Great Portland Estates plc and Mace welcomed students and industry stakeholders from across Lon­don today to preview their newest development and to support the Build UK and CITB campaign to inspire young people into the construction industry.

Open Doors is an initiative that is led by Build UK, in partnership with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) to inspire young people to get into the Construction Industry. Students from schools and colleges were invited to attend the Open Doors launch amongst the industry leaders.

During the launch, students and attendees enjoyed a speech from Build UK Chairman and Mace Deputy Chief Operating Officer Mark Castle highlighting why Mace supports Open Doors and listened to presentations by Mace Group and Great Portland Estates on the project plans for the Hanover Square site. Build UK Specialist Contractor member GKR Scaffolding also spoke about their work on the project, making it the first Open Doors launch with Build UK members representing the Client, Main Contractor and key Specialist Trades actively participating. Visitors also participated in a behind the scenes tour of the site.

The Hanover Square site is perfectly located above the new entrance to Bond Street station for the Elizabeth Line. Once completed, the estate will provide 170,400 sq ft of Grade A office accommodation across three buildings, prime retail predominately fronting New Bond Street and restaurant space comprises 40,900 sq ft of the development, while six residential units totalling 12,300 sq ft are positioned on the junction of New Bond Street and Brook Street, as well as a new courtyard area for the public to enjoy.

Open Doors, which runs from Monday 18 March – Saturday 23 March across more than 280 sites, offices and factories throughout Great Britain, including Kier Group’s Christ the Word School in Rhyl, Balfour Beatty’s Dundee Regional Performance Centre for Sports and Willmott Dixon’s Whitehouse Medical Centre in Milton Keynes. Visitors can book through the Open Doors website.

Last year’s campaign saw over 275 construction sites in England, Scotland and Wales open to 5,200 visitors and Open Doors 2019 has already seen a huge amount of interest from schools, colleges and the public.

Suzannah Nichol MBE, Build UK Chief Executive, said:

“Open Doors Week 2019 is set to be another record-breaking year with fantastic, iconic sites, office and factories opening up across Great Britain. Open Doors offers businesses across the whole industry a super opportunity to showcase the vast array of jobs and careers available within it.”

CITB Policy Director Stephen Radley said:

“The launch of this year’s Open Doors event is significant in promoting the best the construction industry has to offer and we are pleased to partner with Build UK again. As construction modernises, the range of opportunities and of people that we need to attract is widening. We look forward to engaging with the next generation of workers.”

To find out more about Open Doors Week here.

Build UK’s latest Brexit guidance is available here. This guidance aims to help businesses prepare for Brexit by summarising the latest available information.

Build UK is delighted to continue their partnership with Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) for another year.

Sarah Garry, Skills Manager at Build UK said:

“Build UK is pleased to continue working in partnership with CSCS to ensure industry meets the Construction Leadership Council’s Requirements for a fully trained workforce. Over the coming year Build UK and CSCS will support employers to deliver safer and more productive work environments for the whole supply chain.”

Alan O’Neile, Head of Communications at CSCS said:

“CSCS is delighted to continue our long-standing partnership with Build UK. Only by working together can we make the long-lasting changes that are improving standards and safety on UK construction sites.”

Members can access the Construction Industry Joint Taxation Committee’s (JTC) monthly tax guidance newsletter as a key benefit of Build UK membership.

Members often register the difficulties they face in complying with changes to taxation rules and regulations and can now access the JTC newsletter which is publicised monthly on the Build UK website and includes guidance on challenging issues and direct responses to taxation queries.

The February edition includes the latest information on ‘Making Tax Digital’, what does this mean and how will it affect you?

• Exemptions from The Making VAT Digital (MVD) have been announced
• Joining MVD – Opt-in system
• Penalties

The full newsletter can be viewed here. If you have a query relating to items in the newsletter, please contact Liz Bridge.

Time to Talk Day takes place this month, and is a great way to get everyone having a conversation about mental health issues.

Build UK partner B&CE are working to raise awareness about improving mental health in construction, and supporting existing initiatives such as B&CE’s Charitable Trust.

The occupational health management scheme B&CE is developing, with the support of Build UK, won’t cover mental health at the beginning, as there are many types of conditions but no one single way of monitoring or measuring who might be at risk of developing a condition.  . Currently one type of assessment will not cover every condition. Once an appropriate assessment has been developed and validated, it will be added to the scheme.

According to the HSE’s latest figures, 14,000 construction workers suffered work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2018. The conversation about mental wellbeing in the construction industry has already begun, with initiatives like Mates in Mind and Building Mental Health working to raise awareness and provide guidance.

In 2018, B&CE’s Charitable Trust awarded its annual Mowlem Award to Mates in Mind to support their work. Their Executive Director, Joscelyne Shaw, explained what the £20,000 grant meant to the charity:

“We’re delighted to be a recipient of the B&CE Mowlem Award. It recognises the work Mates in Mind and our programme’s partners, business and charitable champions, and their employees do in bringing about an improved understanding of mental health and wellbeing. It sends a strong message about the role that workplaces can play in supporting workers’ mental health.”

B&CE is inviting construction companies and occupational health providers to join the Occupational Health panel, who will be invited to share industry experience and inform specific aspects of the scheme. If you are interested in joining the panel, please click here.

Construction Industry Publications (CIP) has updated the Construction Contractual Handbook, an essential tool which sets out the law and contracts for specialist and main contractors alike, as well as anyone else involved in construction, in a compact and accessible way.

The Handbook:

• Includes a reminder about the formation of a contract
• Contains a chapter explaining some of the most common onerous clauses or changes that sub-contractors and main contractors might come across
• Addresses the need to maintain vigilance throughout the duration of the contract, ensuring certificates are issued at the right time, variations and any disputes are properly managed and claims procedures are followed
• Includes chapters on Scottish and Irish law
• Contains useful checklists as a reminder.

Essential information to help sub-contractors and main contractors navigate the contractual landscape can now be found in the recently updated Construction Contractual Handbook.

Simon Bingham, Chairman of Caunton Engineering Ltd and chairman of Build UK member British Constructional Steelwork Association’s, Commercial and Contracts Committee said:

“As a specialist sub-contractor, Caunton Engineering Ltd needs to be aware of unilateral and difficult to spot changes to contracts, and make sure that we remain vigilant throughout the duration of the contract.  The Construction Contractual Handbook will be an extremely useful tool for our commercial team.”

The Construction Contractual Handbook is now available for purchase from the Construction Industry Publications Bookshop.

For further information contact Sarah Kenny or telephone 0870 078 4400.

As there are now Apprenticeship Standards in place and available for delivery, CITB has confirmed that the following SASE apprenticeships will no longer accept registrations past the following dates:

Immediately

• Digital Engineering Technician (Level 3)
• Lifting technician (for Mobile, Tower and Crawler Crane) (Level 2)
• Piling (Level 2)
• Steelfixing Major Projects (Level 2)

30 April 2019

• Highways Maintenance (Level 2)
• Scaffolding (Level 2)

31 July 2019

• Floorlaying (Level 2)
• Formwork (Level 2)
• General Construction Operative (Level 2)
• Painting and Decorating (Level 2)
• Plastering (Level 2)
• Trowel Occupations (Level 2)
• Tunnelling (Level 2)

Further information can be found here.

Build UK is pleased to welcome Willis Towers Watson as the latest Professional Services member to join. As a leading global advisory, broking and solutions company Willis Towers Watson helps clients around the world turn risk into a path for growth.

Chief Executive of Build UK, Suzannah Nichol MBE, said:

“At a time when the appropriate allocation of risk is at the forefront of discussions within the construction supply chain, it is great to see leading broker and risk management experts Willis Towers Watson, join Build UK as a Professional Services member.”

Leader of the Willis Towers Watson UK Construction practice, Pauline Goreham, said:

“We are delighted to be joining Build UK as they lead the construction industry agenda in the UK. We look forward to joining the debate around risk, talent attraction and employee health and benefits and are confident that the breadth of knowledge and experience within Willis Towers Watson can add value to Build UK’s ongoing initiatives.”