Mon 14 Apr 2008
April
City developer KW Linfoot has restructured its management team in an effort to expand its property portfolio.Richard Dean (top) has been promoted from development director to joint managing director, a role he will share with Michael Luscombe (second from right). David Waddington (second from left) and Ged Feeley (far right) have also been promoted to the board of directors as sales and marketing and commercial director.
Richard Bland (third from right), who moves over from a director role at The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Ged Simmons (far left), previously development director at Bovis Lend Lease, are newcomers to the firm, joining as finance director and development director respectively.
The appointments follow the firm's future plans to build a key worker village in Leeds, the four residential towers at the new BBC MediaCity at Salford Quays. "I'm delighted to bolster the team with such high-calibre people who are extremely well regarded across the industry," said Kevin Linfoot, the firm's chairman. "Our reputation for delivering high-quality residential flats is attributed to the flair of our professional team. Here, we strive to deliver exceptional living environments; I believe our new senior management team will give us an extra dimension to help us achieve even greater success nationwide."
Mixed-use specialist Henry Davidson Developments (HDD) has appointed three new staff members in a drive to increase its annual production of neighbourhood centres across the country.
Simon Gardiner, 46, has moved over from project management firm Concept to take on the role of director, with the aim of forging close relationships with volume housebuilders across the UK. The firm has also appointed two associate directors -Stewart Patterson, formerly of Nottingham's Lace Market Properties, who is set to work on introducing more flats into the firm's neighbourhood schemes, and Steven Caplan, 39, who has recently worked on procuring the £45 million Rawstenstall development in Lancashire to enhance the firm's expanding portfolio in that area.
This expansion follows the firm's signing last summer of a five-year £100 million funding deal with Development Securities, which aims to help HDD to quadruple its annual output of neighbourhood centres from three to 12, and to develop one major mixed-use scheme a year. HDD, which has strong links with Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, Countryside Properties and Barratt Homes, is currently looking for preferred developers with whom to work on civic schemes.
Hannah Newnes has joined Redrow Homes South West as area sales manager after working for the firm's advertising agency.
Newnes (25) moves over from her role as advertising account manager at Aylesworth Fleming, who plan the firm's promotional material, saying her marketing background will stand her in good stead for her new role: "Planning advertising and marketing activities is one of the most important aspects of my new job, along with ensuring customer satisfaction. I'm lucky to have a great sales team to work with, and some fabulous developments to sell."
Newnes describes herself as a "fitness fanatic" in her spare time, and is set to run the London Marathon this month for children's charity Whizz Kids.
Mark Allnutt has joined Thames Valley Housing Association (TVHA) as director of development.
Allnutt, who moves over from Sovereign Housing Group, where he was assistant director of development, will now be in charge of managing TVHA's marketplace position. "I'm really looking forward to the challenges ahead this year and working with the Thames Valley team to ensure housing affordability remains a reality," said Allnutt.
TVHA, set up in 1966, owns and manages over 10,000 properties in west and south-west London and in Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire, which includes over 3,500 shared ownership units and 4,800 rented homes.
Barratt South Wales has recruited 11 new sales negotiators to kickstart the firm's new developments in the region.Sales director Sandra Dixon said the new on-site sales team will play a key role in boosting sales in the firm's 21 developments across its South Wales regional base, and are part of the company's long-term expansion plans to build 900 homes per annum in the area by 2010: "The sales negotiators are integral to the homebuying process, from meeting customers on day one, to taking them right through to completion and moving in, dealing with any questions along the way. We're delighted to welcome the new recruits, who come from backgrounds as varied as car sales and estate agency, across various schemes in the region, and wish them the very best at Barratt."
Stephen Briegel has joined Hamptons International as senior director for the firm's land and new homes division.
Based at the firm's newly acquired Putney branch, Briegel is set to oversee Hamptons' land acquisition and new homes business across south-west London, Surrey and Sussex with the aim of expanding into new markets across the south. Briegel joins from Allen Briegel, an agency he founded in March 1998, which was bought by Hamptons in December.
"Stephen's extensive knowledge and experience in this sector will be invaluable to us as we continue to expand across the UK," said Mark Anderson, Hamptons International's managing director. "We had a strong 2007, increasing our branch network. Stephen's expertise will build on this success further and drive our land and new homes division forward during 2008 and beyond."
Jane Thompson has joined Warrington-based developer Prospect GB, a subsidiary of Liverpool firm The Riverside Group, as development manager to drive the firm forward to achieve a £40 million annual turnover within five years.
A chartered surveyor, Thompson (32) has worked in commercial property for over ten years, and was previously a partner in charge of development consultancy at King Sturge. At Prospect, she will work at sourcing commercial and residential development opportunities, working on site identification and assessing planning options and financial viability, and subsequently oversee the development process, secure planning permission, arrange completion of contracts and manage the marketing of the completed product.
"Prospect's company ethos is ideally suited to promoting a thriving and successful working environment in line with my own working practices," said Thompson. "In this competitive market, Prospect has the right attitude, in adopting a professional and proactive business approach, which is integral to their continuing success."
"We're delighted to welcome Jane to the Prospect team as part of our ambitious expansion plans," added Chris Heath, the firm's managing director. "This financial year we're on target to hit our expected turnover of more than £10 million, and we've relocated to prestigious new offices in the Trident business park in Risley, Warrington, so we're set up to go on and reach our five-year goal to treble our turnover."
Prospect seeks to be unique in the sector in which it operates in ploughing back money raised from its developments into its not-for-profit parent company, which owns and manages 50,000 homes throughout the country.
Affordable housing and regeneration specialist Lovell has recruited Melissa Bates to head up its human resources (HR) department.
Bates joins from express delivery firm City Link Limited, where she worked as general manager for HR. In her new role, she will oversee and develop the work of the firm's HR and training teams. A fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), Bates has extensive experience in all aspects of HR, including acquisitions, employment legislation and people development.
Berkeley Group divisionary branch Berkeley First has recruited John Stainton to fill the role of pre-development director.
Stainton, who is the firm's fourth key appointment in four months, will aim to ensure the company's homes, which are affordably priced units for young professionals, keyworkers and students, achieve their full potential using innovative design and construction materials. Moving over from technical director roles at Bovis and Linden Homes, Stainton will first coordinate the planning and pre-development proposals as part of the firm's project to refurbish May Day House, a redundant 1960s office block in Croydon.
Formed in 1993 with the aim of delivering student and key worker accommodation in partnership with registered social landlords, Berkeley First is soon set to work on a scheme of 190 one-, two- and three-bedroom flats in Isleworth, and on building 1,400 waterfront homes and student accommodation units for the University of Kent. The firm currently boasts a portfolio of over a million square feet of residential accommodation units, including new-build, refurbishment blocks and conversions of existing city or town centre buildings.
Julia Price has joined property portal SmartNewHomes.com as new business manager following the firm's expansion of its sales team.Price, formerly a lettings coordinator at Reed Rains estate agency, is set to play a vital role in developing business opportunities for the firm with developers in the north, says managing director David Bexon: "Julia's responsibilities will include generating all new business in the northern area, targeting residential and retirement developers, as well as managing our northern business team. Her appointment increases our resources, and will help us target more developers, securing our position as the most prominent online new homes website."
"I'm delighted with my new job," Price added. "Part of my new role will be in assisting developing key parts of the business to ensure the website is featuring as many new sites as possible to keep browsers informed with the latest information."
Bellway Manchester has appointed Carrie Leather as sales advisor at the firm's Heathfields development in Newton Heath.
Leather (30) has returned from maternity leave to take up this new role, in which she will be responsible for selling the scheme's 57 properties. "I'm delighted to be back at work, after five years in the industry," says Leather. "I'm excited to be working at a new development, and will use my experience gained at previous Bellway sites to secure sales."
"We're pleased to welcome Carrie back," added Lynne Duxbury, branch sales manager. "Carrie's experience and knowledge of Bellway Manchester will once again be an asset to the company."
Posted by Show House
in Barratt Homes, Bellway, Berkeley Homes, Bovis Homes, Carrie Leather, Countryside Properties, David Waddington, Ged Feeley, Ged Simmons, Hamptons International, Hannah Newnes, Henry Davidson Developments, Jane Thompson, John Stainton, Julia Price, Kevin Linfoot, KW Linfoot, Linden Homes, Lovell, Lynne Duxbury, Mark Allnutt, Melissa Bates, Michael Luscombe, Movers and Shakers, Persimmon Homes, Prospect GB, Redrow, Richard Bland, Richard Dean, Simon Gardiner, Smart New Homes, Stephen Briegel, Steven Caplan, Stewart Patterson, Taylor Wimpey, Thames Valley Housing Association, The Riverside Group, The Royal Bank of Scotland on Mon 14 Apr 2008
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