Construction news

• Cruden gets green light for Edinburgh housing job

  22-08-2025 08:47 via constructionenquirer.com
  House builder Cruden has been granted planning permission to redevelop the former St John Vianney’s Roman Catholic Church site in Edinburgh.
  Construction will start later this year to transform the vacant, deteriorating 1950s building into a fully affordable housing development delivering 35 new homes.
  The new development will comprise two flatted blocks of three to four storeys making sustainable use of brownfield land.Fraser Lynes, Managing Director of Cruden Homes, said: “It is fa
  
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• Tilbury Douglas gets green light for £30m Leeds SEND school

  07-09-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Tilbury Douglas has cleared planning for a £30m special needs school project in Leeds.
  The City Council is pressing ahead with the redevelopment of Broomfield South Specialist Inclusive Learning Centre in Belle Isle, which will provide 100 extra places for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
  Tilbury Douglas Construction has been selected to deliver the scheme, which will see part of the existing school on Broom Place demolished and replaced by a three-storey teaching
  
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• Plans to slash paperwork for company reports

  07-09-2026 08:23 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Construction companies will be spared excessive paperwork under reforms to corporate reporting rules launched by the government.
  Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds is vowing to slash “nonsensical” rules which see firms of all sizes forced to produce reams of paperwork for company reports and accounts.
  He said: “No-one goes into business to fill out forms. For years, hardworking firms in this country have been weighed down by pen-pushing paperwork and frustrating costs, tickin
  
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• McLaughlin & Harvey lands £70m Holborn Circus office job

  07-09-2026 08:20 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  McLaughlin & Harvey has secured the £70m main contract to deliver Evans Randall Investors’ redevelopment of Thavies Inn House at Holborn Circus in London.
  The firm is due to start main construction in the fourth quarter following demolition of the existing 1950s building by Erith Contractors.WilkinsonEyre has designed the replacement building as two nested forms on the prominent site between New Fetter Lane and St Andrew Street.
  The redevelopment will roughly double the floorspac
  
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• Building safety Gateway 2 applications soar in August

  07-09-2026 08:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The Building Safety Regulator is facing a fresh surge in workload after Gateway 2 project applications jumped sharply during August.
  Latest BSR figures show 1,654 Gateway 2 applications are now live, an increase of more than 100 in a single month. The regulator said it would closely monitor whether the rise continues.
  The spike comes ahead of the new Building Safety Levy taking effect on 1 October, which BSR believes may be encouraging developers to get applications into the system early.New-bui
  
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• Building safety Gateway 2 applications soar as levy looms

  07-09-2026 08:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The Building Safety Regulator is facing a fresh surge in workload after Gateway 2 project applications jumped sharply during August.
  Latest BSR figures show 1,654 Gateway 2 applications are now live, an increase of more than 100 in a single month. The regulator said it would closely monitor whether the rise continues.
  The spike comes ahead of the new Building Safety Levy taking effect on 1 October, which BSR believes may be encouraging developers to get applications into the system early.New-bui
  
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• Kier storms August contracts league with £530m haul

  07-09-2026 08:03 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Kier stormed to the top of the contract league rankings for August after securing nearly £530m worth of work across 10 projects.
  The contractor’s bumper month was led by a £260m upgrade of Thames Water’s Maple Lodge Sewage Treatment Works near Rickmansworth in Hertfordshire.
  Kier’s building arm also landed a £100m West End office project for developer Derwent and a £52m rebuild of St Clare’s school in Essex.
  Multiplex came in second after confirmin
  
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• Housing slump sees output fall at faster pace in August

  04-09-2026 11:35 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The continuing slump in the residential sector saw the bellwether S&P Global UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index drop to 44.3 in August from 44.7 in July.
  Buyers reported below the neutral 50.0 value for the twentieth successive month amid subdued demand conditions and a reduction in new projects – particularly house building starts.
  All three sub-sectors recorded a reduction in construction activity during August, but housing was the only category to register a faster pac
  
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• Ascot brickwork specialist Harlequin falls into administration

  04-09-2026 09:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Ascot-based brickwork specialist Harlequin Brickwork has fallen into administration after more than 15 years in business.
  The collapse comes after creditor ACS Stainless Steel Fixings lodged a winding-up petition against Harlequin, which had been due to be heard at the High Court in Leeds on 8 September.
  Marco Piacquadio and Alan Coleman of FTS Recovery have now been appointed administrators.Harlequin was founded in 2011 and grew into a sizeable brickwork, masonry and scaffolding specialist oper
  
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• Creditors back Ardmore CVA rescue plan

  04-09-2026 09:05 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Creditors have backed company voluntary arrangements aimed at keeping seven remaining Ardmore property businesses out of administration.
  The approval allows the companies to continue trading while repaying creditors under agreed terms following the collapse of Ardmore’s main contracting businesses in June.
  Crucially, the CVAs also pave the way for chairman Cormac Byrne to launch an appeal against the High Court’s landmark Building Liability Order ruling and challenge the extent to wh
  
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• Trio win £208m Karbon Homes extra care framework

  04-09-2026 08:11 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Three contractors have secured places on Karbon Homes’ new £208m framework to deliver extra care housing across the North East and Yorkshire.
  Robertson Construction has landed the biggest share of the programme, with a contract allocation worth up to £120m.
  Caddick Construction has secured a £66m allocation while Durham-based Esh Construction has been awarded up to £22m.The open framework will be used to appoint principal contractors to build extra care facilities a
  
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• Applebridge buys housing civils contractor Hughes Bros

  04-09-2026 08:08 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Teesside-based Construction Group The Applebridge Family has acquired civils contractor Hughes Bros Construction.
  Darlington based Hughes Bros specialises in earthworks and site preparation for new build housing schemes.
  Latest results for the firm for the year to November 30 2025 show a turnover of £34.7m generating a pre-tax profit of £690,000.Applebridge has also acquired Hughes Bros’ sister company JIG Drainage.
  Both businesses will continue to operate under their existing
  
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• Demolition go-ahead for Derby city centre regeneration

  04-09-2026 08:06 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Demolition of Derby’s former Assembly Rooms has been cleared to start early next year after the council removed the final planning hurdle holding up the city centre regeneration scheme.
  Derby City Council’s planning committee has agreed that conditions attached to the demolition consent have now been satisfied, paving the way for site preparation and clearance work in early 2027.
  The conditions required the council to have a developer under contract and approved redevelopment plans i
  
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• Mace and Arcadis land lead role on £2.5bn Luton Airport expansion

  03-09-2026 16:47 via constructionenquirer.com
  A team of Mace Consult and Arcadis have landed the lead programme management role on the £2.5bn-plus expansion of London Luton Airport.
  Airport owner Luton Rising has brought in the consultants to provide programme, project, cost and commercial management services as the major expansion moves into its delivery phase.
  The team will establish the programme schedule, systems, controls and decision-making framework for the phased growth plan, which will increase airport capacity to 32 million
  
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• McLaren starts on industrial site at Hinckley

  03-09-2026 09:22 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  McLaren Construction Midlands & North has started work on two new logistics units at the £48m Mountpark Hinckley site in Leicestershire.
  Construction of the steel frames is set to start later this month on the two high-specification warehouse distribution units totaling 772,340 sq ft.
  McLaren’s contract also includes the delivery of hardstanding, service yards, car parking, landscaping, mains services and drainage across the site.Gary Cramp, Managing Director at McLaren Construct
  
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• Crest Nicholson issues profit warning as lender talks slip

  03-09-2026 09:00 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Crest Nicholson has issued a profit warning after weaker summer trading pushed the house builder from an expected profit into a forecast £10m operating loss.
  The group had previously guided to EBIT profit of between £5m and £10m for the year.
  It has also cut its completions forecast to 1,350-1,400 homes from 1,400-1,500 as affordability pressures and competitive pricing continue to hit sales.The warning came as Crest revealed talks with lenders over amendments to its banking co
  
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• Galliford Try wins £110m Leicestershire pipeline job

  03-09-2026 08:44 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Severn Trent has awarded Galliford Try a £110m contract to build a major cross-country pipeline taking treated foul water out of the protected River Mease catchment.
  Galliford Try’s Environment business will deliver the River Mease Improvement project, including a 23km pipeline carrying treated flows from Packington and Measham sewage treatment works towards the River Tame, near Elford, Staffordshire
  The scheme is being driven by Water Industry National Environment Programme requirem
  
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• Restructuring costs see Eurocell make a loss

  03-09-2026 08:38 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Restructuring costs saw UPVC materials supplier Eurocell slump to a pre-tax loss of £1.4m during the six months to June 30 2026 from a £3.8m profit last time as turnover increased to £205.2m from £193.2m.
  Exceptional costs of £9.6m hit the bottom line as adjusted pre-tax profits edged up to £8.2m from £7.8m.
  Restructuring moves to adjust to a subdued market included the closure of ten branches this summer and consolidating two recycling plants into one.R
  
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• New app sees AI and humans work together on construction quality

  02-09-2026 21:44 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  A new AI and human-led app has been launched to help end avoidable errors in construction.
  QualiT is designed to improve quality across the construction lifecycle — helping teams prevent defects, reduce rework and deliver projects to the highest standard every time, first time.
  The digital quality tool combines AI with HI (Human Intelligence) — turning frontline knowledge into consistent, high-quality delivery.
  Duane McCreadie, Founder and Director of QualiT, has over 20 years experi
  
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• Go-ahead for 200 council homes at Battersea Power Station

  02-09-2026 17:09 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Planning permission has been granted for 200 council homes on the next phase of the Battersea Power Station regeneration in London.
  The homes will be delivered by Battersea Power Station Development Company in partnership with Wandsworth Council on an undeveloped brownfield plot within Phase 5 of the 42-acre masterplan.
  All 200 homes will be operated by the council, with properties including family housing available at social rent levels under its Homes for Wandsworth programme.
  Construction is
  
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• Graham gets Gateway 2 OK for Manchester student scheme

  02-09-2026 16:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  GRAHAM has secured Gateway 2 approval to start main construction on the £286m redevelopment of Cambridge Halls for Unite Students and Manchester Metropolitan University.
  The Building Safety Regulator has cleared the first phase of the 2,302-bed student accommodation scheme, allowing structural groundworks to get underway following completion of demolition.
  The project will replace Manchester Met’s former 770-bed Cambridge Halls complex with a series of buildings rising to 30 storeys.
  
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• Graham gets Gateway 2 OK for £286m Manchester student scheme

  02-09-2026 16:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  GRAHAM has secured Gateway 2 approval to start main construction on the £286m redevelopment of Cambridge Halls for Unite Students and Manchester Metropolitan University.
  The Building Safety Regulator has cleared the first phase of the 2,302-bed student accommodation scheme, allowing structural groundworks to get underway following completion of demolition.
  The project will replace Manchester Met’s former 770-bed Cambridge Halls complex with a series of buildings rising to 30 storeys.
  
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• Blackburn picks firms for £50m highways framework

  02-09-2026 09:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Local Lancashire civils firms George Cox & Sons, Multipave and NMS Civil Engineering have secured places on the main civils lot of Blackburn with Darwen Council’s new £50m highways framework.
  The trio beat competition from 13 other firms for the £20m civils package covering highway and road construction work across the borough.
  Eric Wright Civil Engineering, PP O’Connor, Bethell Construction, Casey and JJ O’Grady were among the unsuccessful bidders for the civil
  
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• CField returns to profit after legacy jobs cleared

  02-09-2026 08:38 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Family-run CField Construction has returned to profit after completing a number of challenging legacy contracts that dragged the London-based contractor into the red last year.
  Turnover fell to £83m in the year to December 2025 from £119m previously, but improved project performance saw the business post a £3.3m pre-tax profit against a £1.2m loss in 2024.
  Operating profit recovered to £3.1m from a £1.2m loss, giving the contractor an operating margin of aroun
  
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• First section of latest HS2 viaduct installed

  02-09-2026 08:35 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Construction of the new Saltley Viaduct made major progress over the August Bank Holiday weekend with the successful installation of the first section of the new bridge over the Birmingham to Derby railway lines.
  The original Saltley Viaduct, which spanned a 183‑metre section of the B4114, closed to vehicles and pedestrians in May 2026.  It was then demolished so that a new, taller structure could be built in its place, allowing high speed trains to safely pass below.
  The replacement
  
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• Balfour appoints management consultant to lead strategy

  01-09-2026 15:19 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Balfour Beatty has appointed Emma Loxton to the new role of Chief Strategy Officer.
  Loxton joins from management consultant McKinsey & Company where she spent more than a decade advising major industrial and infrastructure businesses on strategy, transformation and growth.
  She was a partner at McKinsey, most recently leading the UK Advanced Industries and Transport & Infrastructure practices.
  Earlier in her career, Loxton was a Senior Policy Advisor in the UK Government’s Prim
  
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• Gilbert-Ash confirms £40m RIBA HQ revamp deal

  01-09-2026 14:50 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Gilbert-Ash has signed off the £40m job to overhaul the Royal Institute of British Architects’ landmark London headquarters.
  The contractor is carrying out the major refurbishment and restoration of the Grade II* listed 66 Portland Place building in Westminster, with completion due in September 2027.
  The Portland Place scheme will act as a pilot project for the Net Zero Carbon Building Standard and involves a major upgrade of the building fabric and services.Gilbert-Ash is stripping
  
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• Laing O’Rourke to start £400m Lancashire prison job

  01-09-2026 14:20 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Laing O’Rourke has secured the enabling works deal for a major new £400m-plus prison planned alongside HMP Garth and HMP Wymott in Lancashire.
  The Ministry of Justice has now signed off the package for the 1,700-place category C jail near Leyland, clearing the way for early works ahead of completion targeted in 2031.
  The scheme, presently known as HMP Garth 2, will provide around 74,500 sq m of accommodation across seven four-storey house blocks, each holding about 245 prisoners.Init
  
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• Barnwood warns of tougher market after profit fall

  01-09-2026 09:12 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Employee-owned regional building contractor Barnwood saw pre-tax profit fall by more than a third last year as tighter margins offset continued revenue growth.
  Turnover at the Gloucestershire-based group rose 15% to £118m in the year to December 2025 from £103m, while pre-tax profit fell to £3.3m from £5.1m.
  Operating profit dropped to £2.7m from £4.7m, cutting operating margin to 2.3% from 4.5%.Despite the squeeze, Barnwood doubled its annual contribution to
  
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• Data centre plan unveiled for former IBM site

  01-09-2026 09:03 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Plans have been submitted to transform part of Greenock’s former IBM site into a major data centre development.
  Slate Island Developments Ltd has applied to Inverclyde Council for the development at Spango Valley, off Inverkip Road.
  IBM opened its Spango Valley operation on the site in 1954 and the facility closed in 2017 with buildings being demolished in 2020.Slate Island Developments is now seeking to regenerate part of the former technology and industrial site for modern digital infras
  
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