NHBC Awards South West

Hawthorn Rise on the horizon

Hawthorn Rise in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire is a brand new housing development located close to the Cotswolds.

The housing development comprises 71 units, consisting of a mix between two, three and four-bedroom houses and an apartment block. The site benefits from excellent links to the centre of Cheltenham, whilst nearby amenities and leisure facilities include primary and secondary schools, Montpellier Gardens and Cotswold Hills Golf Club.

Construction got underway on the NHBC Award-winning Hawthorn Rise development in October 2011. The project is being built and funded by housing developer Taylor Wimpey – who is acting as the main contractor on the project – and is scheduled for completion in March 2013.

Phase One of Hawthorn Rise – which comprises the construction of the right hand side of the development – has already been completed and work is currently underway on Phase Two of the site.

Prior to work taking place on Hawthorn Rise, a sports pavilion and associated sports field was located on the site. The sporting facilities were removed prior to construction to make way for the new development.

The units on Hawthorn Rise are being built from a mix of timber and masonry construction methods, with a selection of brick and render being used to complete the exterior facade. All units include UPVC windows and a selection of high-quality fixtures and fittings, whilst internal areas include stunning bathrooms, spacious living rooms and rear gardens.

A large public open space is also being included on the development which will connect up all the areas of the site.

Taylor Wimpey Site Manager, Andy Taylor, said:

“Hawthorn Rise forms part of a consortium site, which is a much larger complex that includes two additional developments for housing developers Crest Nicholson and Bloor Homes. Both Crest Nicholson and Bloor Homes are building similar house types, with a mix of three, four and five-bedroom properties and apartments, and are situated to the right and left of Hawthorn Rise.

“The consortium site is a large complex with lots of staff so for health and safety reasons we are working very closely with every team to ensure that we are all aware of where everyone is across the sites. We are working well with Crest Nicholson and Bloor Homes to deliver our respective developments and we conduct weekly meetings to ensure that work continues to run as smoothly as possible.

“A railway track located to the rear of the site caused a few initial problems, but we worked closely with Network Rail to resolve the situation and apart from that everything else has continued to progress well.”

Andy Taylor added:

“I’ve been a site manager since 1995, which is when I won my first NHBC Award, and in total I’ve won 12 NHBC awards, covering most of the sites that I’ve worked on. It is always difficult to get a site up and running but I’ve been in the industry for quite a long time, so I have the experience to overcome any challenges.

“What makes these awards special is the fact that NHBC is an outside source, so this award means that someone outside of Taylor Wimpey, an NHBC inspector, is aware of the good work that we are conducting on the site.

“In fact our NHBC inspector is part of the team. He works closely with me and if I am unsure about anything I ask him for his advice. Everybody works together very well and if they didn’t we wouldn’t achieve the work we have.

“We have a good team on Hawthorn Rise and this award gives recognition to all of us, highlighting all of the work that we have put in.”

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Roma Publications