News | Page 17

Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council has recently approved a developer’s plans to build more than 600 houses in Kings Hill, near West Malling, a recent news report in the local media was able to reveal. Liberty Property Trust UK’s outline application involves the demolition of existing buildings, including the Kent County Council supplies depot and the removal of a section of Kings Hill Avenue, and the construction of up to 635 residential units.

Plans to build up to 1,000 new homes across Reading over the next 30 years will be looked at during a future meeting of the local council, news reports in the local business media were able to reveal. The council initiative aims to meet the growing need for affordable housing in the borough. If these preliminary proposals are approved, planning will start immediately for the first phase of the project, which includes more than 100 new homes being built.

A company that supplies materials for the building industry has managed to expand its team and purchase a third depot after securing a loan from NatWest, a recent news report in the local business media was able to reveal.

A construction and housebuilding group has managed to secure £20m in government funding to build nearly 900 new homes across the country, a recent media news report on the matter was able to reveal.

Up to a total of 100 new jobs could be created in Wallingford if plans to build a new distribution centre and headquarters building for an Oxfordshire-based textile manufacturer get the green light, a recent news report in the local business media was able to reveal.

A Hampshire-based IT services provider has managed to purchase and refurbish its HQ in Farnborough after securing £400,000 in funding from Barclays, a recent news report in the local business media was able to reveal. ABS IT Services provides IT services including programming, hardware and training to Ministry of Defence linked organisations. The company purchased its 2,600 sq ft freehold offices in order to bring together its expertise and employees under one roof.

Profits for support and construction services group Interserve have jumped to more than £1.3bn following the acquisition of Rentokil’s facilities services division, a news report in the business media was able to reveal. The company recorded strong organic growth, particularly due to the improving demand in the UK construction market.

A local council in Hampshire has managed to secure £1.3m in government funding for building in excess of 100 new affordable homes in the area, a news report in the local media was able to reveal.

One of the UK’s best-known restaurant chains has opened its first airport venue at at London Gatwick’s South Terminal, creating 135 new jobs in the process, a news report in the local business media was able to reveal. The jobs created at Nando’s airport branch range from cashiers, grillers, assistant managers to a newly created Barista role. The restaurant, which will be the first Nando’s to serve a new breakfast option, can seat up to 220 customers.

A new teaching and learning facility worth an estimated 30 million pounds is being built at Southampton Solent University’s East Park Terrace campus, a recent news report on the matter was able to reveal. The building will include teaching and learning spaces, as well as new conference facilities and exhibition space that will also be available to local business and community groups. Construction group Interserve is the main contractor for the project.

A local business partnership in the South East of England has managed to strike a £46m growth deal with the UK government and will use the money in order to bolster the number of homes being built in the area, while also creating new jobs in the process. The South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) has vowed to use the funds it has managed to secure as part of this deal to create 200,000 jobs and build 100,000 new homes.

Up to 100 highly skilled engineering jobs in Portsmouth have been secured after BAE Systems has been awarded a £70m contract for the maintenance of Royal Navy ships, a news report in the local business media was recently able to reveal. The agreement will run from July 2014 until the end of November 2016 and will handle the support, maintenance and upgrade of Type 45 Destroyers at the base and on operations in the UK and globally.