27 February 2019
Build UK members Great Portland Estates and Mace open their doors at Hanover Square for Open Doors 2019
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.