building

It's all in the detail for Devon building firm

A TEAM of Devon builders has developed an eye for the tiniest detail after winning a contract to repair one of the south west’s most prestigious properties.

Woofenden Construction, which is based in Kentisbeare, near Cullompton, has won a contract to repair the historic ceilings of grade I listed Dorset property, Kingston Maurward House.

More than £130,000 of damage was caused when a broken pipe in the roof of the prestigious property, which is just outside Dorchester, flooded through the three storey building. Gallons of water poured through the three floors for around an...

Exeter Cathedral’s 300,000 piece LEGO® re-build

The first bricks in Exeter Cathedral’s Big LEGO® Build will be laid next week at a special ceremony to launch the project.

The Bishop of Exeter Robert Atwell will be joined by the winners of a Devon-wide schools’ competition to get the epic LEGO build underway, just in time for half term.

The final model, made up of 300,000 LEGO bricks, will be an impressive 3.6m long, 2m wide and 1m high.

Everyone is invited to get involved in the build and for every £1 donated people can add a brick to the model. February half term will be the first opportunity for members of the...

Landed gentry could help solve housing crisis

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 12/31/2015 - 7:14am

Landowners behind England’s 5,000 largest rural estates should be called upon to release land for affordable housing, according to The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

The RICS Rural Policy Paper, published today, sets out a number of recommendations as to how central and local Government could better manage rural land and support countryside communities, including offering measures to encourage large landowners to release space on their estates for eight or more affordable houses. This might include partial inheritance tax exemptions, allowing heirs to avoid paying...

Community fund reopens for nominations

RGB Building Supplies’ Well Built Community Fund aims to help a number of community groups to complete projects that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do by giving away £1,000 worth of building materials every other month.

Having recently supported a youth group, an animal welfare centre and a project to help the homeless, RGB is now asking for groups that provide health and fitness facilities to those in their local community.

Perhaps a group would like to update its changing facilities or requires materials to create an area to use for sporting activities - whatever the...

Charity completes Moldovan project

Authored by LMorton2015
Posted: Sat, 08/22/2015 - 6:02am

Sixteen volunteers from the UK have successfully completed a challenging building project in Moldova, Europe’s poorest country, in order to improve the living conditions of impoverished children.

The 11 day programme was the third and most significant of its kind run by The Moldova Project, a charity founded by Emma Watson who studied English at the University of Exeter from 2009 to 2012.

Volunteers carried out repairs on badly damaged houses in Ciuciuleni, a remote village in the Moldovan countryside, to create better living conditions for families and ensure that they are...

Houses with history

Thinking about buying a listed property? From getting to know your local conservation officer to undertaking a background check, Chris Davey, Luscombe Maye Estate Agency, gives his top tips on getting the best out of listed properties, as well as things to consider before purchasing. From the humble thatched cottage, to grand period homes, and even a bus station, listed properties are of great significance and beauty. With over 376,099 listed building entries in England, they are the jewels in the property crown, and are a marked sign of the country’s heritage and history. Laws and...

Charming country house for sale in Devon

Authored by jacobseal
Posted: Thu, 07/16/2015 - 12:54pm

The Exeter office of leading property consultancy JLL has been instructed to sell the Harrabeer Country House Hotel, Yelverton, an established business on the southern edge of Dartmoor National Park.

Understood to date from the 1680s with a Victorian extension in 1850, the property offers a traditional and charming style.

The original farmhouse building provides for six letting bedrooms, restaurant, drawing room and lounge bar. In addition there is a converted barn which provides for two independent one bedroom self-catering apartments with occupancy for four in each....

Will 2019 be the year the SW stops building?

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Mon, 02/09/2015 - 8:19am

Worsening skills shortages in the construction sector could threaten many building projects in the South West by 2019, new research* reveals today.

Data released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) highlights the severity of the skills shortages facing businesses across the region.

More than nine tenths (93%) of the surveyors questioned said that a lack of qualified candidates meant they had problems recruiting, but more alarming is the amount of paid work being turned down by many companies.

Three in five (60%) surveying firms in the South West...

Heating systems advice at RGB Exeter

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Sat, 02/07/2015 - 8:42am

As the weather continues to be cold, wet and wintery, RGB Building Supplies is urging the local community to ensure that their boiler is fully maintained so that their heating and hot water systems are working to their optimum.

To enable customers to find out more information about the importance of maintaining a boiler, and how the correct boiler can help to cut energy costs, they are holding a free event on Thursday 12th February between 12.30pm and 4.30pm at their Exeter branch.

Experts from Grant UK, one of the country’s leading heating experts, will be on hand to talk...

South West Schools built cheaper and faster under flagship scheme

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Mon, 12/22/2014 - 10:39am

The Government’s flagship school building initiative has cut the cost of school construction projects by more than a third and is delivering them faster than ever before – figures out today show.

A vital part of the Government’s long term plan for education is raising the standard of schools so that thousands of pupils and teachers benefit from high-quality, fit for purpose facilities. These improved facilities will help children learn, so they can reach their full potential and go on and succeed in life.

Thanks to the £2.4 billion investment in the Priority School Building...

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