New Bolton Woods Development is given the go ahead

Bradford’s metropolitan District Council has been given permission to begin the construction of a ground-breaking £150M scheme.

The new urban village will be between Bradford and Shipley and cover more than 30 hectares of land on the outskirts of the city centre. In the next ten years, the village should deliver 1000 much-needed new homes, a local centre with shopping facilities, a primary school and a health centre along with sports facilities.

With Bradford’s economy forecast to grow to more than £9BN by 2016, the New Bolton Woods Development will be a big part of providing new homes for employees of major companies choosing to invest in the city.

The first 50 homes have already been built and are fully occupied. Earlier this year, planning permission was given for a new Aldi food store to be part of the development.

The granting of planning permission for the complete New Bolton Woods development is the culmination of three years of extensive urban design work and public consultation carried out by Canal Road Urban Village Ltd (CRUVL), a joint venture partnership created by regeneration specialists Urbo and Bradford Metropolitan District Council.

Councillor Susan Hinchliffe commented: “I’m really pleased that the application has gone through. It’s a long term vision for the area which has an accompanying thought-through plan of what infrastructure the area will need in the future as well. We all now have to work hard to deliver that vision so that local people realise the benefits of the regeneration as soon as possible.”

Peter Swallow, a director of Urbo and CRUVL said: “The granting of planning permission is a major milestone in the delivery of the residential phase of New Bolton Woods.

“We are now in a position to start talking to housebuilders and identify the right partners to deliver the scheme. We anticipate great demand given the excellent location of the development, its proximity to public transport and the demand for private housing in the area.”

 

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Environment Agency use AIR drone to monitor waste sites

The Environment Agency has taken to the skies to monitor waste sites by employing Manchester Fire and Rescue Service’s AIR (Aerial Imagery Reconnaissance).

The remote controlled AIR drone will help the agency to perform its duties in regulating waste sites and is used to take photos and videos but also to detect raised heat sources within the piles of waste.

Waste degradation can result in the creation of high temperatures. The AIR drone can identify waste that is at a higher risk of self igniting, potentially causing a fire.

The Environment Agency work closely with the fire service to identify waste sites that poses a high risk to ensure that waste is handled safely.

Gordon Whitaker, Environment Manager, said that around Bonfire Night, fires at waste sites are an “increasing concern”.

He commented: “There is always a risk of pollution to watercourses and the local environment. Everyone who disposes of waste has a duty of care to ensure their waste is handled appropriately. If you don’t dispose of your waste correctly you risk being prosecuted and fined. If you run a business or other organisation this could seriously damage your reputation.

“This 5 November we are also reminding people about the types of materials that are safe to burn. Small amounts of paper, leaves, wood and cardboard are all fine. However, treated wood, tyres, plastic, rubber and oil can pose serious risks to health and the environment.

“Many people don’t consider the implications of dumping illegal waste on their bonfire, so it is essential that it remains secure. If you’re organising a bonfire night this week, make sure you know where the bonfire material has come from and that it is suitable.”

 

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Pen y Cymoedd Wind Energy Project ready for turbine deliveries

The sites are now ready to receive turbine deliveries following the completion of site access tracks.

Joint venture partners Jones Bros and Balfour Beatty have completed work to construct new and upgrade existing site tracks.

They delivered a balance of plant and infrastructure services on behalf of Vattenfall and have now completed more than 80km of site access tracks.

Eryl Roberts, project manager for the joint venture, said: “The completion of the site access tracks is a welcome milestone, as the project is dictated by their progress and completion.

“Quality tracks are needed to access each turbine base location, and we can now move plant to all 76 of the project’s turbine locations”.

Since starting the work on the access tracks in 2014, there have been upgrades to 50km of existing tracks with the construction of a further 30km.

A geotextile reinforcing layer is put on the top of existing ground and vegetation, followed by a layer of blasted rock, approximately a half to one and a half metres in depth. A further layer of processed rock, which is 150mm in depth is then added to provide a smooth surface for the turbines to be built on.

The tracks are constructed  to ensure they can withstand heavy plant and vehicles delivering the wind turbine components, with the junctions and bends increased in width for accessibility.

Alistair Hinton, Construction Manager for Vattenfall, said: “Siemens, the turbine supplier tested the tracks with a trial run in September which was successful.

“We are currently working to finish preparations ahead of the first delivery in mid-November”.

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SMMT figures highlight strong CV market

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has today announced a steady October for the UK commercial vehicle market, with a slight 2.9% decline in registrations. The newly-released figures indicate a return to ‘business as usual’ following a period of exceptional demand in October 2014, driven by then-imminent regulatory changes. Statistics for the year-to-date point towards a 16.7% increase when compared with 2014, with a further 355,301 vehicles registered.

Britain’s van market continues to flourish, with demand rising 6.2% when compared with the same month last year. In total, 312,369 new vans have been registered so far this year – a 16.3% increase on October 2014’s figures, which SMMT attribute to growing business confidence and the rising popularity of online shopping.

Truck registrations remain robust, up by nearly a fifth in the year-to-date, with 42,932 new vehicles registered in the first ten months. An extraordinary spike in heavy duty demand last October – ahead of the introduction of the Euro-VI emissions standard – has caused this month’s figures to appear considerably lower in comparison however, falling 31.5%.

Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT, said: “The van and truck market remains strong, with remarkable growth across all commercial vehicle types so far this year. The rise in demand for vans demonstrates an ongoing trend as more consumers choose the convenience of home delivery.

“Meanwhile, following an exceptionally strong October in 2014, it’s no surprise to see a decline in last month’s truck market. To put this into context, at 5,791 registrations, this October’s performance is more than double the average monthly total of 2,720 delivered by the market since 2001.”

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Scotland in need of at least 10,000 homes

Scotland’s home building industry is today highlighting the need for at least 10,000 homes of all tenures in order to tackle Scotland’s housing crisis.

SNP and Labour recently pledged to build 50,000 and 60,000 affordable homes respectively which has led to Chief Executive of trade body Homes for Scotland, Philip Hogg, calling on politicians to paint a complete picture of Scotland’s housing requirements.

Speaking to an audience of more than 120 senior industry representatives and other stakeholders in Edinburgh, he said: “In order to make our country a better place in which to live, work and invest, it’s essential that we have enough homes of the right types in the right locations to meet the diverse housing needs and aspirations of our growing population.This is fundamental to achieving the fairer society we all want to see.

“The fact is that the total number of new homes being built remains 40 per cent down on 2007 levels, exacerbating the housing pressures which particularly affect our young people and growing families.

“Providing more affordable housing is obviously a key part of addressing the overall chronic undersupply of homes.  However, this can only be achieved through an all-tenure approach, particularly given the major direct contribution the private sector makes to affordable housing.

“Quite simply, we need our politicians to get housing sorted so the people of Scotland have the homes that they need, whatever the tenure type”.

Mr Hogg said that he is calling on the next Scottish government to “manage a return to at least pre-recession levels of building” which would mean at least 10,000 new homes by the end of the next parliamentary term.

He commented: “We believe this is an ambitious but achievable target and have set out in our manifesto the action which needs to be taken to make it happen.”

A new research report that was released today highlights not only the positive social impacts, including improving health and education outcomes and fighting fuel poverty, but also that the 15,562 homes built last year supported over 63,000 jobs. This equates to over four jobs per home which generated some £3.2BN in Gross Value Added.

Nicola Woodward of Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners, the consultants undertaking the research, said: “Scotland must deliver more new homes in order to help secure a prosperous economic future and given the scale of the economic benefits at stake, it is critical that the issues currently constraining supply are resolved.”

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Landlord electrical safety deadline looms

As landlords met in Edinburgh this week for National Landlord Day 2015, SELECT has been raising awareness of the looming electrical safety deadline.

SELECT, the campaigning trade body for Scotland’s electrical sector, is reminding the private sector that from 1 December 2015, landlords are required to carry out five-yearly checks of fixed wiring and electrical appliances, with the checks needing to be undertaken by appropriately qualified people.

The trade body issued the reminder as the Scottish Association of Landlords held its eighth conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday.

Following the release of Scottish government statistics revealing that 69% of all accidental fires in Scottish homes are caused by electricity, the issue of electrical safety has become an important subject for landlords.

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 was recently amended to include statutory guidance on electrical installations and appliances in private rented property to make sure that a rented property meets the “Repairing Standard” at the start of and throughout any tenancy.

This includes a requirement for landlords to ensure that installations in the house for the supply of electricity, the electrical fixtures and fittings and any appliances provided by the landlord under the tenancy are in a reasonable state of repair and in proper working order.

Dave Forrester, Head of Technical Services at SELECT, said: “SELECT is participating in the National Landlord Day event to highlight the changes to the law which will affect all private sector landlords from December 1.

“The government’s guidance states that these checks must be conducted by appropriately skilled persons and lists SELECT as one of the organisations whose members meet this requirement.”

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Lanes Group wins contract for Mersey Gateway Project

Lanes Group have won a contract to deliver drainage and maintenance to the £600M project.

Drainage engineers based at the Lanes Group depot in Chester have been contracted to provide a range of services including drainage cleaning and unblocking, CCTV drainage surveys and remedial work on existing and new drainage infrastructure.

The Company are working for the Merseylink Civil Contractors Joint Venture – a joint venture consisting of FCC, Kier, and Samsung, the design and construction contractor for this major transport and regeneration project

Ian Clapham, Area Development Manager for Lanes Chester, said: “This is a very exciting project for us. The Mersey Gateway Project is going to make a huge difference to the lives of people and to economic development across the North West.”

The construction project, which began in May 2014, is split into nine sections, with the new bridge itself making up just one of them. The new bridge is being built 1.5km to the east of the Silver Jubilee Bridge and will have six lanes and a toll bridge between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes. Including the approach viaducts on each side, it will be 2,130 metres long with a river span of 1,000 metres. The toll will be free for people living in Halton.

The Mersey Gateway Project is expected to create around 4,640 new jobs through inward investment, regeneration activity and direct employment. The development will unlock major economic development, environmental improvement and transport infrastructure opportunities.

The new £600M cable stayed bridge will be made from reinforced concrete, supported by steel cables, which will be attached to three towers. It will be a landmark structure that will be recognisable throughout the North West.

It is due to open in autumn 2017.

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