Buildings

Shy Jackson is a partner at law firm BCLP It was back in 1994 that Sir Michael Latham stated that a modern form of contract should include a specific duty for all parties to deal fairly with each other, and with their subcontractors, specialists and suppliers, in an atmosphere of…

With the government set to announce details on a generation of new towns, CN visits the UK’s only 21st-century ‘garden city’ A former police station in north Kent is the best spot to contemplate the most successful new settlement the UK has delivered this century. From their converted office at…

Charis Beverton is a partner at law firm Winckworth Sherwood Since last summer’s general election, development conversations have centred around Labour’s target of building 1.5 million homes over the next five years. In December, we heard the prime minister again double down on that pledge as part of the government’s…

Joanna Rees is a partner at law firm Blake Morgan The collapse of ISG in September created waves across the UK’s construction industry. It served as a painful reminder of the knock-on effects that insolvency can have throughout the supply chain, and the challenges it creates in both the private…

Which projects are likely to have the biggest impact on the industry in the year ahead?  Tribeca Work on London’s largest purpose-built life sciences campus will ramp up in 2025. The first phase of the King’s Cross Tribeca project, which features state-of-the-art laboratories and workshops, saw VolkerFitzpatrick complete the 10,450…

10. Balfour chasing ‘outstanding sums’ as luxury-flat developer collapses In January it emerged that Balfour Beatty was chasing “outstanding sums” relating to a £200m super prime residential scheme in Mayfair, after its former client entered administration. The contracting giant completed the project in May 2023, five years after its appointment,…

The collapse of the UK’s sixth-biggest contractor, the Grenfell Inquiry phase two report and the change in government all had a massive impact on the industry this year – and will continue to do so in 2025 How will the construction industry remember 2024? Perhaps it will go down as…

Áine McGuinness is a senior associate at legal services firm DWF AI is rapidly gaining traction across various industries, and the construction industry is no exception. One of the most promising applications is the use of AI-driven smart contracts, which can perform tasks that would traditionally require manual intervention. For…

Alex Jahanshahi-Edlin is an associate director of McBains and a member of the UK Green Building Council The government’s newly announced intention to create a strategic “spatial plan” for the UK’s energy transition is welcome, but it needs to include a sufficient expansion of the National Grid to support build…

Stuart Byles is director at fit-out and refurbishment contractor Pexhurst   The Building Safety Act (BSA) 2022 has now been in force for almost a year. However, the release of the JCT Design and Build Contract 2024 in April has highlighted a significant disconnect between standard-form construction contracts and the comprehensive…