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Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd Opens Scottish Scaffolding Division

Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd (LMB) has appointed Billy Dolan as Operations Manager of their new Scottish scaffolding division in Glasgow, the next step in the company’s national expansion plan.  Billy brings over 30 years of experience in the construction industry in a management position, he has worked for a spectrum of multi-national, national and local

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Lee Marley Brickwork Limited Win Subcontractor/Services Provider of the Year at the Housebuilder Awards 2020

Lee Marley Brickwork Limited (LMB) is the largest integrated brickwork, stonework and scaffolding sub-contractor in the UK. They are delighted to have won Subcontractor/Services Provider of the Year at this year’s Housebuilder Awards 2020. The Housebuilder Awards  recognise innovation and excellence in the industry and are brought to you by Housebuilder magazine, the

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Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd Appoints Training Manager for Brickwork & Scaffolding Apprenticeships

Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd (LMB) has appointed Christian Hatherall-Good as the company’s Training Manager. LMB currently offers both brickwork and scaffolding apprenticeships in order to bring the next generation of tradesmen into the construction industry. Christian, bringing 25 years of experience in construction and education, will be charged with developing LMB’s

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Construction Entrepreneur – Introducing Lee Marley

Lee Marley, 46, is the founder of multi-million-pound nationwide enterprise Lee Marley Brickwork Limited, which he formed in 1997 at just 24 years old. Lee’s business is now one of the UK’s leading integrated brickwork, scaffolding and stone subcontractors, the company turned over £47.1million in 2019. Lee was born in

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Latest Issue

BDC 319 : Aug 2024

lee marley

Lee Marley Brickwork Opens New London Head Office & Graduate Hub in Notting Hill

Lee Marley Brickwork (LMB) is one of the UK’s leading integrated brickwork, scaffolding and stone sub-contractors. With premises already in Reading, Edinburgh, Leeds, and Nottingham, the company are delighted to announce the opening of their new London Head Office conveniently located in Notting Hill. Easily accessible with good transport links, Notting Hill is one of London’s most vibrant and iconic neighbourhoods. The new headquarters operates as the ideal professional space for visiting clients and suppliers, as an effective working & training environment for graduates, and as a head office for key staff. The 3500 square foot premises offer a modern, personable environment with ample space for visiting clients and suppliers to meet with the team and where any problems can be dealt with quickly and efficiently, face to face. The business continues to grow nationally and over the last five years has tripled in size.  Director Lee Marley comments: “With much of the company’s business based in London and the Southeast, Notting Hill is an ideal location not just for managers and graduates, but also for visiting customers and suppliers. We’ve created a professional base and the response from clients so far has been glowing. I am also proud that we are an accredited Investors in People business and firmly believe in the ethos of putting our staff first. I want all of our workforce to believe in a future with Lee Marley and the opening of our new graduate hub is a part of that investment in our team.” Tim McKenna, Managing Director at Dorsey Construction Materials Ltd. says: “I recently visited Lee Marley’s new offices in Notting Hill, and I immediately thought, this is a great location. I was really impressed with how light and airy the whole place was with many workstations around the central area. The conference room was very well equipped and spacious – ideal for CPD presentations etc. Then beyond that there was a chill zone for light refreshment.  I am in and out of lots of offices and this recently refurbished office is easily the best I’ve been to. This office is certainly a breath of fresh air and is most definitely the way forward”.  The state-of-the-art office is ideal for showcasing the company’s work and achievements with a large proportion of the space being made up of glass, brick, and stone, reflective of the very work the company is renowned for. The building has a large boardroom, several informal meeting areas, and plenty of workstations ideal for hot desking or for when graduates and apprentices are office based for inductions and training. Training Manager Christian Hatherall-Good operates the Graduate and Apprenticeship Schemes, organising the rotation and managing the courses. The new London office is used by by students for theory training with small groups of 3-4 students visiting weekly. Graduate Estimator Ben Spyvee comments: “Since joining LMB, I have gained valuable experience from working on live construction jobs and within the estimating department. This has allowed me to build valuable skills and become an important member of the team. Over the 18-month period I have worked for the company I have witnessed a large amount of investment and growth in key areas that have created an improved working environment, most notably being the opening of the new office in Notting Hill. This has provided a more enjoyable and efficient working environment for all involved. The large open spaces, meeting spots and a host of other features has formed a great hub for the company, opening opportunities to host important meetings with clients, colleagues, and suppliers. I am looking forward to the future and hopefully building on all the positives that have already been introduced.” Michael Tame MRICS, Commercial Director at Lee Marley Brickwork says: “As we see natural growth within our business operation it was important to us to create an environment that allows our employees to achieve their full potential. A key passion of ours is our Graduate and Apprenticeship Schemes which promote young talent. The opening of our Notting Hill office will promote a friendly hub for our graduates to base themselves from. The office provides collaborative workspaces, offices and a large boardroom with state-of-the-art conference and presentation software, ideal for online and in-person training.  Our clients are key to the strength of our business, and it is our intention to use this new workspace to invite our clients to and display some of our work, of which we are extremely proud of. We are excited to enter 2022 in such a fortunate position.” For more information, please visit: www.leemarley.com. Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd, currently offers both brickwork and scaffolding apprenticeships and are investing in the next generation of tradesmen into the construction industry.

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Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd Opens Scottish Scaffolding Division

Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd (LMB) has appointed Billy Dolan as Operations Manager of their new Scottish scaffolding division in Glasgow, the next step in the company’s national expansion plan.  Billy brings over 30 years of experience in the construction industry in a management position, he has worked for a spectrum of multi-national, national and local businesses over his career. Billy comments: “I am delighted to join the Lee Marley team in Scotland and to work alongside Michael Carr. We are extremely excited that we can now offer our clients a full package service of scaffolding and brickwork, as well as being flexible to offer them as standalone services.” Michael Carr, Commercial Manager – Scotland comments: “Billy is a great addition to our team in Scotland.  In the five years that we have been operational in Scotland it has been an ambition of mine to offer a masonry and scaffold solution that mirrors our set-up south of the border.  Billy’s wealth of experience in this sector allows us to offer our customers the same high standard from a scaffold perspective that we have become known for through our masonry side of the Scottish business.” Billy is excited to be part of the company’s continued expansion plans and with the investment that LMB have put into the Scottish market, he has high hopes for the future. As of next month, LMB will be working on several projects in Scotland that cover new build housing and social housing. The team are delighted to announce they will be working on a scaffold and brick package for Morrisons on their Winchburgh schools project. In Scotland, Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd are working on many brickwork projects including:  Edinburgh: Longstone, Edinburgh St James – Edinburgh, Springside, Dundee Street, Longniddry and Ropeworks 7 Glasgow: New City Road, Clydebank Health Centre, Ropeworks 7 and Daragvel Primary  LMB Joint Managing Director Dan Clarkson comments: “Having worked closely with Bill over a number of years it is great to have him join our team in Glasgow. His technical and safety knowledge is second to none and his appointment allows us to replicate the combined brickwork and scaffolding offering that has proved so successful in London and the South East. It will also allow us to offer scaffold only services to a wider range of clients on new-build, refurb and maintenance projects across the Central Belt” Lee Marley Brickwork (LMB) is one of the UK’s leading integrated brickwork, scaffolding and stone sub-contractors. For more information, please visit: www.leemarley.com. 

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National Apprentice Week: Lee Marley Brickwork Applauds Apprentices for Adapting to The Challenges of Covid-19

National Apprentice Week runs between the 8th-14th February and this year the team at Lee Marley Brickwork Ltdare celebrating their amazing apprentices and how well they’ve adapted to the changes in training that Covid-19 has created. Lee Marley Brickwork (LMB) is one of the UK’s leading integrated brickwork, scaffolding and stone sub-contractors. The company recently employed Apprentice Training Manager Christian Hatherall-Good who is currently looking after 35 apprentices, (9 scaffold and 26 brickwork). Students are working on sites such as Oval Village Vauxhall with Berkeley Homes and Chelsea Barracks for Multiplex.  Christian comments: “I believe that training on the job through an apprenticeship is the best way to learn. You can earn a wage while learning. I believe that real life learning is important, but cannot be all of the learning, as apprentices need to have the opportunity in a college or training centre to practice new skills, gain knowledge and have the opportunity to make mistakes, without it being detrimental to the build of the project and time constraints.” LMB Managing Director Lee Marley commented “As a former apprentice bricklayer I appreciate the opportunities that a quality apprenticeship can offer. It is also essential for the construction industry to encourage young talent into the sector and focus on evolving skills in order to improve productivity.” LMB has a firm belief in the need to develop the next generation of bricklayers, scaffolders, stone masons and steel fixers. Modern methods of construction are continually evolving, and the company want to ensure that the workforce of the future is equipped with the skills to adapt to this. The company has formed partnerships with Brooklands College, for brickwork, and the CITB, for scaffolding. This allows them to incorporate their own syllabus into the apprentice’s curriculum meaning that they are fully prepared to meet the changing needs of the construction industry. The company continue to have a close relationship with a number of other colleges which allows them to offer greater geographic and trade specific coverage in their recruitment programme. How a construction company has filled training gaps in the absence of colleges During the first Covid lockdown, it became clear that LMB apprentices would not receive the same theory and practical training they would have done at college and on site. This lockdown, with colleges being closed, the company have responded to the situation and developed a revised training plan, so their apprentices do not miss out on either the theory or practical side of their training. Before Covid restrictions set in, an apprenticeship at the company allowed apprentices to work on site four days a week and attend College one full day. In response to the current situation, the apprentices continue to have remote learning from the College tutor and from the Training Manager on their usual college day. Christian continues to visit the apprentices on site in controlled and social distanced conditions in order to carry out teaching and provide guidance to the apprentices while they work. The apprentices are usually placed in pairs on projects. Many of the company’s current apprentices are from Brooklands College.  Christian has been working closely with the College and between both parties a plan for training the apprentices has been developed. This includes Google classroom groups with a wide a range of resources available such as ‘how to’ videos, Workbooks, PowerPoints, scenario assignments, worksheets and revision quizzes. On the apprentices’ usual college day, they attend at least two, one-and-a-half-hour theory sessions on Google MEET’s group video call with their tutor.  Christian has also organised a one-to-one review session for each apprentice on |Google MEET’s with their tutor and on-site assessor. The aim being to check on the student’s wellbeing, work progress, targets and to provide advice on any work they needed help with. Naomi Hamilton, 19, has just completed her bricklaying apprentice NVQ2 and will be beginning her NVQ Level 3 shortly, after that she’d look to getting her gold CSCS card and one day would like to be a supervisor.  Naomi won the first ever inaugural Female Trainee brickwork competition sponsored by Forterra in 2019. She has the following advice for others looking to get into the construction industry: “Don’t give up, keep at it, your hard work will be rewarded. Ask questions, you’ll find solutions which you can apply to your work. Keep building your skillset – challenge yourself. If you’re a female don’t be afraid, believe in yourself and prove people wrong, you can do this in a male orientated industry.” The next step for LMB will be to open their own training centre that would be at the forefront of brickwork and scaffolding training in the UK.  Watch this space! For more information about Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd, please visit: www.leemarley.com. The company currently offers both brickwork and scaffolding apprenticeships in order to bring the next generation of tradesmen into the construction. To find out more about apprenticeship and careers opportunities at LMB please email jobs@leemarley.com

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Lee Marley Brickwork Limited Win Subcontractor/Services Provider of the Year at the Housebuilder Awards 2020

Lee Marley Brickwork Limited (LMB) is the largest integrated brickwork, stonework and scaffolding sub-contractor in the UK. They are delighted to have won Subcontractor/Services Provider of the Year at this year’s Housebuilder Awards 2020. The Housebuilder Awards  recognise innovation and excellence in the industry and are brought to you by Housebuilder magazine, the Home Builders Federation (HBF) and in partnership with NHBC. LMB Director Dan Clarkson comments: “We are delighted to have won this category, this was a real team effort and we are extremely proud of everyone involved. The core driver of our business is to build good working relationships with clients and working with them to deliver projects on time and under budget.” James O’Connell, Project Director, Ballymore says: “Lee Marley have worked on five consecutive phases at our Embassy Gardens development providing a joint brick work and scaffolding packages totalling £21m. The company has become an integral part of the team, imparting valuable knowledge on the procurement of masonry support and off-site fabricated elements. The combined brickwork and scaffolding team works cohesively to meet demanding deadlines and their high level of managerial skill and quality enables us to focus our efforts else- where. As a business Ballymore would whole heartedly recommend Lee Marley for both brickwork and scaffolding projects and will continue to use them in the future.” At Embassy Gardens for Ballymore LMB started brickwork at multiple levels on the façade to shave 5 weeks from the programme too make up for a delay caused in another package. Mark Kay, Project Director, Lend Lease comments: “Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd worked on the MP3 H4 and H5 projects at Elephant Park, the construction of over 830 residential units. The work they undertook was carried out to a high level of quality, has received several positive compliments from a number of third parties, and is of a demonstrably high standard of workmanship. Furthermore, the works were undertaken in strict adherence to the programme and with several innovative approaches presented to offer programme betterment. All aspects of the works were carried out safely and with diligence, and they fully embraced our safety culture, along with all of our safety campaigns and processes. Their site team worked well with our management staff, and with the other trade contractors, and we hope to continue our good working relationship on future projects. I would endorse the use of this contractor on other schemes and look forward to working with them again in the near future” At Elephant and Castle LMB were able to save Lend Lease £634,000 in direct material costs by advising on design of stone, masonry support, and off-site manufactured brick clad units. A list of all the winners and highly commended companies can be found at https://www.house-builder.co.uk/events/housebuilder-awards-2020/ For more information about Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd, please visit: www.leemarley.com

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Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd Appoints Training Manager for Brickwork & Scaffolding Apprenticeships

Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd (LMB) has appointed Christian Hatherall-Good as the company’s Training Manager. LMB currently offers both brickwork and scaffolding apprenticeships in order to bring the next generation of tradesmen into the construction industry. Christian, bringing 25 years of experience in construction and education, will be charged with developing LMB’s programme further and capitalising on the recent change in the pathway of apprenticeship funding that gives employers greater flexibility on delivering the training that they need. What sets LMB’s award winning programmes apart from others is a combination of behavioural coaching and up to the minute technical instruction. The training offered goes beyond current apprenticeship requirements with specialist modules focussing on modern methods of construction, fire safety and quality assurance. Based at their Head Office in Reading, he will be in charge of all LMB apprentices, mentoring and monitoring them throughout from the point of induction, to monitoring and delivering training, through to qualification.  LMB’s brickwork apprentices spend four days on site gaining real hands on experience and one day at College while apprentice scaffolders follow a more staged block release programme. Christian is currently looking after 26 brickwork and 9 scaffold apprentices, he has students working on sites such as Oval Village Vauxhall with Berkeley Homes and Chelsea Barracks for Multiplex.  Many of the company’s current apprentices are from Brooklands College where he worked for over 8 years as Head of Construction Curriculum and as a bricklaying tutor. But a key part of Christian’s role will be building relationships with other colleges and local authorities in order to identify new talent to join the LMB apprenticeship scheme. Christian, who holds a Professional Certificate in Education focused in Education from Greenwich University, will also oversee personal development and upskilling of LMB’s current operatives including identifying recent graduates of the apprenticeship programme that show managerial promise and encouraging them to take on more responsibility under the wing of an experienced site supervisor and are supported through their SSSTS and SMSTS for brickwork supervisors or their Advanced Scaffolder or CISRS Supervisor qualification for scaffolders. The next step for LMB will then be to open their own training centre that would be at the forefront of brickwork and scaffolding training in the UK. Christian is in the process of looking at funding and accreditation for this, watch this space! 

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Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd Opens Leeds Office in National Expansion Plan

Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd (LMB) has appointed Mike Hampton as Commercial Director to head up their new regional office based in Thorpe Park, Leeds. Mike is a seasoned industry executive who brings 20 years of masonry experience in the north and midlands to the business. Mike comments: “The opportunity to join one of the leading masonry companies in the UK was too good an opportunity to miss. There is huge potential in the north as masonry packages grow bigger and bigger and it shows great confidence in the region that LMB wants to become part of the Northern Power House story” LMB Director Dan Clarkson comments: “Mike is a great addition to our team. Many of our clients have been asking us to work in the region for some time but we have been waiting to recruit individuals that share our drive, commitment to quality and customer focus” LMB Managing Director Lee Marley commented “We have worked all over the country on major projects but it has always been an ambition of mine to have a permanent base in the region to create a bridge between our work in Scotland and the South and offer a comprehensive national masonry solution to our customers” LMB’s team includes operational and commercial management and will be focussing on large scale schemes that have become the company’s hallmark in Southern England and Scotland. The company has chosen Leeds as its base in the North of England because of its good transport links and highly skilled labour pool. With offices already in London, Reading and Glasgow, Leeds is the next step in their national expansion plan. Future business plans include working in partnership with local colleges and universities in the North of England to further develop LMB’s apprenticeship and graduate programmes. For more information about Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd, please visit: www.leemarley.com

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Construction Entrepreneur – Introducing Lee Marley

Lee Marley, 46, is the founder of multi-million-pound nationwide enterprise Lee Marley Brickwork Limited, which he formed in 1997 at just 24 years old. Lee’s business is now one of the UK’s leading integrated brickwork, scaffolding and stone subcontractors, the company turned over £47.1million in 2019. Lee was born in Wembley, London, his grandfather was a bricklayer and by the age of 7 Lee knew this was a trade he too wanted to follow. The family moved to Devon when Lee was as a child and it was here that he got his foot on the construction ladder and completed a bricklaying apprenticeship at North Devon College. By the age of 19 he had two employees, one of whom still works for Lee today as a Project Manager! The team kept on growing and in 1995 Lee moved back to London with his family. The firm he was working for went bust but the customer took him on to finish the job, his small business went from virtually nothing to a million-pound turnover in 6 months. By the time he’d hit 25, the business was creating an annual turnover of five million. The company has continued to grow year on year and in 2001 Lee spotted a gap in the market and acquired a failing scaffolding business providing his clients with a one stop shop. The business has survived two recessions and Lee has learned valuable lessons along the way, looking ahead at forward workloads, splitting jobs across the sectors and how not to put all your eggs in one basket! Over the years they have worked on some exciting and high-profile projects and some of Lee’s major achievements in the industry include the Olympic athletes’ village, Eton College, Belmarsh Prison, Reading Station and The Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre in Nottinghamshire. However, Lee is very much a believer that you shouldn’t forget about the “bread and butter” residential building work and the more sectors the business has, the more outlets you have got to keep the business going. Lee’s righthand man Dan Clarkson partnered in the business in 2011 and has helped drive the company forward creating a new client base and developing customer relationships. Since Dan joined, the company have worked for more tier 1 contractors and the business has flourished. They have grown the scaffolding business from £1m a year to £10m a year turnover and the business as a whole from £14m to £47m a year. The company operate nationwide with clients across residential, commercial and public sector (MoD, MoJ, rail, and education etc.) Services include masonry, scaffolding and stonework. In 2015 and in order to meet the nationwide demand of their key blue-chip clients, the business expanded to Scotland and now works on projects across the Central Belt, between Glasgow and Edinburgh. In Lee’s driven style the company went from doing no business in Scotland, to securing the largest masonry package in the country within 4 years. Having trained as an apprentice bricklayer himself, Lee strongly supports the need to develop the next generation of bricklayers, scaffolders, stone masons and steel fixers. In 2016 he formed a partnership with Brooklands College in Surrey and now runs an Apprentice Programme at the College; 30 young people have been through this scheme so far. The apprenticeship teaches them what is relevant to the market such as modern methods of construction, fire barriers, insulation, IT, signing work off; all the aspects that are often hidden and could go wrong on a job meaning that  when they end up on site they are extremely valuable early on. In 2018 one of the apprentices, Tyler Pearce, was awarded Apprentice of the Year at the Construction News Specialist Awards. The Lee Marley Apprentice programme was awarded Apprentice Initiative of the Year at the 2019 Constructing Excellence SECBE Award 2019. The company also brings on apprentice and trainee scaffolders. Other accolades include the company being featured in the Sunday Times Profit Track 100, which ranks Britain’s private companies with the fastest-growing profits in 2019. They were also awarded Specialist Brickwork Contractor of the Year at the 2019 Brick Awards. This is their third win in six years having won in 2014 and 2017 also. Lee is proud to be investing in not only his company but in the future of the industry as a whole and the company also run a graduate programme at Reading University which they set up a few years ago, supporting young quantity surveyors and construction managers  on their journey to gain RICS or CIOB memberships. With Lee at the helm, the company continues to grow nationally on its journey as the first-choice brickwork, stonework and scaffolding supplier to many of the UK’s leading property developers and construction contractors. Lee is also looking to open another training college dedicated to industry apprenticeships possibly in Scotland or South East England – watch this space!

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