Chesterfield construction news

Contractor appointed to build new canal bridge at Staveley

The Chesterfield Canal Trust has appointed O’Brien Contractors Ltd. to construct and install a new bridge for pedestrians and cyclists over the soon-to-be restored route of the canal at Staveley.

This will be the first stage of the Trust’s £6 million restoration project. The bulk of the money is from the Staveley Town Deal, a government levelling up project.

The new 38 metre long bridge will take the Trans Pennine Trail across the canal to meet the Arkwright Trail. Later the canal itself will be restored including a new bridge for farm vehicles and a new lock. There will also be a freshly landscaped relaxation area including picnic benches and information boards. This will be carefully planted to encourage wildlife.

O’Brien’s will start on site in April and major groundworks will start in May. The bridge will be installed in the summer and there will be a formal opening ceremony in September. You will be able to follow the progress of the works as they happen by going to the Chesterfield Canal Trust’s website.

Tony Mitchell, Director, O’Brien Contractors Ltd, said: “We are extremely pleased to have been appointed by The Chesterfield Canal Trust to provide the new canal bridge at Staveley. This prestigious project will be a huge benefit to pedestrians and cyclists all over the region and the restoration of this historic route will benefit the community for many years to come. We look forward to working with the Trust and their team over the course of this exciting project.”

Chesterfield Canal Trust Development Manager, George Rogers, said “This is a big milestone for the Chesterfield Canal Trust, and we are delighted to appoint O’Brien Contractors to deliver this statement structure over the canal. Installing this bridge will open up the route for future restoration in multiple ways and I am looking forward to seeing it progress over the summer”.

Ivan Fomin, Chair of the Staveley Town Deal Board, said: “It’s taken a huge amount of work by the team at the Chesterfield Canal Trust to get to this point and I want to thank them for their efforts and congratulate them on reaching this important milestone. The expansion of the canal is an important project for the town deal – it will help make the town a more attractive place to visit and provide residents with new outdoor facilities to explore. I look forward to seeing the bridge completed as this will unlock the next stages of this project.”

The Trust currently has an appeal to raise £50,000 to go towards the cost of the gates for the new Keith Ayling Lock, named after a former Chair of the Trust.

Chesterfield Canal Trust supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 200 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

TPT Bridge Chesterfield canal artist impression

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Chesterfield’s Regeneration Award winner praises ‘collaborative effort’ on landmark housing project

The winner of the 2022 Love Chesterfield Award for Regeneration, which celebrates the built environment in Chesterfield, has heaped praise on the team who made it possible.

A collaborative project between Chesterfield Borough Council and Henry Boot Construction, Badger Croft is described as the ‘largest council housing development in a generation’ in Chesterfield. The £4.1m development has seen 21 brand-new properties constructed on the former Brockwell Court site in Loundsley Green.

The development is providing families with modern homes that have been designed for a more eco-conscious lifestyle. Increased levels of insulation throughout and electric vehicle charging points have been installed on properties with driveways to support lower carbon transport options.

Councillor Chris Ludlow, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for housing, said: “We are delighted that the Badger Croft development has been recognised and won the regeneration award at this year’s Love Chesterfield Awards. The win really is a testament to all the hard work and dedication that has been put in by the council, alongside our partners, Henry Boot Construction.

“Badger Croft is the biggest council housing development of this generation in Chesterfield and marks a huge milestone in our efforts to increase the housing supply across the borough.

“Creating attractive places for residents is at the very heart of what we do and these new properties allow us to provide affordable, modern and accessible homes for families in our borough.”

We recently caught up with Tony Shaw, Managing Director at Henry Boot Construction, to get the company’s reaction to winning the award…

Regeneration 873x466

Tell us how pleased you are to have won the Regeneration Award at the Love Chesterfield Awards 2022!

We are delighted that Badger Croft won the Regeneration Award, the project was a collaborative effort between everyone involved which led to a brilliant end product, so it’s great to see the project recognised for its regenerative impact in Chesterfield. The Regeneration award is testament to the hard work of the team in transforming the area into quality housing for local families.

How exciting has the Badger Croft project been to work on as a company, and how much of a benefit has the project had on our local community?

As a company based in Dronfield, working on the project with Chesterfield Borough Council had a really local feeling and this was emphasised by our trusted supply chain, with the brickwork, joinery, plastering, plumbing, roofing and window installation all completed by subcontractors who were based within 20 miles of the site.

In conjunction with the Council, we worked closely with Holmebrook Conservation and Improvement Group to implement key landscaping works in the surrounding area. These works were designed to enhance the attractiveness of the area and boost biodiversity. It included the creation of wildflower meadow paths, new wooden planters and fruit trees, all for the benefit of the local community.

Sustainable development is of upmost importance currently – Tell us about the measures you’ve put in place at Badger Croft to ensure the new homes are efficient.

As champions of sustainability, we completely understood the Council’s need for Badger Croft to take account of environmental issues and contribute to a greener future. The new homes were fitted with increased levels of insulation. These naturally warm and energy-efficient homes are not only better for the environment, but they also reduce the running costs for tenants – something that is extremely important in a period of rising living costs and fuel poverty. The homes also boast electric vehicle charging points in the driveways, helping to future-proof the development and encourage the use of more sustainable modes of transport.

With Chesterfield becoming an increasingly attractive place for young families, how vital is it that we create affordable housing to ensure continued growth in the town?

Projects like Badger Croft are of paramount importance to delivering Chesterfield Borough Council’s commitment to increase the supply of affordable properties across the borough. The project is a prime example of how under-utilised brownfield land can be transformed into bright modern homes, not only providing a place for people to live and thrive, but improving the look and feel of the surrounding area. With a mix of 21 new accessible, efficient 3-4 bedroom homes, this is the largest council housing development in the borough since the 1980s. All the homes were added to the Council’s housing register and let to local families.

Chesterfield’s Property and Construction Group works collaboratively with Chesterfield Borough Council to highlight the town’s ongoing regeneration. Why is creating strong relationships between public and private sector so important?

Chesterfield is a hive of regeneration activity and it is brilliant to see a number of other exciting completed and on-going projects constantly improving Chesterfield’s offer. We believe in nurturing a collaborative approach across all our operations – by building strong relationships with all our public and private sector partners, all parties benefit from increased expertise and open communication, ensuring the Badger Croft project proceeded smoothly. The final result was only possible through an open culture of strong engagement between Henry Boot, its specialist consultants and supply chain and the team at Chesterfield Borough Council.

Find out more about the Chesterfield & North Derbyshire Property and Construction Group, which brings together business leaders of the region’s property sector and Chesterfield Borough Council to shape and drive forward collaboration, investment, sustainability and skills within Chesterfield

https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/propertygroup/ 

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Fortem launches new health and safety standard

Fortem has launched their new Health and Safety standard, Safe4Life, which builds upon their existing promises to ensure everyone goes home safe, every day.

Safe4Life – Taking Care of You, represents Fortem’s commitment to the health, safety, and well-being of all its staff, trades, supply chain partners and stakeholders. The aim of this rejuvenated standard is to reinforce the essential requirements and expectations, which all levels of the business must meet, to develop and maintain a world-class Safety, Health, Environment and Compliance (SHEC) culture.

The existing standard includes the four key principles required to embed a robust health and safety culture:

  • Value- No one should suffer pain.
  • Belief- ALL accidents can be prevented.
  • Attitude- Everyone has a zero tolerance of unsafe behaviour.
  • Behaviour- Everyone looks out for themselves and others.

These guiding principles are at the forefront of everything Fortem do, be that in the planning and delivery of work, community engagements, on the move and any other way in which its people operate.

The new model builds upon these four guiding principles to incorporate seven key elements:

  • Empowerment
  • Engagement
  • Intervention
  • Supervision
  • Consultation
  • Leadership
  • Recognition

The new standard has been designed to reflect how Fortem approach and manage Safety, Health, Environment and Compliance. Each component of the model details elements of the management system that is either already in place or that will be launched as part of the initiative.

Mike Hart, Managing Director at Fortem said, “The Health and Safety of our workforce, customers and members of the public continues to be our number one priority. A robust, well embedded safety culture creates the foundation for which high Health & Safety standards develops and thrives.

“It helps prevent accidents and incidents and encourages people to report observations, in an environment that does not apportion blame. It leads by example. It protects our people by making sure they receive the right training, equipment, safe systems of work, PPE, support and mentoring. It does not compromise on the safety of its people. It keeps abreast of current legislation and industry best practice and ensures our people are given the relevant information from these so they can continue to work safely. It empowers people to do the right thing, all the time, even when no one else is looking.

“Our refreshed Health and Safety strategy ‘Safe4Life’ is an important milestone in ensuring that, together, we drive our Health and Safety culture across our workforce and supply chain to underpin how we design, plan and deliver all of our work in branches and projects.”

Fortem supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 200 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

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