Willmott Dixon secures second project in a year with Queen Mary University of London
Latest project follows work to enlarge the Informatics and Technology Learning building in Bethnal Green
Willmott Dixon is aiming to take a greater share of the private residential contracting market with the appointment of Keith Harley as housing for sale sector manager.
Willmott Dixon currently builds over 1,500 homes a year, mainly for Registered Providers (RPs), and is increasing its contracting work for private developers with recent projects for Taylor Wimpey, Bellway and St George. Keith’s appointment is part of the company’s strategy to build over 1,000 homes a year for private developers, including its in-house developer, Willmott Dixon Homes.
Prior to joining Willmott Dixon, Keith was director of development services at Tribal Consulting, where he worked with developers and RPs advising on a number development projects including large-scale regeneration schemes, HCA gap funding schemes and assessing the financial viability of planned private housing developments.
Keith says, “Willmott Dixon is a well respected name in housing and when they outlined their ambitious growth plans to be one of the largest volume contractors of housing for sale, the opportunity to spearhead that was too good to miss. I am looking forward to applying my specialist knowledge to this sector, especially with the growth plans of our own in-house developer, and believe that our skill set provides a compelling market proposition.”
Keith has also worked with Home Group, one of the UK’s biggest RPs, and Willmott Dixon Capital Works CEO John Frankiewicz said, “We are already one of the UK’s largest housing contractors by volume, with the majority being social housing or mixed-tenure projects for RPs. With our private house building experience, combined with the return of major residential developments in the South East, Keith’s gives us a highly experienced resource to ensure we bring the Willmott Dixon approach to this emerging market.”
With its skill-set and supply chain, Willmott Dixon is also one of the most experienced housing contractors in the area low energy efficiency, including recently delivering ground breaking low carbon housing for Home Group in Stevenage and Velux in Kettering. The target now is to take this experience and achieve a balanced split between private developer customers and RP clients.