The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has published a new policy briefing highlighting five challenges and five opportunities for architects and architecture in the UK following the referendum to leave the European Union. In the policy document, RIBA, the membership organisation that provides the standards, training, support and recognition for 40,000 architects in the UK and overseas, offers policy solutions for the UK government that will support architecture’s contribution to economic growth and the quality of the built environment. FIVE Challenges 1. Upholding the strength of the UK’s world-class architectural sector – Government must prioritise the promotion of open markets at home and abroad, and ensure that it is easier to access finance for business – but in particular SMEs. 2. Maintaining a skilled and innovative profession – Government must ensure that freedom of movement for architects and the wider construction and creative sectors is maintained. 3. Retaining the free movement of skills/services and mutual recognition of professional qualifications – The UK should seek mutual recognition arrangements for architects in other large markets. The transferability of UK services within the EU, and the recognition of EU architectural qualifications within the UK must be maintained. 4. Sustaining affordable EU product supply and ability to specify product standards – The UK must continue to be party to the European Committee for Standardisation’s (CEN) and European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (CENELEC) discussions on the specific needs of the EU in relation to a given standard, and on mandates and decisions about harmonised standards. To promote business within the UK and the export market, common product standards must prevail. 5. Retaining access to research funding – Now more than ever, ensuring affordable access to high quality professional education will be crucial to the UK economy’s success in light of a widening of the skills gaps in the construction and design industry. FIVE Opportunities 1. Forging new commercial and research partnerships through new trade agreements – The UK Government should seek to forge new trade agreements which include trade in services agreements, especially with the UK’s top non-EU trading partners, and in areas where UK tradesmen can add most value e.g. Asian countries experiencing rapid urban growth and high levels of infrastructure investment. 2. Strengthening the UK economy – The Government should set a target for infrastructure spending that ensures the UK’s road, rail, air and telecoms networks are world class. 3. Gaining a competitive advantage in EU and overseas markets – The government should negotiate transferability of educational qualifications with key partner countries. 4. Improving SME access to public sector projects by reforming UK procurement policy – Government should do more to ensure that procurement policies are designed with a focus on quality and overall value. 5. Using VAT flexibility to boost construction and bring down costs of meeting standards – The government should explore changes to the UK’s VAT regime to promote sustainability in the renovation and refurbishment of buildings.  RIBA President Jane Duncan said: “UK architecture is a flexible and innovative profession. With the right actions taken to address the challenges and exploit the opportunities we’ve outlined today, I’m confident UK architects can deliver strong economic growth, and the buildings and spaces that meet the needs of our communities.” The RIBA Policy Briefing on Brexit is available to read in full here: https://www.architecture.com/Brexit ENDS Notes to editors: 1. For further press information contact Howard Crosskey in the RIBA Press Office howard.crosskey@riba.org +44 (0)20 7307 3761  2. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a global professional membership body that serves its members and society in order to deliver better buildings and places, stronger communities and a sustainable environment. www.architecture.com   Posted on Wednesday 27th July 2016 Source link

4 April 2016 | Herpreet Kaur Grewal Wilson Vale has gained a catering contract with Moor Hall Conference Centre in Cookham, Berkshire.   Under an initial 18-month contract, the independent caterer is due to open the new service on 11th April when a team of eight catering staff will provide a breakfast, lunch, evening, and hospitality service for up to 200 people at the venue.   The 80-bedroom residential venue is also home to the Chartered Institute of Marketing.   Moor Hall plays host to hundreds of events and conferences at its nine-acre site near Maidenhead. Source link

Almost two thirds of Australian’s think now is a good time to be buying a home while roughly the same proportion believe the housing market is vulnerable to a significant correction. The latest quarterly housing market sentiment survey by CoreLogic and TEG Rewards housing market sentiment survey highlights the paradox in housing market attitudes. The data shows that 64% of respondents thought it was a good time to buy a property, up from 60% of respondents a year ago. However, 65% also indicated they thought property values could suffer a significant correction. Sydney based respondents, where affordability constraints are the most pressing of any capital city, were the most pessimistic about whether now is a good time to buy a property, however slightly more than half the respondents still felt it was a good time to buy. Conversely, the regions where dwelling values have peaked and shown a downturn are where respondents are most confident about buying conditions. Some 80% or more of respondents in the Northern Territory, Regional Western Australia and Perth indicated they thought it was a good time to buy. ‘With such as a large proportion of survey respondents thinking that now is a good time to buy a dwelling, it was surprising that almost two thirds also indicated they thought dwelling values could suffer a significant correction,’ said Tim Lawless CoreLogic head or research. ‘While the results suggest that survey respondents are concerned there could be a substantial fall in Australian home values, the proportion is lower from a year ago when 75% of respondents thought the market was vulnerable to a significant correction in values,’ he added. When asked whether dwelling values would rise, fall or remain steady over the next 12 months, the majority of respondents expected values to remain steady, with Tasmanians the most optimistic about the direction of value growth over the next year. Nationally, 38% of respondents are expecting dwelling values to rise over the next twelve months. In contrast, a year ago 45% of respondents thought values would rise, indicating that respondents have become less optimistic with regards to their views on capital gains over the next financial year. For rental market conditions, only 11% of survey respondents are expecting weekly rents to fall over the next 12 months, despite the CoreLogic rental series showing the weakest rental conditions in at least two decades. Nationally, almost equal numbers of survey respondents indicated that weekly rents would either rise or remain stable over the coming year, however there were some considerable variations across the regions. Less than one fifth of respondents in Perth and Regional Western Australia think weekly rents will rise. ‘The low expectation of rental rises in these areas is in line with current rental statistics which show ongoing falls in weekly rents across most parts of Western Australia,’ Lawless pointed out. Source link