Regeneration specialist scoops top building award

Published by Kelly Elliott for Keepmoat in Communities and also in Housing

A charity which has served a West Bromwich community for more than 120 years is celebrating after its new nursery was awarded a prestigious local building award.

YMCA Black Country and construction company Keepmoat collected the winning silverware for the Community Category of the 2012 Built in Quality Awards, during a ceremony in Birmingham on Friday evening.

The new nursery facilities, which are part of a £900,000 transformation of the West Bromwich and District YMCA centre, were recognised as part of the annual Celebrating Construction Awards.

Along with the nursery and youth centre, the charity, based in Caters Green, provides a fitness club, IT facilities, room hire and a healthy eating café, as well as 74 supported accommodation places for 16 to 49 year olds, many of whom have been homeless in the past.

The investment in the centre will ensure it has the resources needed to meet the growing demand for heath and child care in the local area in the future.

Steve Clay, CEO of YMCA Back Country said: “It’s great that the team have received this recognition for the hard work which went into producing a brilliant new day nursery and family centre for the people of Sandwell.

From the outset we were focussed on producing a high quality finish whilst keeping to a very tight budget. Thankfully Keepmoat helped us achieve both aims.”

Neil Baxter, Regional Managing Director of Keepmoat, said: “This is a very exciting contract for us and demonstrates just how diverse we are as a company.

“The majority of work we deliver is in refurbishment and new build; however, by working with the YMCA it demonstrates just how broad our skill sets are and we hope it will lead to other projects with the organisation in the future.”

Larry Priest, Director at architects Bryant Priest Newman, which designed the new facilities, said: “This has been a great project to be involved with. There is a real commitment from the staff and Trustees of the charity to consult with the community and with young people in order to provide a meaningful solution.

“This meant that from the outset the YMCA were clear about what they needed from the building which has now gained the recognition it deserves.”

The Celebrating Construction Awards aim to highlight the innovative work being carried out within the West Midlands construction industry and are organised by Birmingham City Council's Building Consultancy Service, the Chartered Institute of Building's (CIOB) West Midlands Branch and the West Midlands Centre for Constructing Excellence (WMCCE).

During the event, Birmingham City Council's Built in Quality and WMCCE's Constructing Excellence Awards were awarded to a range of local companies.

Now the YMCA nursery and youth centre is complete, work will start on the next phase of the centre’s renovation, which will include a new gym and café.

Local people have been given the chance to share their views on the plans and meet the project architects during consultation events.