NHBC Awards Wales

“It gets better every year” for Mark Thomas

NHBC - Rosemary CourtMark Thomas picks up his third NHBC award for his work on the Persimmon Homes development, Rosemary Court, in the small village of Elm Park outside Haverford West.

The Site Manager told Premier Construction: “It’s been a long year leading up to the award, but I’m absolutely made up to have got it. It feels even better than the first time I won because I aim to make improvements every time and the more you put in the better it feels.”

He was full of praise for his committed site team, who he said are very pleased to have won the award, commenting that “it’s something to show for everyone.” He was very happy to report that he would be working with almost all of the Rosemary Court team on the next project he had lined up, and described the work that they had produced so far as “some of the best I’ve ever seen.”

Rosemary Court is a relatively small development, consisting of twenty-three three-bedroom houses that have been carefully constructed to complement the village of Elm Park. They are attractive semi-detached and terraced houses, with a finish that Mark described as ‘exceptional’. He also explained that because all of the houses are based on the same model, the site has a pleasing uniformity.

Mark was also very pleased by the reception that local residents had given the development. “They were a bit dubious at first,” he said, “because the parish isn’t really used to big housing developers carrying out projects like this.” A local community council made it very clear to the team that they expected nothing but the highest quality out of the build, before the work had been started. Since the first homes were completed, the same council has written a letter commending the work, and Mark said that receiving their approval was “most satisfactory” – as much an award as the NHBC accolade.

So far there are still about half a dozen houses left to complete, though most of the plots completed are already spoken for and lived in. Work on the remaining homes is progressing at a good rate.

Mark was talked out of his ambition of becoming a school teacher by his fiancée (now wife) and instead entered the construction trade. Whilst at school and taking A-levels he dabbled in part-time labouring work, before completing an HND in building Studies .He then headed to university to gain a BA in Project Management whilst working for a Quantity surveyor. He said that he moved from project management to site management out of a desire to get out of the office environment and take a more hands-on role amongst the men building the houses that he was used to pricing up.

“I sometimes wish I was that school teacher,” Mark laughs, explaining that it had been stressful driving himself to get the NHBC award. “But I’ll definitely up the ante next year and I hope to get another award. It’s like an addiction really: you always see things that you can improve for next time and you want to be able to make those changes.”

 


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