Bellway is celebrating after one of its site managers in Derbyshire scooped a top accolade in a prestigious national housebuilding awards competition.
James Kilby, who is overseeing construction at Holbrook Park in Chellaston, was announced as the winner of the coveted Large Housebuilder Regional Award for the East region in this year’s National House Building Council’s Pride in the Job Awards ceremony.
He and his colleague Jamie Smith, who is site manager at Hatton Court in Hatton, were also presented with Seal of Excellence awards at the event.
James was picked as the winner from 67 site managers across the region, who had all already been selected for Quality Awards in the first round of the competition for the exceptional standard of construction on their developments. James and Jamie are two of just 18 site managers in the East region to win a Seal of Excellence.
James, from Rolleston on Dove, spent five years with Bellway earlier on in his career and rejoined Bellway East Midlands in 2022 as a Project Manager. He has worked on multiple sites across the Midlands.
The 39-year-old said: “I am ecstatic to win such a prestigious award from the NHBC. To win a Seal of Excellence is exciting enough but to be chosen to receive a Regional Award is genuinely thrilling. I feel humbled.
“It is great to know that all the hard work and dedication that I and my team have put in to make sure that we always put the customer first has been recognised. My ethos is that I want to build a home and a development that I would be happy and proud to live in myself and my team work effortlessly towards that target. Second best is just not good enough, so we strive to ensure we get it right first time.”
Jamie, who works for Bellway’s West Midlands division after joining the company 10 years ago as an assistant site manager, has won a Quality Award and a Seal of Excellence Award for three years running at Hatton Court.
The 36-year-old said: “Once again, I get to step up on stage and accept an award but I have to thank the whole team at Hatton Court who have been there for me every step of the way. It’s about the team as everyone here has given their all and bought into my desire to ensure that only the best will do in every facet of the job, every day on site.
“I know I have given this job 100 per cent and, with the backing of a great team and supportive senior management, have been able to create a first-class environment on the site where homes of the highest quality are being delivered. It is a good feeling to get this recognition from the NHBC and is validation of all the blood, sweat and tears we have all put in.”
Every site registered with the NHBC is judged against exacting criteria each year. Site managers are assessed on a wide range of aspects of their work including attention to detail, leadership, technical expertise and health and safety.
Lee Wilkinson, Construction Director at Bellway East Midlands, said: “We are incredibly proud of James and his team at Holbrook Park, not just for the East Midlands division but for the whole of Bellway. Everyone in the industry knows just how difficult it is to achieve the Regional Award.
“We’re also thrilled our colleague Jamie from the West Midlands division has been recognised with yet another highly deserved Seal of Excellence. The quality control, determination and team leadership skills which both James and Jamie have demonstrated are second to none.
“We now look forward to the Supreme Awards in London in January and would like to wish James and his team the very best of luck for then – we know everyone at Bellway will be rooting for him to win.”
For more information about Bellway’s new homes in Derbyshire and across the UK, visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes.
Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
