There are fears a flagship ‘modular homes’ development in Bristol that was hailed as groundbreaking by the city’s mayor could suffer even further delays, after the company building the homes announced it was closing the factory that makes them.
There have already been issues around delays and quality of build at the site at Bonnington Walk in Lockleaze, where Legal & General are constructing 185 new homes. Some of the homes have had to be removed and rebuilt.
But now Legal & General has announced it is to halt new production at its modular housing factory near Leeds, while it reassesses the future of its business there. The factory, which employs around 450 people, is one of the biggest of its kind in the country, and manufactures homes in prefabricated modules that are then transported to sites around the country.
Read next: Ikea's first flatpack BoKlok homes are a year late and buyers are furious
But L&G said they were halting new production at the loss-making factory, and had announced a mass consultation for redundancies among the staff there. But the firm did move to reassure those still waiting for their new homes in Lockleaze to be finished - it said it would keep a number of staff on to continue work to build modular homes for three existing projects across the country - in North Yorkshire, Kent and in Bristol.
The chair of the L&G modular homes board, Bill Hughes, said: “We are reluctantly proposing to reduce business activity and cease production of new modules at the factory. We recognise this will be a challenging and uncertain period for our staff and we will be actively exploring redeployment opportunities and supporting them during this difficult time."
Mr Hughes said L&G remained ‘deeply committed’ to building new homes in Britain. “As such, we are continuing to actively explore all options available to us and will retain a select workforce to ensure high quality delivery and aftercare services for our existing customers, whilst engaging with each of our partners regarding ongoing modular projects,” he added.
The firm’s modular housing business is reported to have made a loss of £176 million since it was set up seven years ago, according to reports in construction industry news, and three other modular housing firms also went bust last year.
At its site in Lockleaze, people who have already exchanged on their new homes and are waiting for them to be finished were told in February that L&G had stopped new sales of the homes there while they sort out large-scale issues.
The homes were supposed to be finished by late last year, but it could be another year before buyers are into their homes. The Bristol Cable has reported that some of the homes built at Lockleaze have had to be dismantled again because of problems with the materials. In March L&G told Construction Enquirer it had “incorporated lessons learnt into our storage process,” after issues were reported with mould and damp before the homes were installed on site.
It's not the only site with alternative or innovative housebuilding methods in Bristol to experience problems. Late last year, Bristol Live revealed more than a year of delays for people waiting to move into Ikea’s BoKlok development along the Airport Road in South Bristol, which the Swedish company put down to supply chain issues.
Read next:
- Bristol council admin blunders mean protected hedgerow can be ripped up
- Free street party with craft beer and barbecue will close road
- Coastal towns near Bristol could be underwater by 2090 - full list
- Film crew takes over Bristol city centre restaurant as stars spotted on set
- Attempts to censor Bath's Royal Crescent phallus fall flat
- Woman's livelihood destroyed in Underfall fire - 'I had to watch it burn'
- Bristol to get new edition of Monopoly - and residents can pick the landmarks
