Construction news

• Stalled Yorkshire Post scheme switches student towers for offices

  28-09-2026 08:04 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Prescient Capital is attempting to reboot the stalled redevelopment of the former Yorkshire Post site in Leeds by replacing consented student towers with two major office buildings.
  The latest plan switches the northern plots from around 1,700 student rooms to 15 and 17-storey office blocks providing nearly 49,000 sq m of workspace.
  The rethink follows further market testing and viability work aimed at unlocking the next phase of the prominent city centre site, which has remained largely vacant
  
  Read more

• Costain appoints new head to deliver HS2 tunnels

  28-09-2026 15:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Costain has appointed Rohan O’Grady as the new managing directior of Skanska Costain STRABAG joint venture delivering the London tunnels section of HS2.
  O’Grady will take up his new role next month replacing Jonathan Morris who has served as interim MD for the last six months and will now be taking a sabbatical.
  O’Grady joins Costain from Australian based CPB Contractors where he oversaw a string of major infrastructure projects.Jonathan Willcock, Managing Director, Transportat
  
  Read more

• McLaren bags £55m Elephant & Castle contract

  28-09-2026 12:54 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  McLaren Construction has been confirmed winner of a £55m contract to build new student accommodation in Elephant & Castle, south London.
  Developers Fabrix and PATRIZIA have appointed McLaren for Walworth Corners – a 134,000 sq ft PBSA development which will see the 0.34‑hectare brownfield site transformed to provide 283 student beds, 20 new affordable homes for social rent and retail and community space.
  Enabling works are now underway with completion targeted for Spring 20
  
  Read more

• House builders hail return of Help to Buy-style loans

  28-09-2026 09:04 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  House builders have welcomed Government plans to revive Help to Buy-style equity loans in a bid to kick-start the struggling new-build housing market.
  The new Your First Home scheme will allow eligible first-time buyers in England to purchase a new-build home with a deposit of just 2.5%, backed by a Government equity loan worth up to 20% of the property value.
  Full details are due to be unveiled at the Budget on 28 October, including household income limits, regional property price caps and the
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• First plans go in for vast Royal Docks scheme

  28-09-2026 08:47 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Developer Arada has submitted a series of planning applications to the London Borough of Newham for the £2.5bn Thameside West site between the Thames and Royal Docks.
  The plans detail the first 1,500 home stage across six buildings on the 47 acres site which will eventually deliver at least new 5,000 homes in east London.
  At the heart of the proposals will be a new seven-acre park, alongside around 1,000 new trees, creating a greener, more biodiverse environment for residents and the wider
  
  Read more

• Morgan Sindall gears up to restart stalled Blackpool courthouse

  28-09-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Morgan Sindall is gearing up to restart Blackpool’s stalled major courthouse scheme after being brought in to replace collapsed contractor ISG.
  The contractor has signed a deal with HM Courts & Tribunals Service and is now progressing detailed design for the new court complex at the junction of Devonshire Road and Talbot Road.
  The project was originally costed at around £43m, but the final bill is expected to be higher following the delay and contractor change.Fresh planning chan
  
  Read more

• Builders flee site during immigration raid: Video

  28-09-2026 08:09 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Construction workers have been filmed fleeing a major site in South London last week after the Home Office staged an immigration enforcement raid.
  Footage shared with the Enquirer shows a stream of workers running into nearby woodland to escape the authorities.
  Others can also be seen hiding in concrete formwork in a bid to evade officers.
  The site is in Crayford for developer London Square where Carey London is main contractor overseeing site infrastructure work and reinforced concrete frame co
  
  Read more

• McLaren clears planning for Hammersmith student block

  26-09-2026 19:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  McLaren Property has got the planning green light to build a 291-bed student accommodation scheme in Hammersmith, west London.
  The 14-storey Sussex Place project, estimated to cost around £45m to build, will replace an ageing eight-storey office block beside Hammersmith station.
  The development will provide 147 cluster bedrooms and 144 studios, with 35% of the accommodation offered at affordable rents.The 98,700 sq ft building will include student amenity space, a landscaped courtyard and
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Darwin scales back complex NHS modular work after £3m loss

  25-09-2026 09:07 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Modular healthcare specialist Darwin Group is scaling back its appetite for large complex projects after cost overruns sent the contractor into the red.
  Turnover at the Portakabin-owned business almost halved to £72m in 2025 from £140m the previous year.Darwin plunged to a £5m operating loss from an £8.6m profit, while pre-tax performance swung from a £9.2m profit to a £3.2m loss.
  Directors blamed the reversal on several large permanent modular healthcare proj
  
  Read more

• Robertson picked for St Helens heritage job

  25-09-2026 08:49 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Robertson Construction North West has been picked to transform the Grade II-listed Gamble Building in St Helens town centre.
  The contractor will restore and extend the Victoria Square landmark to create a creative and learning hub, bringing St Helens Central Library back into the building alongside an archive, youth hub, offices, café and communal space.
  The £15m job will be delivered under a two-stage design and build deal.Robertson will now review the proposals with St Helens Boro
  
  Read more

• Gateway 2 push fuels 20% jump in housing starts

  25-09-2026 08:36 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  House building starts jumped 20% in the second quarter as thousands of higher-rise homes flowing through the Building Safety Regulator helped swell the figures.
  New-build starts in England reached 35,910 between April and June, up 6% on the previous quarter and 20% on the same period last year.
  But government number crunchers cautioned that the rebound is being boosted by a dramatic rise in projects reported through the Building Safety Regulator.The BSR reported 5,758 housing starts during the l
  
  Read more

• Construction labour rates hit record high

  25-09-2026 08:29 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Average earnings for self-employed tradespeople rose to an all-time high of £1,110 per week during August.
  Latest research from the industry’s largest payroll firm Hudson Contract said this represents a 3.1% increase on July rates and 4.5% on the same month last year.
  Plumbing led the increases, with rates up 10.4% month-on-month to £1,348. Joinery rose 8.9% to £1,247, while steel and timber frame contracting climbed 7.6% to £1,102.Hudson managing director Ian
  
  Read more

• HG Construction lands resi contract at Ilford store site

  25-09-2026 08:15 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  HG Construction has been awarded the contract to build 326 new homes in residential towers across the site of the former Harrison Gibson department store on Ilford High Road in east London.
  Main construction work on the site which has stood vacant for nearly a decade can now begin after MP Living, the social housing provider established by Meadow Partners received the first tranche of grant funding from the Greater London Authority (GLA).
  MP Living is working in partnership with the GLA and the
  
  Read more

• Firms fined £1.3m after falling window kills passer-by

  25-09-2026 00:53 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Two companies have been fined a combined £1.3m after a window unit fell from the 26th floor of a luxury development in London killing a coach driver on his break as he walked below.
  The incident happened at around 10.30am on 2 October 2018 when Mick Ferris, 53, had been on a break and was just returning to his coach, which was parked up nearby.
  The 130kg window fell 300ft from the Corniche development on the capital’s Albert Embankment killing Ferris instantly.St James Limited, part
  
  Read more

• Roofing director fined for hiding mobile during bid rig probe

  24-09-2026 11:36 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The Competition and Markets Authority has fined contractor M&J Group and two staff members a total of £50,000 for hiding a mobile phone and documents during an inspection.
  The raid on the M&J business premises was part of a CMA investigation into 12 construction companies suspected of bid rigging on roofing work for school improvement jobs
  The cartel buster is examining whether these companies illegally colluded when bidding for contracts awarded by both private and public sector b
  
  Read more

• Neilcott clears employee ownership debt after bumper year

  24-09-2026 08:53 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Neilcott Construction has paid off the remaining loans tied to its move into employee ownership five years ago after pre-tax profit more than doubled.
  The south east building contractor made just over £14m of payments last year to redeem its outstanding vendor loan notes, clearing the balance without turning to external finance.
  Despite the outflow, Neilcott still closed 2025 with £22m cash in the bank.Pre-tax profit jumped to £14.7m from £7.1m as turnover rose 16% to a r
  
  Read more

• Vistry slashes regions as £661m loss lays bare scale of reset

  24-09-2026 08:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Vistry is to slash its operating regions from 25 to 12 and shrink annual housing output to around 12,000 homes in a radical reset to salvage the struggling business.
  The drastic downsizing will also see Vistry pull out of open-market housing across the South East to concentrate any future investment in the North, Midlands and West.
  Chief executive Adam Daniels unveiled the sweeping rescue plan as Vistry crashed to a £661m statutory pre-tax loss for the first half, compared with a £41
  
  Read more

• Barhale wins pipeline deal for giant housing estate

  24-09-2026 08:36 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Barhale has been appointed by Anglian Water to build a £14.6m twin pumped rising main to meet future development needs at Alconbury Weald in Cambridgeshire.
  The new 7,460m pipeline will provide the wastewater network capacity for the former RAF Alconbury base new town which has planning permission for 6,200 homes.
  Work will be delivered through the @one Alliance and the project is scheduled for handover in November 2027.Ashley Jordan, Construction Manager, Barhale, said: “Housin
  
  Read more

• Kier work winning director joins Galliford Try

  24-09-2026 08:05 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Galliford Try has appointed Vicky Nugus to the newly-created role of Strategic Development Director for its Environment business.
  Nugus joins from Kier where she spent eight years most recently as Work Winning Director.
  She will oversee the Preconstruction functions, including Business Development, Bid Management and Estimating as the business delivers on its water frameworks.Mark Shadrick, Divisional Managing Director of Galliford Try’s Environment business said: “Galliford Try is a
  
  Read more

• Groundworks firm went under owing suppliers £4m

  24-09-2026 08:05 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  House building groundworks specialist Avtar Construction went into administration owing more than 250 subcontractors and suppliers £4.4m.
  The scale of debts at the Swindon-based civils and groundworks specialist was revealed in a report filed at Companies House after administrators from FRP Advisory took charge of the business last month.
  Avtar had been in business since 2010 worked for regional offices of major house builders like Vistry, Persimmon and BarrattRedrow turning over arou
  
  Read more

• A46 Newark Bypass job returns to market at £700m

  24-09-2026 08:00 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  National Highways has reopened market talks for the A46 Newark Bypass with the replacement design and build plan now carrying an estimated £700m price tag.
  The move comes less than three months after National Highways cancelled Skanska’s £297m contract for the 6.5km dualling scheme around Newark-on-Trent.
  Skanska secured the job through the Regional Delivery Partnership framework in 2022 and had taken the scheme through design and planning.
  National Highways is now inviting con
  
  Read more

• Nexus CEO exits as contractor warns of £1m loss

  23-09-2026 08:43 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Nexus Infrastructure has scrapped its chief executive role as the concrete and civils contractor warned that slower project starts would leave the business nursing losses for a second year running.
  Charles Sweeney has stepped down from the board with immediate effect and will leave the business at the end of September.
  The shake-up came as Nexus said revenue for the year to September 2026 would reach around £70m, up from £66m last year but well below market expectations of £79m
  
  Read more

• Willmott Dixon set to start £24m Solihull village centre job

  23-09-2026 08:18 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Willmott Dixon is gearing up for the £24m second phase of the Kingshurst Village Centre regeneration in Solihull after council chiefs approved the funding package to push the scheme into construction.
  Work is expected to start before the end of the year on a 28,000 sq ft community, health and retail building alongside six homes, a new vicarage and road and parking improvements.
  The centrepiece will bring GP services, a dentist, pharmacy and opticians under one roof, alongside a library, co
  
  Read more

• Anglian Water shakes up contractor teams for works drive

  23-09-2026 08:18 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Anglian Water’s @one Alliance is overhauling its contractor teams to put new single delivery groups in charge of multiple projects across entire catchments.
  The shake-up comes as the eight-partner alliance more than doubles its capital workload from £1.2bn to £3bn during AMP8.
  Around £750m will be delivered through a new Place-Based programme, replacing the traditional approach of managing treatment works, networks and environmental schemes separately.
  Rather than spreadi
  
  Read more

• Bridgestone to build £30m Salford student scheme

  23-09-2026 08:17 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Bridgestone Construction has secured Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator for a £30m student accommodation development in Salford.
  Demolition work on the site started this week and the completed scheme will deliver 364 student rooms.
  Dave Hardman, Preconstruction Director at Bridgestone Construction, said: “Gateway 2 approval is a fantastic achievement for everyone involved in the project.“The regulatory landscape has continued to evolve throughout the design p
  
  Read more

• WSP pulls plug on £3.8bn Arcadis takeover

  23-09-2026 08:13 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Consultant WSP has pulled the plug on its attempted £3.8bn takeover of rival Arcadis after failing to win support from the Dutch group’s board.
  The Canadian engineering giant said it would not pursue a public offer after concluding a deal could only be delivered through a negotiated transaction backed by Arcadis.
  Its withdrawal ends a two-month takeover battle that saw Arcadis reject two unsolicited approaches, including an improved €51.5-a-share cash-and-shares proposal valuing
  
  Read more

• £350m flats plan for Birmingham shopping landmark

  22-09-2026 18:32 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Birmingham developer Sphere Group, formerly Court Collaboration, is pushing ahead with plans for a £350m transformation of the former Rackhams department store and neighbouring office buildings.
  The developer is preparing to unveil its vision for the landmark city centre site on Thursday, with more than 500 homes and 225,000 sq ft of office space planned.
  Sphere is acting as development partner for freehold owner Legal & General on the project, which will breathe new life into the form
  
  Read more

• BBV pulls off mammoth HS2 M42 bridge treble

  22-09-2026 08:53 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Balfour Beatty Vinci has completed a mammoth weekend engineering operation on HS2, dropping the final two 1,000-tonne viaduct spans into place over the M42 near Birmingham.
  The contractor also finished installing the 175 beams forming the roof of a second major bridge three miles away, bringing four weekends of intensive motorway works to a close.
  The latest operation saw a 75-strong team install two 45m-long spans at Water Orton, completing all six viaduct crossings over the motorway.
  How HS2 W
  
  Read more

• Henry Boot loses shine as first-half loss hits £6.3m

  22-09-2026 08:24 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Falling land sales and sluggish housing demand have pushed Henry Boot into a £6.3m first-half loss as its new chief executive battles to turn a vast land bank into cash.
  The Sheffield-based property and land group swung from a £9.8m pre-tax profit a year ago as revenue tumbled 19% to £81m in the six months to June.
  Net debt climbed to £133m from £108m at the end of 2025, driving gearing up from 26% to 33%.The group has agreed terms to increase its bank facility to &
  
  Read more

• Severfield hires airports chief for commercial shake-up

  22-09-2026 08:02 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Severfield has hired Manchester Airports Group procurement director Terry Fitzmaurice to take charge of its commercial operations in a newly-created executive role.
  Fitzmaurice joins as chief commercial officer, bringing senior procurement and commercial experience from Manchester Airports Group and Mitie.
  He will report directly to chief executive Paul McNerney and work closely with chief financial officer Andrew Page.His brief spans the steelwork giant’s commercial, procurement and estim
  
  Read more

Follow @new_constructio on Twitter!