reservoir planned to be located to the south-west of Abingdon is intended to strengthen long-term drought resilience across the South East, securing supplies for around 15 million p
  
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• £74m refit of landmark Bristol office to go-ahead

  22-01-2026 08:13 via constructionenquirer.com
  Work is set to start this summer on the £74m transformation of Bristol ‘s landmark Canons Wharf offices after a major financing deal was sealed.
  Puma Property Finance has agreed its largest loan to date of £74m to back a joint venture between Mactaggart Family & Partners and Kinrise for the low-carbon refit of the Grade II-listed waterfront estate in Bristol city centre.
  The scheme will overhaul the former Lloyds Banking Group regional headquarters into 165,000 sq ft of Har
  
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• Birmingham City Hospital site set for 750-home rebuild

  22-01-2026 08:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  Homes England has signed a building lease with Vistry to kickstart demolition of Birmingham’s former City Hospital site and build around 750 new homes.
  Most of the former hospital buildings will be demolished to deliver 698 new-build homes, while the historic infirmary building will be retained and converted into 52 one- and two-bedroom flats.Around 35% of the homes across the scheme will be affordable, offered through a mix of tenures to meet local demand.
  The handover marks the end of Ci
  
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• Barhale promotes trio in senior leadership shake-up

  22-01-2026 07:17 via constructionenquirer.com
  Barhale has reshuffled its senior team as it gears up for further growth, promoting three long-serving figures into expanded leadership roles.
  The civils firm has promoted Phil Cull to a newly-created role of national executive director.
  Cull, who joined the business in 2013, steps up from regional director for the Southern region and takes a seat on the strategic board. He brings more than 30 years’ experience, with a track record in delivering complex tunnelling and major infrastructure
  
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• £1.5bn funding to tackle cultural buildings repair backlog

  22-01-2026 07:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  The Government has announced a £1.5bn capital investment programme to repair, refurbish and maintain museums, libraries and cultural venues across England, tackling years of underfunding that has left hundreds of buildings in poor condition.
  The funding, to be rolled out between 2025 and 2030, is aimed at fixing urgent maintenance backlogs, stabilising ageing estates and preventing the closure of more than 1,000 cultural assets that have been struggling with rising costs and deteriorating
  
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• JJ Rhatigan lands lead role on £78m City office conversion

  21-01-2026 18:54 via constructionenquirer.com
  JJ Rhatigan has been appointed as main contractor for the City of London’s first co-living development.
  The £78m Cornerstone scheme on the edge of the Barbican Estate will convert and extend a 1950s office building into 174 modern co-living homes, designed by architects Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM).
  Strip-out of the existing building is now complete and enabling works are underway.Main construction is expected to start following Gateway 2 approval. An application to the Regula
  
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• JJ Rhatigan lands £78m City office conversion

  21-01-2026 18:54 via constructionenquirer.com
  JJ Rhatigan has been appointed as main contractor for the City of London’s first co-living development.
  The £78m Cornerstone scheme on the edge of the Barbican Estate will convert and extend a 1950s office building into 174 modern co-living homes, designed by architects Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM).
  Strip-out of the existing building is now complete and enabling works are underway.Main construction is expected to start following Gateway 2 approval. An application to the Regula
  
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• Muse scoops 1,350-home Barrow docks regeneration

  21-01-2026 17:57 via constructionenquirer.com
  Plans for a major new waterfront neighbourhood in Barrow have taken a decisive step forward after Westmorland and Furness Council appointed Muse Places as strategic development partner for the Marina Village scheme.
  The deal, agreed by cabinet this week, will see Muse working through the English Cities Fund to bring forward around 1,350 new homes alongside public open space and a nature conservation area on land next to Barrow’s historic docks.
  A pre-development services agreement will kic
  
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