The company was founded in 1946 by John Thomas Bell and his sons John and Russell as a housebuilder operating in Newcastle upon Tyne under the name John T. Bell & Sons.[3] In 1951 Kenneth Bell, the youngest of the brothers, joined the business.[4]
The three brothers also developed commercial property in the 1950s and their company, North British Properties, was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1961. In 1963, North British acquired John T Bell in a reverse takeover.[5]
The Bell family managed to tap into the huge demand for private housing that followed World War II promoting developments such as Cramlington New Town, built in partnership with William Leech in the early 1960s.[6] Bellway developed a substantial housebuilding operation in the north of England and sales reached 1,500 units in 1972 with a further 500 in the newly formed Australian and French subsidiaries. In 1973, Bellway moved into the south-east with the purchase of A & R A Searle. The group continued to expand through England in the 1970s but its overseas operations were less successful and were eventually closed.[7]
In 1979, the "Bellway" private housebuilding business was demerged from the commercial side of the business under the leadership of Kenneth Bell. In 1981 Bellway and fellow Newcastle housebuilder William Leech announced a merger but it was called off within days: "the lifestyle of the two firms looked pretty incompatible".[8]
Diversification had not been wholly satisfactory; Ken Bell became largely non-executive and the day-to-day running of the business was assumed by Howard Dawe. Dawe reorganised the business, resumed the regional expansion on a more profitable basis and increased the company's focus on regeneration sites.[7]
Family involvement with the company ended with the death of Kenneth Bell in 1997.[9]
In 2018, the company was reported to be on track to build 10,000 homes for the first time in its history. This activity was attributed to low interest rates and good mortgage finance providing buoyancy to the housing market.[10]
In common with other housebuilders, Bellway was adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom during 2020; in June, it reported sales had fallen by more than two-thirds since the introduction of lockdown, and expected "year-on-year sales activity to be severely constrained until a time when 'lockdown' restrictions are further lifted."[11] A month later, it announced plans to cut up to 175 jobs, around 6% of its 3,100-strong workforce.[12]
Fire safety concerns
A major fire broke out in July 2015 at a housing development constructed by Bellway in Canterbury, which destroyed and damaged 45 homes. An investigation launched in 2016 discovered problems in the fire separation constructed between the properties. Repairs to the development began in November 2018.[13]
In May 2019, a Watchdog investigation was screened on BBC One regarding the fire safety of Bellway and Persimmon plc homes. In the programme a surveyor visited an estate developed by Bellway after concerns about fire safety had been raised by a resident. The investigation found safety breaches in every property that was looked at due to poorly fitted fire barriers.[14]
On 9 June 2019, a fire took place at the newly built Samuel Garside House located in De Pass Garden, which was constructed by Bellway. Peter Mason, chair of the Barking Reach residents’ association had contacted Bellway prior to the fire expressing concern about the potential fire risk of the development, but was told not to worry.[15] London mayor Sadiq Khan described the fire as "shocking" and stated that it could have "easily resulted in fatalities".[16]
In June 2021, protesters picketed the Bellway offices in Prestwich and Beckton to demand that the company repair numerous fire safety issues which had been discovered in their properties. The safety issues left residents "living in fear" and unable to sell or remortgage their homes.[17][18]
In 2021, a number fire safety issues were found in Bellway's Lamba Court complex in Salford. A number of cavity barriers were found to be inadequately secured, missing or stuffed with plastic bubble wrap.[19] It was reported that some residents faced bankruptcy from the "ruinous costs" for the repairs and one resident spoke to the press about how the stress has taken a significant toll on her mental health.[20]
In October 2022, Bellway reported it had made provisions for post-Grenfell cladding and safety improvements totalling £346.2m in its latest results. Its cumulative total for such improvements was £513.7m.[21]
Operations
The company achieved a 5 star rating in the 2015/16 Home Builders Federation new home customer satisfaction survey.[22]
References
^ abcd"Results for the year ended 31 July 2022" (PDF). Bellway Corporate. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
^"Bellway PLC (BWY.L)". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
^Wellings, Fred (7 September 2006). British Housebuilders. ISBN9781405149181. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
^"A reputation you can rely on" (PDF). Bellway. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
^. The Independent. 29 October 1997. Archived from the original on 7 November 2008. Retrieved 8 October 2008.
^Curry, Rhiannon (20 March 2018). "Bellway nears 10,000-homes-a-year target for the first time". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
^Gardiner, Joey (9 June 2020). "Bellway sales plummet since beginning of covid-19 lockdown". Building. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
^Marshall, Jordan (23 July 2020). "Bellway starts redundancy talks with 175 staff". Building. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
^"Construction faults in homes in Canterbury's Old Tannery fixed to improve fire safety". Kent Online. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
^"'New-build homes not fire safe', BBC investigation finds". BBC News. 1 May 2019. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
^"Barking fire: Investigation launched after blaze destroys 20 flats in east London". Telegraph. 5 June 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
^"Barking flats fire: Residents had safety concerns before blaze". BBC News. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
^"Barking Riverside protesters target developer as part of national building safety crisis campaign". Barking and Dagenham Post. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
^"Don't buy in Britain, cladding victims tell foreign investors". The Times. 6 June 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
^"'Just cladding, yet again': Gove urged to extend fire safety guarantee". The Guardian. 10 January 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
^"Flat owners are 'prisoners' in 'death trap' homes four years after Grenfell". The Metro. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
^Prior, Grant (18 October 2022). "Bellway sees post-Grenfell building safety bill hit £514m". Construction Enquirer. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
^(PDF). Home Builders Federation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bellway Homes.
Official site
April 26, 2023
bellway, residential, property, developer, housebuilder, based, newcastle, upon, tyne, england, listed, london, stock, exchange, constituent, ftse, index, plctypepublictraded, aslse, bwyftse, componentindustryhousebuildingfounded1946headquartersnewcastle, upon. Bellway plc is a residential property developer and housebuilder based in Newcastle upon Tyne England 2 It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index Bellway plcTypePublicTraded asLSE BWYFTSE 250 componentIndustryHousebuildingFounded1946HeadquartersNewcastle upon Tyne England UKKey peoplePaul Hampden Smith Chairman Jason Honeyman CEO Revenue 3 536 8 million 2022 1 Operating income 309 0 million 2022 1 Net income 242 6 million 2022 1 Number of employees2 978 2022 1 Websitewww wbr bellway wbr co wbr uk Contents 1 History 2 Fire safety concerns 3 Operations 4 References 5 External linksHistory Edit A Bellway development in Hampshire England A Bellway development in Clackmannanshire Scotland A Bellway home in promotional banners in Wetherby West Yorkshire The company was founded in 1946 by John Thomas Bell and his sons John and Russell as a housebuilder operating in Newcastle upon Tyne under the name John T Bell amp Sons 3 In 1951 Kenneth Bell the youngest of the brothers joined the business 4 The three brothers also developed commercial property in the 1950s and their company North British Properties was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1961 In 1963 North British acquired John T Bell in a reverse takeover 5 The Bell family managed to tap into the huge demand for private housing that followed World War II promoting developments such as Cramlington New Town built in partnership with William Leech in the early 1960s 6 Bellway developed a substantial housebuilding operation in the north of England and sales reached 1 500 units in 1972 with a further 500 in the newly formed Australian and French subsidiaries In 1973 Bellway moved into the south east with the purchase of A amp R A Searle The group continued to expand through England in the 1970s but its overseas operations were less successful and were eventually closed 7 In 1979 the Bellway private housebuilding business was demerged from the commercial side of the business under the leadership of Kenneth Bell In 1981 Bellway and fellow Newcastle housebuilder William Leech announced a merger but it was called off within days the lifestyle of the two firms looked pretty incompatible 8 Diversification had not been wholly satisfactory Ken Bell became largely non executive and the day to day running of the business was assumed by Howard Dawe Dawe reorganised the business resumed the regional expansion on a more profitable basis and increased the company s focus on regeneration sites 7 Family involvement with the company ended with the death of Kenneth Bell in 1997 9 In 2018 the company was reported to be on track to build 10 000 homes for the first time in its history This activity was attributed to low interest rates and good mortgage finance providing buoyancy to the housing market 10 In common with other housebuilders Bellway was adversely affected by the COVID 19 pandemic in the United Kingdom during 2020 in June it reported sales had fallen by more than two thirds since the introduction of lockdown and expected year on year sales activity to be severely constrained until a time when lockdown restrictions are further lifted 11 A month later it announced plans to cut up to 175 jobs around 6 of its 3 100 strong workforce 12 Fire safety concerns EditA major fire broke out in July 2015 at a housing development constructed by Bellway in Canterbury which destroyed and damaged 45 homes An investigation launched in 2016 discovered problems in the fire separation constructed between the properties Repairs to the development began in November 2018 13 In May 2019 a Watchdog investigation was screened on BBC One regarding the fire safety of Bellway and Persimmon plc homes In the programme a surveyor visited an estate developed by Bellway after concerns about fire safety had been raised by a resident The investigation found safety breaches in every property that was looked at due to poorly fitted fire barriers 14 On 9 June 2019 a fire took place at the newly built Samuel Garside House located in De Pass Garden which was constructed by Bellway Peter Mason chair of the Barking Reach residents association had contacted Bellway prior to the fire expressing concern about the potential fire risk of the development but was told not to worry 15 London mayor Sadiq Khan described the fire as shocking and stated that it could have easily resulted in fatalities 16 In June 2021 protesters picketed the Bellway offices in Prestwich and Beckton to demand that the company repair numerous fire safety issues which had been discovered in their properties The safety issues left residents living in fear and unable to sell or remortgage their homes 17 18 In 2021 a number fire safety issues were found in Bellway s Lamba Court complex in Salford A number of cavity barriers were found to be inadequately secured missing or stuffed with plastic bubble wrap 19 It was reported that some residents faced bankruptcy from the ruinous costs for the repairs and one resident spoke to the press about how the stress has taken a significant toll on her mental health 20 In October 2022 Bellway reported it had made provisions for post Grenfell cladding and safety improvements totalling 346 2m in its latest results Its cumulative total for such improvements was 513 7m 21 Operations EditThe company achieved a 5 star rating in the 2015 16 Home Builders Federation new home customer satisfaction survey 22 References Edit a b c d Results for the year ended 31 July 2022 PDF Bellway Corporate Retrieved 16 February 2023 Bellway PLC BWY L Yahoo Finance Retrieved 21 March 2013 Wellings Fred 7 September 2006 British Housebuilders ISBN 9781405149181 Retrieved 23 March 2015 A reputation you can rely on PDF Bellway Retrieved 16 April 2017 Company prospectus January 1961 No longer the pits Telegraph 21 March 2003 a b Wellings Fred Dictionary of British Housebuilders 2006 Troubador ISBN 978 0 9552965 0 5 Building June 1981 Bellway builds on housing recovery The Independent 29 October 1997 Archived from the original on 7 November 2008 Retrieved 8 October 2008 Curry Rhiannon 20 March 2018 Bellway nears 10 000 homes a year target for the first time The Telegraph ISSN 0307 1235 Retrieved 9 July 2018 Gardiner Joey 9 June 2020 Bellway sales plummet since beginning of covid 19 lockdown Building Retrieved 9 June 2020 Marshall Jordan 23 July 2020 Bellway starts redundancy talks with 175 staff Building Retrieved 23 July 2020 Construction faults in homes in Canterbury s Old Tannery fixed to improve fire safety Kent Online 22 November 2018 Retrieved 5 June 2020 New build homes not fire safe BBC investigation finds BBC News 1 May 2019 Retrieved 5 June 2020 Barking fire Investigation launched after blaze destroys 20 flats in east London Telegraph 5 June 2020 Retrieved 5 June 2020 Barking flats fire Residents had safety concerns before blaze BBC News 10 June 2019 Retrieved 5 June 2020 Barking Riverside protesters target developer as part of national building safety crisis campaign Barking and Dagenham Post 7 June 2021 Retrieved 10 January 2022 Don t buy in Britain cladding victims tell foreign investors The Times 6 June 2021 Retrieved 10 January 2022 Just cladding yet again Gove urged to extend fire safety guarantee The Guardian 10 January 2022 Retrieved 10 January 2022 Flat owners are prisoners in death trap homes four years after Grenfell The Metro 14 June 2021 Retrieved 10 January 2022 Prior Grant 18 October 2022 Bellway sees post Grenfell building safety bill hit 514m Construction Enquirer Retrieved 20 October 2022 National new home customer satisfaction survey PDF Home Builders Federation Archived from the original PDF on 16 June 2017 Retrieved 2 May 2017 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bellway Homes Official site Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bellway amp oldid 1150259769, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
