Construction news

• HG Construction names new MD

  22-01-2025 07:02 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  HG Construction has named Greg Purkiss as its new managing director completing the final phase of its corporate restructure.
  Purkiss’ appointment comes following significant structural changes across the business over the past year, with the establishment of a new operational board and appointment of dedicated construction directors with regional responsibility.
  Purkiss previously held the position of commercial director at the Hitchin-based contractor, which he joined in 2000 as a trainee
  
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• United Infrastructure adds Simkiss as buying spree rolls on

  02-02-2026 11:52 via constructionenquirer.com
  United Infrastructure has stepped up its acquisition drive in the energy and utilities market with the takeover of Rochdale-based control systems specialist Simkiss Group.
  The deal adds more than 25 years of engineering know-how to the group and strengthens its technical depth as demand grows for more complex, end-to-end delivery across regulated infrastructure.
  Simkiss Control Systems works in Rochdale
  Simkiss specialises in the design and build of control systems, control panels and switchgear
  
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• JRL resets with record £2bn order book after £49m loss

  02-02-2026 09:01 via constructionenquirer.com
  JRL Group chairman John Reddington said the diversified contractor is back on track to return to profitability this year after drawing a line under a bruising £49m loss and a business reset.
  The diversified London contractor has emerged from its inflation-hit slump with a record £2bn-plus order book, stronger liquidity and tighter grip on risk after Malaysian property and construction giant IJM Corporation took a 50% stake in the group last year boosting the balance sheet.
  Latest acc
  
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• Kier set to start Derbyshire double school job

  02-02-2026 09:00 via constructionenquirer.com
  Kier is set to start construction work on rebuilding two schools in Derbyshire under a two-year programme creating a new education campus for more than 800 pupils.
  The contractor has been appointed to demolish and replace Mercia Academy and Newhall Junior School in Swadlincote for operator Lionheart Educational Trust.
  Work is already under way with Mercia Academy demolished and clearance progressing on the adjacent site at Newhall Junior School ahead of demolition.Mercia Academy had to be evacua
  
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• £500m mixed-use London King’s Cross scheme approved

  02-02-2026 01:39 via constructionenquirer.com
  A £500m mixed-use regeneration scheme near London’s King’s Cross knowledge quarter is set to move ahead after securing planning consent.
  Camden Council has driven the development model in partnership with Ballymore and Lateral for a challenging site at Camley Street bounded by railway lines and bisected by a large road.
  The Council is bringing the scheme forward through its Community Investment Programme, which it argues sets up a development model for other councils to use at
  
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• McLaren breaks the £1bn turnover barrier

  02-02-2026 01:01 via constructionenquirer.com
  McLaren Construction has broken the £1bn turnover barrier with further growth on the cards.
  Latest accounts for the year ending 31 July 2025 show turnover reached £1.12bn from  £924 million last time generating pre-tax profit of £21m up from £11.9m.
  McLaren is expecting to hit £1.25bn in revenue this financial year fuelled by increased demand in sectors including data centres, industrial and logistics, commercial, sports-leisure and entertainment, health
  
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• CSCS Smart Check records 60 millionth scan

  02-02-2026 00:47 via constructionenquirer.com
  The verification platform CSCS Smart Check has recorded its 60 millionth scan – reflecting its growing use  by employers and contractors to support workforce verification and Building Safety Act compliance.
  CSCS Smart Check is the only platform to verify all 2.3 million cards displaying the CSCS logo, providing a  quick, easy and secure way of ensuring everyone has the correct card, training and qualifications for the  job they do.
  Developed by the CSCS Alliance, the platfor
  
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• BGS Group acquires Utilities Direct Ltd

  02-02-2026 00:29 via constructionenquirer.com
  Warrington based BGS Group has acquired Utilities Direct Ltd (UDL) to expand its business operations into the Midlands and South.
  Operational teams from BGS will now work hand in hand with Northampton-based self-lay provider UDL supporting existing contracts and developing its multi-utility reach.
  Jonathan Hopkins, BGS Group Managing Director, said: “This is a story about our growth. I’m very clear about where I want to take the business and if we’re to achieve our ambitions of
  
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• Laing O’Rourke to build £250m cancer centre

  31-01-2026 16:15 via constructionenquirer.com
  Laing O’Rourke has been confirmed as main contractor for  new £250m cancer centre at the Royal Sussex County Hospital.
  Funding has now been confirmed by the Government and New Hospitals Programme for the new regional Centre of Excellence for cancer care in Brighton & Hove, Sussex.
  The project follows the successful delivery of The Louisa Martindale Building, located next door to the cancer centre.Laing O’Rourke’s Managing Director, Peter Lyons, said: &l
  
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• City of London office to hotel plan approved

  30-01-2026 17:51 via constructionenquirer.com
  Plans to convert a landmark Art Deco office block in the City of London into a major new hotel have got the planning green light.
  Developer Dominus, in partnership with Cheyne Capital, will transform Ibex House into a 382-key full-service hotel.
  Built between 1935 and 1937, the Grade II-listed building at 42–47 The Minories sits close to Aldgate, Fenchurch Street and Tower Hill and is regarded as one of the City’s standout Art Deco commercial buildings.The approved scheme will see th
  
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• Floor glue vapours kill home repair worker

  30-01-2026 09:16 via constructionenquirer.com
  A housing association maintenance company has been fined £400,000 after an employee died from inhaling toxic vapours from flooring adhesive.
  Darren Nevill, 38, was working for Connect Property Services Limited laying a vinyl bathroom floor at a property in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire on 9 December 2020.
  His employer purchased an adhesive containing the solvent Dichloromethane (DCM). Small volumes will give off large amounts of colourless, low odour vapour, even at room temperature. He us
  
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• New Severfield boss shuts modular arm

  30-01-2026 09:12 via constructionenquirer.com
  Britain’s biggest steelwork contractor Severfield has shut down its modular arm after a strategic review by its new chief executive concluded the business was sub-scale and non-core.
  The steelwork giant said its Modular Solutions division based in Sherburn would be discontinued following a board-level assessment of markets, operations and group structure.
  Chief executive Paul McNerney said the closure was an early step in reshaping the group’s strategy, with a broader update on growt
  
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• National Highways chief to step down

  30-01-2026 09:05 via constructionenquirer.com
  Nick Harris, Chief Executive of National Highways, will step down after five years in the role.
  Harris will remain in post during a short transition period while the Board confirms interim leadership arrangements. Recruitment for a permanent successor will begin in the spring.
  Harris said: “Serving as Chief Executive of National Highways has been one of the greatest privileges of my career. As we approach the start of the next five year Road Investment Strategy, this is the right mome
  
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• Bellway opens timber frame factory

  30-01-2026 08:57 via constructionenquirer.com
  Bellway has opened its newtimber frame factory in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Mansfield.
  Bellway Home Space is a new 135,000 sq ft manufacturing facility developed in partnership with Donaldson’s Timber Systems and fitted with state-of-the-art robotic machinery from Swedish manufacturer Randek.
  The factory has started to supply Bellway with timber frame kits with production set to increase to around 3,000 homes each year by 2030.Jason Honeyman, Chief Executive Officer at Bellway, said: “The
  
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• Cartel watchdog widens school works bid-rigging probe

  30-01-2026 08:56 via constructionenquirer.com
  The Competition and Markets Authority has widened its investigation into suspected bid-rigging linked to school construction and roofing work, expanding the probe to cover additional firms and a broader range of public and private sector contracts.
  The watchdog first launched the investigation on 10 December 2024, focusing on suspected collusion tied to projects funded through the government’s Condition Improvement Fund (CIF).
  At the time, the CMA said it had particular concerns around roo
  
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• Vinci steps in to build Southport event centre

  30-01-2026 08:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  Sefton Council has appointed VINCI Building as preferred contractor for the Marine Lake Events Centre (MLEC) in Southport.
  The job has seen Graham Construction and Kier both walk away from the scheme.
  Under a Pre-Construction Services Agreement (PCSA), VINCI will work with the Council’s project team over the coming months to progress the ambitious waterfront development.Main construction works will begin on site later this year once a main contract is signed with site preparation starting
  
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• Plans in for £750m East London life sciences and housing campus

  30-01-2026 08:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  Plans have been lodged for a vast life sciences, housing and healthcare campus around The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel could unlock £750m of investment and reshape a key part of east London.
  Landowners BGO, working with Barts Health NHS Trust, have submitted a planning application to London Borough of Tower Hamlets for a near-1m sq ft mixed-use scheme within the Barts Life Sciences Cluster.
  The proposals cover land surrounding The Royal London Hospital and set out plans to co-locat
  
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• B+K inks £274m Newcastle student campus rebuild

  29-01-2026 08:54 via constructionenquirer.com
  Bowmer + Kirkland has landed the £274m main contract to deliver Newcastle’s major Castle Leazes student accommodation redevelopment for Unite Students and Newcastle University.
  Gateway 2 approval has now been secured from the Building Safety Regulator, clearing the way for the replacement of the ageing 1960s complex with 2,009 new student rooms across a series of two to nine-storey blocks.
  It ranks as B+K’s second major student project to achieve Gateway 2 this month following
  
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• Henry Boot profit warning after construction sale

  29-01-2026 08:50 via constructionenquirer.com
  Henry Boot issued a profit warning to the City this morning with 2026 profit before tax set to be “significantly below current market expectations” of £33.6m.
  The firm is now a land, property development and home building businesses after selling its contracting arm in a management buyout last September.
  The trading update said results for the year to December 31 2025 – due out in March – are expected to reach market forecasts of £29.7m of pre-tax profits.But
  
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• Crest Nicholson cuts 50 jobs in pivot to mid-market homes

  29-01-2026 08:49 via constructionenquirer.com
  Crest Nicholson has cut around 50 jobs, shut divisions and overhauled its land strategy in a shift out of volume house building into mid-market homes in response to a stubbornly weak sales environment.
  The house builder said 2025 marked a year of “transition and transformation” as it repositioned the business away from volume-led delivery and towards higher-quality, mid-premium homes under its Project Elevate turnaround plan.
  Chief executive Martyn Clark said Crest was now targeting
  
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• New contractor for delayed £14m Oxford footbridge job

  29-01-2026 08:12 via constructionenquirer.com
  Oxford City Council has moved the long-delayed Oxpens River Bridge scheme forward after selecting Jacksons Civil Engineering Group as preferred contractor on the £14m project.
  Work is now expected to start on site this spring, with the bridge due to be craned into position in September and completion targeted for February 2027.
  The scheme is a key element of the council’s wider West End regeneration plans aimed at boosting sustainable transport and cutting car use.The project secured
  
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• Bristol car park set for 12-storey student scheme

  29-01-2026 08:11 via constructionenquirer.com
  London-based investor Downing has lodged plans to redevelop a Bristol multi-storey car park with a 12 storey purpose-built student accommodation scheme in the Broadmead district.
  The Nelson Street scheme will deliver 331 bedrooms across studios, cluster flats and accessible rooms, alongside active ground-floor uses and new public realm.
  Sitting between Lewins Mead, St James Barton and the Old City, the site is within a five-minute walk of Bristol Bus Station.
  The car-free scheme is pitched as a
  
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• Police recover UK’s largest haul of stolen tools

  28-01-2026 15:32 via constructionenquirer.com
  The Metropolitan Police has recovered what is believed to be the largest stash of stolen tools ever discovered in the UK after officers uncovered a £2m haul in east London.
  A construction firm reported that high‑value equipment had been stolen from a site in Tilbury, Essex.
  Using a tracking device fitted to the equipment, Met officers were able to trace the stolen goods to a property in Ilford last week.Local officers gained entry and discovered the equipment, as well as a vast quant
  
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• Robertson seals landmark £47m Royal High School revival job

  28-01-2026 14:29 via constructionenquirer.com
  Robertson has secured the £47m main contract to transform Edinburgh’s former Royal High School into Scotland’s National Centre for Music.
  The Category A listed building has remained unused for more than 50 years, despite a number of proposals for its future use.
  The planned creation of the National Centre for Music marks the first time these ambitions will be realised with the signing of this contract representing a significant milestone in the building’s history, formall
  
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• Watch HS2 start final tunnel drive to Euston

  28-01-2026 09:05 via constructionenquirer.com
  HS2 started its drive into the heart of London yesterday as the first of two giant machines began work on the Euston Tunnel.
  The TBM was manufactured by Herrenknecht AG in Germany and shipped over to the UK in 2024 before being carefully lifted into and reassembled in the giant underground station box at Old Oak Common.
  Engineers from HS2’s London tunnels contactor, Skanska Costain STRABAG joint venture (SCS JV), have been working to prepare the machines for their tunnelling mission over t
  
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• Safety regulator to pull plug on toughest Gateway 2 legacy cases

  28-01-2026 09:03 via constructionenquirer.com
  The Building Safety Regulator is preparing to reject its most problematic legacy Gateway 2 cases as it formally exits the Health and Safety Executive to become a standalone body.
  The regulator has confirmed it is now reviewing the final 29 long-running legacy schemes on a case-by-case basis and will reject applications that cannot be resolved within the next one to two months.
  Assessors say information gaps on some projects remain too wide to close, meaning developers will be forced to start aga
  
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• Materials suppliers warn of bleak 2026 without housing stimulus

  28-01-2026 09:00 via constructionenquirer.com
  Construction materials suppliers have issued a stark warning that 2026 risks becoming another lost year for the industry unless urgent action is taken to revive housing demand.
  The Construction Leadership Council’s Material Supply Chain Group says market conditions remain bleak, with no meaningful recovery visible across housing, residential repair and maintenance or major commercial work.
  The group is calling for a targeted housing stimulus to restore confidence, unlock stalled demand and
  
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• Birmingham switches firms on £3bn council housing upkeep

  28-01-2026 08:49 via constructionenquirer.com
  Birmingham City Council has rung the changes among contractors maintaining its housing stock, lining up a new trio to take over long-term repairs and upkeep across the city.
  From July 2026, Equans, Wates and Mears will run day-to-day repairs, planned maintenance and improvement works on around 60,000 council homes.
  The new 10-year framework arrangement split across four city regions could be worth up to £3bn, with the option to extend for a further five years.10-year Birmingham housing mai
  
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• Boulevard Construction set for London resi scheme

  28-01-2026 08:35 via constructionenquirer.com
  Boulevard Construction has been chosen by developer London Green Ltd to build a 90-flat residential scheme in Waltham Forest.
  Boulevard was set up in October 2023 and its website uses some former Henry Construction jobs to highlight its experience.
  Henry Construction Projects went into administration in June 2023 owing suppliers more than £43m.
  One of the founding directors of Boulevard was Sean Dundon who resigned from his role last month.Dundon is married to former Henry boss Mark Henry&
  
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• Robertson to finish hospital job hit by Merit collapse

  27-01-2026 12:50 via constructionenquirer.com
  Robertson Construction North East has been appointed to complete the new £35m Berwick community hospital where work stopped last November when original contractor Merit collapsed into administration.
  Robertson will now complete survey work to enable the development of a construction programme and take over management of the new hospital site in the middle of February.
  Damon Kent, managing director of Northumbria Healthcare Facilities Management, said: “The last few months have been d
  
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