Work to build a brand new, state of the art office for the region’s leading provider of affordable housing is progressing well.
On Wednesday 30 January, Knightstone celebrated topping out the new office, at a ceremony attended by representatives from its partners, Dowlas UK, Midas Construction and North Somerset Council.
The topping out marks a significant milestone in the construction of the new office, which, once complete, will accommodate around 300 Knightstone staff. The roof is now complete and the building is 90% watertight.
Moving to the new office is the next step in Knightstone’s strategic review, which aims to consolidate its position as the leading housing association in Somerset and the West of England.
The new high performance building will replace six of Knightstone’s existing offices and will enable the organisation to make significant cost savings which will be reinvested in new homes, improved services and stronger communities.
Nick Horne, Chief Executive at Knightstone, said: “The topping out ceremony celebrates the progress we’ve made so far in the development of our new office. It’s been really exciting watching the building coming out of the ground, and it’s on track for completion in the summer
“Moving staff into the new office and establishing our field based workforce is a key stage in the implementation of our strategic review to refocus our operational area, reshape our services and refresh our ways of working.
“Our priority is to give our residents and customers a great service and this new office will give our staff a working environment in which they can do that. We’re really looking forward to moving in to this office, which is in an excellent location in a growing area of investment.”
The new building is on the Weston Gateway Business Park in Worle, just off the A370 and close to junction 21 of the M5 motorway.
The plans were submitted by Dowlas UK with Midas Construction now responsible for building the 40,000 sq ft, building.
Gemma Hughes, Director at Dowlas UK said: “Dowlas UK Ltd are extremely proud of the Knightstone Housing Association headquarter office. Credit must been given to Barton Wilmore for the striking design and also to our contractors, Midas Construction, for their continued efforts to ensure the build is completed within the time frames. Dowlas UK Ltd are delighted with all of our team, including works undertaken by Hartnell Taylor Cook to project manage the build and infrastructure works. Weston Gateway Business Park continues to be a highly regarded site in the South West with a significant level of interest. Any queries regarding other plots should be made to Hartnell Taylor Cook 0117 923 9234″.”
Councillor Ap Rees, Executive Member for Planning, Transport and Economic Development at North Somerset Council, said: “We have a strong two way working relationship with Knightstone and are delighted to see this milestone being reached. The company is an important partner and, when completed, the new office will help to boost employment in Weston. Meanwhile the building is already acting as a positive visual catalyst to bring other businesses to the town sparking many new enquiries from companies looking to expand or relocate here”
Alan Hope, Chief Executive at Midas, said: “This topping out ceremony marks an exciting milestone on what has so far been an extremely successful and important project for Midas. We’ve worked in close partnership with Dowlas and Knightstone and are very proud to be involved with the development. New headquarter office developments are rare in the current marketplace and this development is a great boost to the local economy.”
