Willmott Dixon: Building knowledge

Andy Geldard speaks to Senior Building Manager Warwick Roberts about the University of Exeter Sarah Turvill Multifaith Centre.
The enriching new facility aims to promote respect and diversity of all faiths and beliefs and create a sense of community and inclusion on campus and beyond.  
Upholding Passivhaus standards and providing a calm, spiritual space for people from a wide array of backgrounds, this new building keeps the environment and cultural purpose at the heart of design and delivery. Innovative tiling techniques and sustainable materials such as porotherm clay blocks ensure high building performance into the future.

As part of our Project Insights Series Andy Geldard spoke to Project Director Jason Hunt about the incredible Bristol Beacon.
Preservation of a stage that The Beatles graced. Ornamental plasterwork restored by craftsmen that worked on the Palace of Versailles. Three uncharted Elizabethan wells. A hall the size of 6.5 Olympic swimming pools and foundations strengthened by enough concrete to fill 1,280 bathtubs. £13m contribution to the local economy annually, 800+ events a year and 30,000 children able to access music technology labs. What do these things have in common? Bristol Beacon: a landmark project putting Bristol on an international stage.
This was no normal project; it tested every facet of Willmott Dixon’s delivery team. Throughout the construction, Willmott Dixon adopted a one team approach.  The collaborative relationship with our customer, supply chain partners and stakeholders enabled us to meet the challenges we faced and overcome them together. Through Covid, Brexit, skills shortages, material shortages and structural issues, the team worked tirelessly to deliver this iconic building, the largest concert venue in the Southwest of England. 

The King’s Speech on 17 July 2024 provided a clear idea of Labour’s legislative agenda with 35 bills planned. In this webinar recording, Andy Geldard, Willmott Dixon's Chief Communications Officer was joined by leading political analyst Greig Baker, Chair at Baker Kell Cumming.  They examined what the new administration means for the construction and property industry and what to look out for in Labour's first 100 days.  

As of 12 February 2024, most construction projects will need to incorporate 10% Biodiversity Net Gain into their plans.
In our latest 'Building Knowledge' podcast we share an audio recording of a deep dive into the new legislation and what it means for construction projects.

As of January 2024, most construction projects will need to incorporate 10% Biodiversity Net Gain into their plans.
In our latest 'Building Knowledge' podcast, two of our sustainability managers, Simone Codrington and Morgan Price, discuss how these new mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain requirements will apply to construction projects.
Areas they cover include:
What biodiversity is and why it's important
What the legislation is and the projects it applies to
An overview of the different options for delivering BNG
How to strategically deliver BNG - including examples
Top tips for where to start
Some answers to FAQs we have received from customers

Green and blue spaces are key ingredients in placemaking, but they aren't always seen as a priority. As towns and cities look to evolve, green and blue spaces need to be an integral part of urban regeneration schemes.In this episode, David Atkinson, our national head of land and development, is joined by Andrew Davison, project director at Queensberry Real Estate, to discuss the value green and blue spaces can bring, including:
Creating community-centric places where people want to spend time
Making visits to towns and cities less transactional
Promoting health, wellbeing and socialisation
The economic benefits
Examples of towns and cities who are doing it well - and the approaches they use to finance the upkeep

Our 'Ten Minutes On' podcast series delves into key topics surrounding simplifying sustainability in the built environment - in a short and snappy way.
In the third episode, the topic of discussion is 'Stranded Assets'. Current and future sustainability requirements from the Government could cause some commercial buildings to become legally 'unlettable'. We'll explore what these requirements are and what action building owners need to take to avoid having a 'stranded asset' on their hands.
This episode features our deputy MD (Midlands), Nick Gibb, and Robert van Zyl, partner at Cundall.

The Building Safety Act and its implications are changing the landscape for the construction industry and its customers.  At Willmott Dixon, we’re certainly receiving more and more queries from customers and partners about the Act and how it will affect projects moving forward and retrospectively.
This podcast on the Building Safety Act was recorded as part of our Wales and West Spotlight Event in Bristol in July.
We hosted this event for our customers, partners, and colleagues as an opportunity to discuss the implications of the Building Safety Act and offer the opportunity to answer questions.
You will hear a panel of experts from very different sectors discussing a variety of issues and questions around the Building Safety Act, from Professional Indemnity to procurement to liability.