Member companies from the Electrical Contractors’ Association’s (ECA) South East region recently met with Sevenoaks MP Michael Fallon. During the meeting, the delegation discussed prompt payment and retentions and highlighted the impact that both have had on businesses and the industry. “These issues have blighted businesses
Bellway Homes the property developer has recently launched the Hampden Gardens development on new homes. Located in Thame, the development offers a wide selection of houses that are thought to be idea for families. This site consists of two, three, four and five bedroomed homes in either detached or semi-detached
As HMRC begin notifying construction firms of the need to carry out status checks on the self-employed subcontractors they engage, tax specialist Qdos Contractor has urged these businesses to take the right steps to make accurate decisions or risk six figure tax liability. In recent weeks, HMRC has sent letters
In the right hands, drones are providing us with eyes in the sky and a view that hasn’t been so accessibly easy to obtain ever before. However, in the wrong hands, drones are proving to be a danger to air traffic. Getting the balance right is the crucial next step
More tradespeople live in south east of England Published: 12 October, 2016 The South East is home to more tradespeople than any other region in the UK, according to new research. Just over 27,500 tradespeople work across the region, according to the study from Direct Line for Business, with each
The Chartered Association of Building Engineers, or CABE, has announced that they have appointed Dr. Gavin Dunn as Chief Executive Officer. Gavin will be taking over the role formally in April 2018 when the current CEO of CABE, Dr. John Hooper, retires. Gavin has been a member of CABE since
Neil Usher has been appointed as the Executive Consultant of Unispace. Neil will be based at the company’s London studio and his appointment to this role has been made as a part of an expansion of the company’s client partnership’s team. Neil has more than 25 years of experience working
The Managing Director of SiteSales Property Group, Murray Smith has spoken about the plans that have been put forward by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan for the Capital. The draft London Plan that has been put forward by the Mayor include ambitious increases in delivery numbers for housing, as well
The Director of Special Projects for Stewart Milne Group, Jim Fitzsimons has added his voice to the chorus calling for property developers to have more of an input in improving Scotland’s woefully inadequate digital infrastructure. It has been agreed by many, including Jim Fitzsimons that the improvement of digital infrastructure
Bruton Knowles, the national property consultant working throughout the UK have announced that they are looking to improve their valuation specialism in the South East. In order to achieve this, the business has appointed a new senior surveyor. Sarah Kingston has been chosen for this new role and will be
Member companies from the Electrical Contractors’ Association’s (ECA) South East region recently met with Sevenoaks MP Michael Fallon. During the meeting, the delegation discussed prompt payment and retentions and highlighted the impact that both have had on businesses and the industry. “These issues have blighted businesses in this industry for too long now,” said Kevin Bush, ECA regional manager for the South East. “It is unacceptable for businesses to have to wait beyond a fair date to receive payment for a job or project, or have to become part of a practice like payment retentions – particularly when the option of Project Bank Accounts is there. We’re extremely grateful to Mr. Fallon for taking the time to discuss these issues with us and to understand why we and our members feel so passionately about the need for Government to take urgent action to ensure fair and prompt payment.” Michael Fallon MP said: “It was a pleasure to discuss late payments and retentions with the ECA. These issues are needlessly holding back businesses from expanding and recruiting. The Government is actively looking at this area and experienced representatives like the ECA have an important role to play in the process.” Pictured from left-to-right: Denis Bonnici (Bonnici Electricians), Michael Fallon MP, Stephanie Chessell (Carrington Electrical), Tony Cheeseman (A&A Service & Maintenance) Source link
Bellway Homes the property developer has recently launched the Hampden Gardens development on new homes. Located in Thame, the development offers a wide selection of houses that are thought to be idea for families. This site consists of two, three, four and five bedroomed homes in either detached or semi-detached house styles that are located in the town of Thame, Oxfordshire. It is important to Bellway Thames Valley, the division of the company carrying out the work on this development, to give help build communities as well as homes, and get involved with those living in the nearby area. As a part of this commitment to give back, Bellway Homes have been named as the sponsor for John Hampden Primary School’s first sports kit. The school have already unveiled their new kit at a local cross country event held at Oxford Spires Academy. At this event three teams qualified for the County finals that will take place in the Spring. David Nutt, the Head of Year Six and sports teacher at the school has said that the children were proud to show off their new kit at the Oxford Spires event and look forward to defending their Chairman’s Cup title at the County finals. The Oxfordshire school places a strong emphasis on sports, teaching children from 3 to 11 who participate in an hour of sports during the lesson times, and also have the opportunity to take part in up to four hours of sports on an extracurricular basis. Sports teach the children dedication and self-discipline, with external coaches also working with the school in order to help children to view sport as an integral part of a happy and healthy life. The Sales Director at Bellway Thames Valley, Steve Garton has said that they are delighted to help the school and wish them luck in their sporting fixtures. The prices of the Hampden Gardens start from £425,000 for a three-bedroom home, £510,000 for a four bedroomed property and £930,000 for a five-bedroom home.
As HMRC begin notifying construction firms of the need to carry out status checks on the self-employed subcontractors they engage, tax specialist Qdos Contractor has urged these businesses to take the right steps to make accurate decisions or risk six figure tax liability. In recent weeks, HMRC has sent letters to many construction businesses advising them to put their sole trader workers through its CEST tool within 30 days. CEST is the technology designed by HMRC to determine a worker’s tax status; used ultimately to decide whether they should be taxed by their contractor as an employee. Should a business engaging a subcontractor be deemed to have made an incorrect decision following an investigation by HMRC they will be liable for any resultant PAYE tax and national insurance. Seb Maley, Qdos Contractor CEO urged construction firms to take the initiative when setting the status of the sole trader contractors they engage: “While letters from HMRC are not formal enquiries, there’s every chance they will be a big concern to construction firms. Without taking the appropriate steps there’s a chance these businesses could face action from HMRC and risk having to pay huge sums of missing tax. “This isn’t a reason to panic, more a sign that construction firms should be proactive and begin making well-informed and accurate status decisions irrespective of whether they have received a letter from HMRC or not. “CEST is not mandatory when it comes to determining status. The tool itself has been widely criticised for missing out key points which can lead to inaccurate decisions. “To protect their own liability and to ensure the continued use of self-employed subcontractors, it’s vital that construction firms assess the way in which they are currently making decisions. Building firms with modest subcontractor workforces could be liable to significant tax and NIC bills which could run into six figures, particularly when you consider HMRC can go back four years under normal circumstances.”
In the right hands, drones are providing us with eyes in the sky and a view that hasn’t been so accessibly easy to obtain ever before. However, in the wrong hands, drones are proving to be a danger to air traffic. Getting the balance right is the crucial next step when it comes to drones, they need to be accessible to everyone but have strict regulations to ensure everyone is safe. Ben Gorham, the director of drone surveying company Sky Revolutions explains, “Clarity around the legal framework, traffic management, and safety of drone operations is actively needed to underpin the sector and provide reassurance to the market.” It’s hopeful that someone who is an important figure in the sector sees that things need for change, but as of yet, the government are behind on the plans for drone legislation. Aviation Minister Lord Ahmad stated that, “while the vast majority of drone users are law-abiding and have good intentions, some operators are not aware of the rules.” Which is where things start to get dangerous. If you’re using drones within your business, here’s what you need to know: Registration is key The House of Lords EU Committee has called for the compulsory registration of all commercial and civilian drones. However, as of yet there’s no government led registration site – you may instead want to sign up on Drone reg for now which keeps a log of manufacturing numbers and details should your drone go astray. Committee Chairman Baroness O’Cathain says, “A key recommendation is that drone flights must be traceable, effectively through an online database, which the general public could access via an app. We need to use technology creatively, not just to manage the skies, but to help police them as well.” Watch your weights The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) dictates that it’s only legal to fly a drone that weighs over 20kg in certified ‘danger areas’ such as specific aerodromes. It is also your responsibility to keep the drone in your direct sight at all times and if it is fitted with a camera, you must fly at a suitable distance from people or objects. The requirements on the CAA website state that you must not fly a surveillance aircraft below the height of 150 metres of congested areas or those with a large number of people vacating the same space. You should also keep at least 50 metres from ‘any vessel, vehicle or structure, which is not under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft.’ A lot of the drone flying regulations come down to good common sense, but if you aren’t sure on something it’s always best to check with an authority such as the CAA.
More tradespeople live in south east of England Published: 12 October, 2016 The South East is home to more tradespeople than any other region in the UK, according to new research. Just over 27,500 tradespeople work across the region, according to the study from Direct Line for Business, with each tradesperson servicing 137.5 households. This compares to the north east of England, which has one tradesperson for every 305 households. Other areas with high numbers of tradespeople per household include the east of England, which has 19,870 tradespeople (one for every 130.9 households), and London, which has one tradesperson per 130.6 households. In contrast, Scotland only has an estimated 3,935 tradespeople, or one per 285.8 households, while Wales has one per 224 households. Nick Breton, head of Direct Line for Business, said: “Developing electrical, plumbing, plastering and other trade skills is recognised as a valuable road to success. The research provides a nice snapshot of tradespeople hotspots up and down the country, and where it’s potentially easier to source help based on the ratio of tradespeople per household. Source link
The Chartered Association of Building Engineers, or CABE, has announced that they have appointed Dr. Gavin Dunn as Chief Executive Officer. Gavin will be taking over the role formally in April 2018 when the current CEO of CABE, Dr. John Hooper, retires. Gavin has been a member of CABE since 1999 before being appointed to the board in 2014. Gavin is currently the Executive Director at BRE a role that sees his in charge of the global operation an and strategic development of the organisation’s Building Performance business. In order to take over as the CEO for CABE, Gavin will be stepping down from his current position, however he will maintain his positions on the Building Regulations Advisory Committee for the UK Government and the European Board of GRESB, which is a Dutch company that works to assess the ESG performance of real estate assets and investments around the world. CABE was first formed in 1925 as the Incorporated Association of Architects and Surveyors. The association is a leading body for professionals that specialise in design, construction, evaluation and the maintenance of buildings. CABE have members that practice across the UK, mainland Europe and around the world in both the private and public sectors. The Association also offers the main qualification of Building Engineer which reflects the expertise of its members. In his new role as CEO of CABE, Gavin will be given the perfect opportunity to raise the profile of the organisation in order to increase its influence with the industry and the Government and have an impact on policy and standards. Gavin will also be in charge of promoting the various different unique roles that the CABE members have in creating better buildings as well as safer and healthier communities in order to improve the environment and economy in order to help the Association to expand their international presence.
Neil Usher has been appointed as the Executive Consultant of Unispace. Neil will be based at the company’s London studio and his appointment to this role has been made as a part of an expansion of the company’s client partnership’s team. Neil has more than 25 years of experience working in the industry and will no doubt be an asset to the company as they look to expand their operations. The new Executive Consultant, Neil has an industry leading real estate track record and an award winning tenure with Sky in the role of workplace director. This industry experience will be beneficial to the company as Unispace looks to increase the size of their team working on client partnerships. Neil Usher spent almost four years transforming the approach that Sky had to workplace, agile working, creative hubs and software engineering. Neil also worked on a wide range of other innovations during in his time at the company. The European Managing Director for Unispace, Anthony Hazell, has said that appointing Neil as Executive Consultant is fantastic news for the company and with his experience, reputation and award winning track record Neil will be able to identify the changes that have taken place in recent years and that are required for continued success. Neil will be based at Unispace’s London offices; however, his work will take him to the company’s studios across Europe. Neil will be working to see how Unispace can get involved in the work to offer better workplaces earlier in the process. The company are wanting to help their customers from the first thoughts of improving their workplaces, helping to develop a brief and searching for the perfect location. Unispace work to show that there are new ways to create amazing and high quality workplaces for their customers at a pace, a service that is unique in the market at the moment.
The Managing Director of SiteSales Property Group, Murray Smith has spoken about the plans that have been put forward by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan for the Capital. The draft London Plan that has been put forward by the Mayor include ambitious increases in delivery numbers for housing, as well as more clarity for a number of the affordable housing schemes. The main focus of the London Plan is on infrastructure -ready zones, with particular attention paid to areas of the suburbs. One of the more important areas of the plan is the reform of the planning process. The changes that are being made will be policies apparently ripped up in favor of more of an emphasis on fire safety. However, the extra costs for fire safety will be put onto the viability assessments of properties that could have a negative impact on the supply of affordable housing. Murray Smith has said that there is a clear emphasis on the delivery of additional housing, that will follow on from last week’s budget, which promising to put aside eye-watering sums for production. The Managing Director is however concerned that the government feels that increasing delivery will be the magical solution for the so-called ‘broken market’. While commenting on this topic, Murray also opposed this phrase, as markets don’t break, rather present unappealing offerings, with a market that is reluctant to fall, which then leads to affordability concerns. The SiteSales Property Group said that, in London per capita, there are enough homes, with the right requirements to suit everyone. However, these properties are simply too expensive to be in reach of first time buyers. Perhaps the solution is building houses that are affordable for first time buyers, although not everyone can afford to live in the most popular and exclusive areas, and compromises should be made in terms of location when looking for a house.
The Director of Special Projects for Stewart Milne Group, Jim Fitzsimons has added his voice to the chorus calling for property developers to have more of an input in improving Scotland’s woefully inadequate digital infrastructure. It has been agreed by many, including Jim Fitzsimons that the improvement of digital infrastructure in Scotland is essential to the success of the Scottish economy. There are still too many areas of Scotland that, at the moment, have a strongly inadequate connection to broadband, with both local and national government initiatives not working to address the main problems behind this lack of connectivity quickly enough. Stewart Milne Group is one of the UK’s leading independent home builders and timber system manufacturing companies. The company has been working on a project bring forward the larges new “town” in Aberdeen, Countesswells. Ultrafast broadband has been installed in this area and it is thought that the work carried out here should be replicated by other developers on projects across Scotland and should be an essential part of the considerations when planning a new housing or mixed-use developments. The new £800 million community located to the west of Aberdeen will have access to broadband speeds that are measured at 35 times faster than the UK average. It is thought that this connectivity improvement is a first for a new town development. The independent home building company installed the fibre optic network necessary to deliver such significantly higher speeds while also fitting other groundworks services such as gas and drainage. It should be par for the course across all developments, in Scotland and beyond that the most up to date internet services are installed alongside other essential services. The improvement of connectivity will make new housing developments more appealing, and help them to sell faster. Stewart Milne Group identified the best partner, Grain, to install the best fibre optic network available alongside work taking place on new and existing roads in order to make the installation cost effective.
Bruton Knowles, the national property consultant working throughout the UK have announced that they are looking to improve their valuation specialism in the South East. In order to achieve this, the business has appointed a new senior surveyor. Sarah Kingston has been chosen for this new role and will be working from Bruton Knowles’ Guildford office. The multi-disciplinary consultancy works to offer their clients a wide range of skills. These services include building consultancy, compulsory purchase and compensation, estate strategy, agency and development consultancy, professional skills including valuation, lease renewals, rent reviews and rating and property management. Sarah Kingston will be joining the company from Eddison Taylors, where she worked as part of the valuation of commercial and investment property and investment property in the South East. Sarah also has experience working for a range of organisations in healthcare, retail, licensed and leisure sectors. The appointment of Sarah as a new senior surveyor has come when the Guildford location is experiencing a continued period of growth. It is thought that Sarah will be an asset to the company especially during this growth period, as Sarah has valuable experience that can help Bruton Knowles to improve the reputation and profile of the team. This appointment will also help to increase the business’ capacity to service regular clients as well as offer timely advice to new ones. Sarah is the latest significant appointment that has been made by Bruton Knowles, the expansion of their team will help the company to keep pace with their workload. The company have long-term plans to recruit more high calibre staff in order to realise their growth plans. Sarah Kinston first became a qualified Chartered Surveyor in 1992 and has worked throughout the commercial property industry ever since, At the start of her career, Sarah worked as a part of a general practice agency, with a specialist knowledge in sales, leasing and acquisition of offices, industrial and retail property for her clients.