Two Ministers, one nursery and a midsummer’s day's walk

On midsummer’s day, Barrhead-based member AC Whyte & Co Ltd kindly agreed to host a walking tour of one of their projects in Edinburgh. This was for the Scottish Parliament’s Cross-Party Group on Construction: the FMB being the secretary of this group. The project is a major refurbishment programme aimed at improving the conditions and energy efficiency of mixed tenure homes. Whilst most FMB members deliver projects for private clients, there is a growing proportion in Scotland who work for public sector clients.

AC Whyte have been working in partnership with The City of Edinburgh Council on a programme which is designed to help all home owners – both council and private – repair, maintain and improve jointly owned low-rise blocks, to maximise the energy efficiency of their homes and ultimately save money on their fuel bills. It was great to hear insights from Steven McNellis (Construction Director) and their MD Jennifer Phin about this project which included the installation of external wall insulation, re-roofing works, window and door replacements and underfloor heating. 

Back to nursery

At the of June, two other members showed me around a construction project for another local authority: East Lothian Council. This is a £3.4 million new build nursery for Law Primary School with an open plan design and a mezzanine area. Chris Collins of Spectrum Decorating Ltd got me onto the site which is run by principal contractor, Hadden Construction Ltd. I got a lot out of the tour, especially from understanding more about how well these two FMB members have worked together on this project.

Speaking out to Ministers

Witnessing firsthand the range of projects our members deliver, helps me ‘tell it as it is’ when I meet our policymakers. Scotland’s Minister for Further and Higher Education: Graeme Dey MSP heard from me about skills and training matters impacting our members. One specific example being the closure of the Stonemasonry Department at Edinburgh College which a huge blow for some members in Edinburgh and the Lothians. Earlier this month Scotland’s Housing Minister, Paul McLennan MSP met me to discuss not just housebuilding but also retrofit and also labour and skills challenges. Paul is keen to have regular dialogue with the FMB and it would be helpful to hear from more of our housebuilder members across Scotland.

If you would like to find out more about anything in this article, please get in touch.

Authors

Gordon Nelson

FMB Scotland Hub Director, Federation of Master Builders

Director, Federation of Master Builders Scotland

Gordon has nearly twenty years’ experience of working in membership organisations in Scotland and joined the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) in 2014. Prior to this, he worked at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) and for Unilever in business development, membership management and business-to-business marketing roles. Amongst his responsibilities in his role as the Director for FMB Scotland are public affairs, media relations, governance and representing member’s interests to Scottish policy makers and stakeholders within the Scottish construction industry. Gordon is the Secretary of the Cross-Party Group on Construction in the Scottish Parliament, and he is a member of the Scottish Building Standards Futures Board. Gordon represents the FMB on Scotland’s Construction Industry Collective Voice: which is comprised of the leading construction trade and professional bodies. In spring 2023 Gordon was appointed as an industry co-chair of the Construction Leaderships Forum’s (CLF) Transformation Board.

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