A group of highly influential Kent Ambassadors visited Ashford to find out about the dynamic developments that Ashford Borough Council (ABC) and its partners have been taking forward within the borough over the last few years, and the exciting plans for the future. As a finalist in this year’s Local
A multi-million pound plan to revamp a Shoreham yacht club and open up the riverside to the public has been backed by Adur District Council. Sussex Yacht Club (SYC) applied for permission to create a new premises in Brighton Road. The project will see the riverside opened up to the
David Pratt has been appointed as Building Control Manager of Derbyshire Building Control Partnership (DBCP). He brings nearly 30 years of experience to the role, having previously held building inspector roles at Chesterfield Borough Council and most recently Mansfield District Council. David is the latest new appointment for DBCP which
Plans have been submitted by Rushbond, the property development company, for a new ‘garden village’ scheme, comprising 126 new and converted homes. The plans will see the transformation of a historic mill complex in West Leeds. Stonebridge Mills is one of a few mill complexes in Leeds that are considered
Leeds City Council has approved Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios’ plans for a £350 million South Bank scheme, which includes the construction of the city’s tallest tower. The plans also cover two office blocks, providing 26,100 m² of commercial and shopping space, together with an extra 103,900 m² of offices, retail,
Most recently, Sovini Property Services has successful been placed on a total of five frameworks put together by Lancashire County Council and Fusion21. To include all manner of works, these frameworks cover everything from maintenance, all the way through electrical and mechanical contracting, construction, installation and works for heating systems
A group of highly influential Kent Ambassadors visited Ashford to find out about the dynamic developments that Ashford Borough Council (ABC) and its partners have been taking forward within the borough over the last few years, and the exciting plans for the future. As a finalist in this year’s Local Government Chronicle awards in the categories of Council of the Year and Entrepreneurial Council of the Year, ABC representatives showcased our innovative approach to becoming a commercial council, whilst delivering high performing services for our residents. Cllr Gerry Clarkson, Leader of Ashford Borough Council, said: “The Kent Ambassadors visit to Ashford gave us an opportunity to update some very influential people in the county on the successes we have achieved and our general approach to getting things done. “They were very impressed by the breadth of investment we have seen, the amount of schemes which are currently underway and the projects which are on the horizon.” The trip involved a tour of some of the £590 million worth of developments that are currently being delivered in Ashford town centre, including the Commercial Quarter, Elwick Place, Ashford College, Curious Brewery, The Coachworks and Ashford Designer Outlet. Kent Ambassadors are a grouping of highly successful and experienced people who either live or work in Kent and who have come together, by invitation, in a voluntary arrangement to help all aspects of life in Kent. Each year the Kent Ambassadors undertake a visit to a district/borough to learn more about an area and champion their findings around the County, as well as exploring other ways they could help, encourage and support projects. This year the Kent Ambassadors visited Ashford on Thursday 23rd August. Richard Collins, Chairman of Kent Ambassadors, said: “The Ambassadors had a very interesting and well organised visit to Ashford as part of their annual programme. “It was a great insight into the fantastic development that is going on in Ashford. The passion that everyone displayed was inspiring. We will definitely be watching with interest the progress of this very forward-thinking council.”
A multi-million pound plan to revamp a Shoreham yacht club and open up the riverside to the public has been backed by Adur District Council. Sussex Yacht Club (SYC) applied for permission to create a new premises in Brighton Road. The project will see the riverside opened up to the wider public, flood defences improved and lead to the creation of pedestrian and cycle access along the southern section of the A259 coast road for the first time. “These are exciting plans which first and foremost will see a stunning new building created for the members of the Sussex Yacht Club. Committee members were unanimous in the view that the proposal will go beyond a recreational use; it will have a big impact on the wider community too with the improved transport links and new riverside public space a major boost to the area,” said Councillor Carol Albury, chairman of the planning committee. The approved plans are part of a wider project to revamp the Brighton Road site and surrounding area. As part of the project, Adur District Council has been transforming Shoreham Harbour from industrial units into new homes and workspaces with an expansive waterfront promenade. Meanwhile, the Environment Agency has been installing more than seven kilometres of tidal walls defences on the River Adur, reducing the risk of flooding to thousands of residential and business properties in Shoreham and Lancing. “I’m delighted we have been able to work with Sussex Yacht Club, the wider community and partners to bring forward the first stage of this development,” said Councillor Neil Parkin, Leader of Adur District Council. “Not only does it feed into our wider vision of regenerating the harbour arm but it will plug the gap in the flood defences and open up the southern section of the coast road to cyclists and pedestrians. I look forward to seeing construction work progress in the coming months and am certain that, when complete, the project will have a tremendous impact on the thousands of residents and visitors to our district,” he concluded.
David Pratt has been appointed as Building Control Manager of Derbyshire Building Control Partnership (DBCP). He brings nearly 30 years of experience to the role, having previously held building inspector roles at Chesterfield Borough Council and most recently Mansfield District Council. David is the latest new appointment for DBCP which was formed last year following the merger of six established Local Authority Building Control Services from Derby City Council, Chesterfield Borough Council, Derbyshire Dales District Council, North East Derbyshire District Council, Bolsover District Council and Amber Valley Borough Council. Within the role, David will be active in marketing DBCP’s services and offering to builders, property owners and architects throughout the region. He will also be implementing the industry-recognised ISO:9001 quality management system across the organisation’s offices at Friar Gate in Derby and Chesterfield. Commenting on his new role, David said: “I am excited to join such a forward thinking organisation. DBCP is really going places and the implementation of ISO:9001 will further streamline processes and services across both of DBCP’s offices to deliver greater efficiency to our customers. “DBCP is very much a customer-centric organisation, committed to doing things the right way and looking after the customer. It was these values that attracted me to both the role and DBCP. “There is a great team here and we have a very exciting journey ahead of us to achieve our aim of being the number one choice for building control in the region.” Prior to becoming a building inspector, David began his career as an apprentice site joiner, progressing to the role of bench joiner and kitchen fitter before making the move to building control after 10 years. He added: “I have had experience of building control on the other side of the fence, so I understand the importance of building good relationships with builders, architects and property owners. I share DBCP’s focus in ensuring the best possible outcome for all parties involved in a project – it’s why I love what I do so much.” Outside work, David enjoys gardening and is soon to be a grandad. To learn more about DBCP or to book an inspection, please visit www.dbcp.co.uk or call 0333 880 2000.
Plans have been submitted by Rushbond, the property development company, for a new ‘garden village’ scheme, comprising 126 new and converted homes. The plans will see the transformation of a historic mill complex in West Leeds. Stonebridge Mills is one of a few mill complexes in Leeds that are considered to be ‘at risk’ because dome of its parts date as far as 1805. The buildings have been empty for more than 20 years and the new plan will transform the historic buildings into 28 character homes, alongside 98 new contemporary designed homes. They will provide a mix of two, three and four bedroom houses for sale. “Stonebridge Mills is steeped in history and once played an active and vibrant role in the local community,” said Richard Baker from Rushbond. “It is sad that the site has been unused for so many years, but many of the key features of the original Mills remain and it has huge potential to be given that vibrancy again, this time as a place to live.” Moreover, the plan also includes public spaces such as a new public park running along the Wortley Beck, a heritage garden zone alongside the Mills and gardens for the proposed new build properties. “Our experience in developing new homes in Wortley demonstrates that there is a huge pent up demand for high quality realistically priced design-led homes on characterful sites,” Richard added. “By bringing that experience to bear at Stonebridge Mills we hope to be able to deliver, subject to the satisfactory outcome of our recently submitted planning application, a great selection of family homes, including starter homes, surrounded by new greenspace, breathing new life into a local landmark.”
Leeds City Council has approved Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios’ plans for a £350 million South Bank scheme, which includes the construction of the city’s tallest tower. The plans also cover two office blocks, providing 26,100 m² of commercial and shopping space, together with an extra 103,900 m² of offices, retail, leisure, hotel, health, education and community uses, parking and up to 750 new homes in buildings ranging in height from five to 40 storeys towards the rear of the development. The project is developed by Commercial Estates Group (CEG). “It has been a pleasure to work with CEG, the wider team and the City over the past few years in developing a project that will be key to the regeneration of historic Holbeck and the future transformation of the city centre as a whole,” said Alex Whitbread, Partner at Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios. FCBS’s 40-storey Globe Waterside residential tower is expected to be taller than Leeds’s current tallest building, 32-storey Bridgewater Place Tower, as well as BDP’s 33-storey mixed-use tower proposed for the western gateway to the city centre. “This derelict site is an important core in the west of the city, an area which has suffered from neglect over a number of years. This is set to change,” said David Hodgson, head of strategic development north for CEG David Hodgson. “At the heart of the South Bank regeneration area, our proposals will deliver the same attention to detail and quality as we are delivering at our award-winning Kirkstall Forge development. This will be an exciting mixed-use strategic development of a critical mass and international standard, revitalising the area and reconnecting local communities to the city,” he continued. CEG has also developed the £400 million Kirkstall Forge masterplan to the west of the city centre, which will provide 1,050 new homes, 28, 000 m2 of office space and 9,300 m2 of leisure and retail space once it is completed.
Most recently, Sovini Property Services has successful been placed on a total of five frameworks put together by Lancashire County Council and Fusion21. To include all manner of works, these frameworks cover everything from maintenance, all the way through electrical and mechanical contracting, construction, installation and works for heating systems – a truly diverse range of services. As for the frameworks, the Fusion21 Installation Works Framework, is a national planned-maintenance framework estimated to sit at a total value of some £300m over the course of a four year period. The Fusion 21 Servicing, Maintenance and Installation of Heating Systems Framework, on the other hand, sets out works for an assortment of both reactive and planned works for a mixture of commercial and domestic installations; in total, this framework being worth somewhere up to a value of £200m, also over a four year period. Sovini Property Services has also seen success in landing a number of maintenance and repairs frameworks for a variety of construction and M&E works with Lancashire County Council. These then tie in very nicely with the company’s success on the Fusion21 frameworks and effectively paint a very busy future for the company in the times to come. This, also comes very quickly onwards from the company’s most recent success in landing a £1.2m framework for the adaptation of homes for tenants with disabilities, on behalf of Blackpool Borough Council. Nodding to the recent stream of success for the company, Sovini Property Services’ Managing Director, Phil Pemberton highlighted the incredible achievement of the company in landing so many key frameworks within such a small period of time – a matter of weeks, in fact. He then went on to add: “We have surpassed our financial targets this year, and the business as well as our reputation has grown exponentially as showcased by these accomplishments.”