Build-up
RENEW North Staffordshire is committed to ensuring that the investment it is making in the housing market is benefitting local construction companies, building their capacity and assisting them with the training needed to help them secure contracts.
Build Up North Staffordshire, supported by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, the North Staffordshire Regeneration Partnership and RENEW, is proving a success for hundreds of construction sector firms as it ensures the local industry is a prime benefactor from the region’s multi-million pound regeneration activity.
With many new developments on the verge of coming to fruition across the city and surrounding North Staffordshire conurbation– and much more in the pipeline – Build Up is fighting the corner for local contractors.
Founded less than two years ago as a partnership between RENEW, the city council and the Learning and Skills Council, Build Up North Staffordshire aims to ensure the wealth created by these major building projects – from the Building Schools for the Future project to city centre redevelopment work - goes into the pockets of local firms and makes sourcing a quality local labour force as easy as possible for construction company bosses.
Already, 490 suppliers of services to the construction industry - from bricklayers to plumbers and electricians to architects - have signed up to the online scheme.
In addition, 37 influential contractors are signed up and use Build Up to find contractors for local work. Big name buyers include Kier Stoke, Lovell Construction, Aspire, North Staffordshire Housing, Compendium and many others.
The original objectives were to make sure that all those linked to the construction sector based in North Staffordshire, including building companies and those within the supply chains, was in the best possible position to benefit from the investments being made. It is designed to help local companies make sure they were equipped to win the contracts by offering training and advice through support organisations such as Business Link West Midlands.
When it was launched, it found more than £400 million worth of contracts active in the region. Since then, it has been telling our suppliers about millions of pounds worth of contracts every month. The success of the scheme has meant a wider range of opportunities have been made available to members. For example, in July 2009, Build Up posted information about £300 million worth of contracts in the travel to work area.
To date, it has worked with more than 130 companies and hundreds of individuals - making it the single most successful construction support project in the whole of the UK. The dual approach of advertising work and ensuring the region has skilled labour to carry it out, has helped reduce the impact of the recession on the local industry.
Of the 490 plus companies registered on Build Up, only five have gone into receivership – despite a 30 per cent downturn in construction work across the West Midlands.
To find out more about Build Up North Staffordshire, visit www.buildup-ns.org.uk
