Download - Mears New Homes
NEW HOMES
A Comprehensive New Homes Service
NEW HOMES
Mears New Homes provides the public sector with a full set of solutions for the delivery of new homes
from a contracting service to land acquisition as well as opportunities to form joint ventures. Linked to this,
Mears brings its skills in regeneration and business wide commitment to spread the benefits of new home
provision throughout the communities in which it works. Our extensive experience in the repairs and
maintenance sector give us a unique perspective from which to ensure that what we build are high quality,
low maintenance homes fit for a low carbon, low energy future.
Mears Group has a complimentary set of businesses and services to support the provision of new
homes. These include home care and support services which enable older and disabled people to
continue living in their own homes. Our own housing association, a land referencing expert; TerraQuest,
as well as housing management and the expertise of energy services.
Overview and introduction
Since our formation in 1988, Mears has been working in partnership with social landlords to
maintain, repair and upgrade the homes of hundreds of thousands of people in communities
from remote rural villages to large inner-city estates.
Mears New Homes approach is to put the project and the interests of future residents at the heart of
the decision making process.
The planning, delivery and long term maintenance of new housing is a complex process. We believe
the best way to operate is to assemble the whole team for a project from the start. We work in an open,
mutually supportive manner. We are committed to managing finances in a transparent way so that all
parties in a project can base decisions on the best information available.
Our service offering
Mears New Homes offers a completely flexible contractor and development partner solution on
construction, land and development opportunities. We offer partnering arrangements tailored to
your requirements including:
1. Design and Build Constructor Partner
2. Land-Led Development Partner
3. Joint Venture Partner
Mears team of in-house specialists offer:
• Viability assessments • Feasibility studies • Land appraisals
• Risk assessment • Management strategy • Project management
• Innovative funding solutions • Pre-construction advice • Marketing guidance
We also provide a wealth of experience in off-site manufacture and sustainable construction.
Each project is considered individually and is managed using bespoke project management plans that
ensure efficient effective delivery and which enable continual improvement and best practice learning to
flourish.
The advantages of workingwith Mears New Homes
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Our in-house Design and Technical Team has the
expertise to manage all design requirements. We
offer a complimentary pre-construction service and
are able to provide commercial and design support,
advice and guidance on sites and the various
options available to clients. We work closely with
our design partners and supply-chain partners to
develop the most efficient and effective construction
solution to meet bespoke requirements.
Our preconstruction process includes the
investigation, appraisal and incorporation of suitable
off site manufacture options to develop the most
economic and efficient design solution for
optimising project cost, specification and
programme, as well as meeting the mandatory
requirements of the Code for Sustainable Homes
and any specific funding requirements such as
HCA Quality and Design Standards.
With Mears Group’s foundations being in responsive
repairs and maintenance, we have over 25 years
experience of maintaining homes we know what can
go wrong during a building’s life, and how costly it
can be to repair and sometimes replace. This is why
we understand the importance of taking decisions
on designs, materials and products with the build-
ings ‘whole life’ cost in mind.
We are able to provide a competitive approach to
achieving best value against project specific budgets
and requirements through our ‘whole life’ approach
to construction and aftercare. All Mears New Homes
are subject to robust quality vetting processes to
ensure that each home is completed, free of defects
before being handed over.
Design and Build Constructor Partner1Mears New Homes has experience of delivering projects as lead designer and management
contractor through a wide range of contract forms. Notwithstanding the form of contract
employed; we seek to work collaboratively with clients, adopting an open and transparent
relationship.
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Working with us brings the additional benefits of
our sister company, TerraQuest. TerraQuest is the
UK’s largest specialist provider of land referencing
services to private and public sector clients
involved in the planning and development of major
transportation, regeneration and utility projects.
TerraQuest add significant value to our service
through their focused approach to the identification
of ‘Lost Land,’ legal title and covenants in areas to
optimise development potential with minimal risk.
Mears New Homes is ideally placed to appraise
the viability of development sites. We can
cross -subsidise schemes through the introduction
and shared risk of open market sale dwellings.
Our in-house land and development team, work
closely with local planning officers, design partners,
land and sales agents and community groups to
ensure that each opportunity is viable, and fully
deliverable from a planning perspective.
We assess every project option to find the
optimum development and funding solution and to
ensure the scheme achieves the maximum value in
terms of the number and mix of units, whether it is
an affordable or a mixed tenure including rented,
intermediate or open market sale; economical from
a budget perspective, realistic in terms of revenue
and rent yield perspective and attractive to funders.
Land-Led Development Partner2We have an established contact network of land owners, land agents, business development
personnel and consultants who support us in identifying and procuring both tendered and
negotiated land opportunities, using bespoke client-led search parameters. This means that we
can identify land and development opportunities that respond to specific client requirements.
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Our ability to achieve and enhance financial viability
across all schemes hinges on our commercial
approach to maximising value and ensuring that
the parameters, on which the site is procured or
designed, are delivered and surpassed.
We are able to support clients own site
identification, procurement and delivery
requirements or alternatively, we are able to lead
privately funded, land-led developments through
dedicated finance arrangements within the Mears
Group and via our external funding partners.
Mears New Homes can provide clients with a
primary, or shared approach towards sales risk of
homes for open market sale.
This enables us to purchase sites either directly or
jointly, and to manage the design and planning
process with affordable housing at the forefront of
our design and delivery philosophy.
Through the Mears Group, we have access to
substantial financial resources and capability,
allowing us to offer a flexible approach to funding
projects.
Mears New Homes welcome the opportunity to undertake joint venture agreements, using a wide
range of financial and contractual arrangements, tailored to unique partner and project needs.
Joint Venture Partner3
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We seek to assist local authorities and registered providers to address the full spectrum of housing need
from homelessness through to long-term homes through mixed tenures.
The Mears Housing Management service also includes Plexus, a Not For Profit Registered Provider wholly
owned by the Group, whose aim is to work with local authorities, registered providers and Investors alike
to finance, develop and create new housing supply.
Together, we can provide long term, strategic advice about the use of assets, including the reuse and
redevelopment of unused or underutilised land, buildings and dwellings; and the development of new
more efficiently designed and marketable housing.
Housing Management Service
For large-scale estate regeneration programmes, we can engage our sister company, Mears
Housing Management, who can offer our clients funding, acquisition and delivery options to
address housing shortages.
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The concerns about labour and material shortages further support the increased use of ‘modern
methods of construction’ and make higher quality and engineered accuracy more predictable.
Ever higher aspirations for thermal performance and faster build times are strong reasons to consider
off-site manufacture.
The start of the design process and reinforces Mears preference to be brought into a project team at
the earliest opportunity.
Our design and preconstruction process involves a complete appraisal, involving designers, supply
chain partners and client to identify and select the most appropriate, cost effective construction solution
for each project.
Off-Site Manufacturing
Mears are committed advocates to the benefits of off-site manufacturing and have invested in
securing a strategic supply chain of partners who can deliver competitive panelised and ‘volumetic’,
construction solutions.
Training and Local EmploymentOur commitment to supporting the communities in which we are working
focuses on supporting local employment and helping the local community
to thrive through tackling worklessness, providing both management
services and trades based training and encouraging career progression into
the industry through work experience and entry level support to candidates.
Mears has a reputation for delivering high quality training and employing people who reside locally to
our contracts. We are able to provide a holistic long term approach to training and employment for
candidates through a wide and diverse range of regional offices and site locations.
Supporting Apprenticeships:Mears work alongside local training providers and the Job Centre
Plus to provide CITB supported Apprenticeships.
Developing Trade Skills:Mears offer an extensive training and development programme and
run regular tool box talks for all operatives which cover key issues
such as; health and safety, customer care, considerate driving,
asbestos identification and other core skills.
Providing Opportunities:Mears is signed up to the Government’s Social Mobility. Business
Compact. This means we are committed to providing fair access
to all and opportunities to underrepresented groups.
Local Employment:We encourage local recruitment on all of our projects, both directly
on site and also within our management and support structure to
ensure that all candidates have a fair and reasonable chance to be
involved.
Local Supply Chain Initiatives:Mears New Homes is committed to working with subcontractors
and suppliers who are based locally to our projects. We work hard
to retain the fiscal benefits of regeneration and building work within
the local economy, whilst working to minimise our environmental
impact through local sourcing and procurement.
It's not just the quality of our homes that make us
different; it's our commitment to local communities
which can be seen at every level of the
organisation. We commit to the Considerate
Constructor Accreditation Scheme and engage
with local community groups from the outset of all
projects to ensure that we can maximise
community involvement and consultation.
Our approach to ensuring positive neighbourhood
involvement and consultation commences during
the design process, to inform scheme concepts,
specifications, materials and site logistic and
constraints strategies.
Community Engagement
Through early stakeholder engagement sessions,
we showcase large scale coloured plans, CGI
images and perspectives, to enable all
stakeholders to discuss any concerns and fears
that they may have, and to develop project specific
Neighbourhood Charters which are designed to
respond to the key issues such as dust, noise,
vibration, delivery and waste collection times,
parking and traffic management.
We work with local schools to highlight the
dangers of constructions sites and provide a range
of educational opportunities for school children,
including managed site visits, hoarding artwork
competitions and trade-skills taster sessions,
which allow children to try their hand at trades in
a fun but safe environment.
Mears Group is at the forefront of the drive for improved energy
efficiency of existing and newly built homes. A significant
proportion of the work delivered for our public sector customers
is to improve the fabric performance of their existing stock and
add energy saving and energy generation technologies.
Mears Energy provides customers and all parts of the Group
with specialist skills and knowledge on installing and operating
of these systems.
Independent recognition of the achievement of Mears in this
area can be found in these awards.
Companywide we are committed to improving the lives of people living in our communities.
Last year our staff volunteered 22,353 hours and supported 648 community projects
across the UK. This includes supporting both local and national charities as well as
spending time on practical interventions that can make a real difference to people’s lives.
These include initiatives such as our commitment to tackling fuel poverty through loft
clearance schemes which allow the installation of loft insulation; tackling loneliness through
our befriending scheme, improving safety in the home by checking and fitting fire alarms
and reaching out to older people who are living without a family network.
Wider Community Involvement
Sustainability and Energy Efficiency
UK Green Apple Awards 2014
Building & Construction
Green Practices: Gold Winner
Green Deal & Energy Company
Obligation (ECO) National
Award Winner
We provide dedicated finishing and completion trade teams to ensure that all snagging processes and
quality inspections are complete and that each property is defect free. Only then is the property offered
for handover in conjunction with the client’s representative, clerk of works or home purchaser regarding
pre-handover inspections for final customer feedback prior to move-in day.
Our Customer Service Team is available during all resident move-in dates and provides an informal
property induction, focusing on key issues such as security, heating and water systems; an overview of
our Operating and Maintenance Manual for each property; to highlight any possible natural shrinkage,
cracking issues and to resolve any queries or concerns that may arise.
Our Customer Service Team provides additional support to vulnerable residents and will work with our
site team to resolve minor issues, provide assistance with furniture delivery and waste removal.
Post-Handover, Customer Care continues through our 24/7 Aftercare Service and
is supported by our Customer Service Team who continue to provide face to face
liaison and support as required.
Customer Service Excellence
We work closely with our site teams and client asset management and letting teams; and open
market purchaser’s to provide customers with early visibility of property completion dates for all
handovers.
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The vast majority of housing providers offer limited
support post completion - 12 or 24 months defects
cover is typical with NHBC, Premier Guarantee or
others, providing structural warranties from years 2
to 10 years.
Mears New Homes is uniquely placed to offer clients
and development partners a market leading defects
liability and aftercare solution.
The Mears mainTENance Warranty demonstrates
our commitment to excellence in service and the
overall finished quality of the homes that we build
and hand-over.
It assures our customers, regardless of the
property’s ownership or tenure, that each home will
be effectively maintained without the need to engage
third party contractors.
Further demonstrating our commitment to quality
and long term resident satisfaction, Mears New
Homes can provide the Mears mainTENance
Warranty under a number of options to provide
our customers with an extended, post-handover
aftercare service, covering routine maintenance
from 2 years, up to a maximum of 10 years.
10 YEARMAINTENANCE10 YEAR
MAINTENANCEPROMISE
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Long Term Support & Maintenance
Mears Group is highly experienced in maintaining and repairing homes and other properties and
therefore, we recognise the importance of quality during design, construction and handover of
new homes but also, within the service we provide once residents move in.
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01707 290188
www.mearsnewhomes.co.uk
@mearsgroup
mearsgroup
Mears New Homes Limited
26-28 Hyde Way
Welwyn Garden City
Hertfordshire AL7 3UQ
NEW HOMES