The construction of new state-of-the-art Keir Hardie Primary School in Canning Town continues apace with the completion of the school’s rooftop garden and running track. To mark this milestone, The Mayor of Newham, Sir Robin Wales, Ian Sutcliffe, executive chairman at Countryside and 15 pupils from the school conducted a celebratory tree planting ceremony on the rooftop garden. They were joined by Affinity Sutton, Countryside’s housing association partner, Jerram Falkus, contractors on site, Baily Garner consultants, staff and children from Keir Hardie Primary School and local residents from the Fife Road Regeneration Group.

The ceremony took place in the morning on Wednesday 19 March and after short speeches from Sir Robin Wales, Ian Sutcliffe and Violet Otieno; head teacher at Keir Hardie School, the tree planting of a Tibetan cherry tree began, assisted by pupils from the school.

So garden cities are the new vogue in housebuilding policy announcements. On 16 March Chancellor George Osborne announced that a new garden city was to be built at Ebbsfleet in Kent, providing 15,000 new homes on brownfield land.

The development will be driven forward by a new development corporation – a ‘Garden City’ Development Corporation – similar to those that oversaw development in areas such as the London Docklands and the various New Towns of the 1980s. One of this writer’s first jobs in publishing was on a publication covering the Warrington and Runcorn Development Corporation’s area of influence. That, of course, was not a garden city, although it is not a million miles from one of the pioneering ventures in the movement: Lord Leverhulme’s Port Sunlight.

The original garden city concept grew out of the Arts and Crafts movement and was a reaction to the grim Victorian tenements and terraces. It is, one would be forgiven for thinking, a tad socialist for our current Chancellor. But George is really reacting to an idea already in the arena. On 20 November Labour’s shadow housing minister Emma Reynolds put forward a plan for a new generation of new towns and garden cities at the AGM of the Town and Country Planning Association – the successor to Ebenezer Howard’s Garden Cities Association.

Record numbers attended the ISCEx2014, the annual exhibition and seminar event for the ISCE (Institute of Sound and Communications Engineers), which proved a big hit at its new venue in Birmingham City Centre on 4 & 5 March.

One exhibitor, Kevin Sherwood, vowed to return after successfully launching a new range of products. Kevin, 2N Product Manager/Field Sales Director of CIE Group, said: “ISCEx2014 was an excellent opportunity for CIE to launch the 2N Telecommunications portfolio of IP Audio streaming devices and IP Intercoms. As a supporting member of the ISCE, this was the perfect chance to show the new range to customers old and new and gather their ideas and comments on the relative new market of Audio over IP.

At the Grand Arcade shopping centre in Cambridge, the upgrade of two main customer entrances had to meet exceptionally high performance standards. Specified to improve internal comfort levels for customers and reduce energy costs for retailers, a series of automatic swing doors from industry leader DORMA proved the perfect solution.

Designed by architects Chapman Taylor and built by Coulson Building Group, the £220 million Grand Arcade originally opened in 2008. With concerns about heat loss from the premises, owners Universities Superannuation Scheme re-appointed Coulson to install two new entrances – featuring toughened glass and DORMA ED 250A automatic closers to minimise energy loss.

The countdown to one of the largest private services and hire shows in Europe is on, and with limited places available, businesses are being encouraged to register free of charge to secure their place.

The Speedy Integrated Services Show, which takes place on Tuesday 25th and Wednesday 26th March at the International Centre in Telford, has been extended to two days, and more than 200 suppliers and partners will be showcasing the very latest product and service innovations on the market.

This week the government announced that the compensation awarded for people who are suffering from mesothelioma and lung cancer, as the result of asbestos exposure, will rise to an average of £123,000.

With the issue very much in the news, Eddie Strong (pictured), Chairman of UKATA (The UK Asbestos Training Association) has issued a reminder to those operating in the construction industry of the dangers of asbestos and how proper training might prevent them from suffering from these fatal diseases in the future. 

New homes at The Rise in Scotswood go on sale this weekend (Saturday March 15th), bringing an end to a decade long wait for the redevelopment of this riverside site.

Part of the biggest housing led redevelopment project in the North East, the properties are the first of 377 being constructed in the initial phase of what will eventually grow to become a sustainable community of up to 1,800 homes.

Bellway, the UK’s fourth largest house builder has established a new operating division covering Thames Valley to help meet customer demand for homes in the area. The new division of the national company recently set up headquarters at Pacific House in Reading, led by Managing Director Steven Brown.

CISRS will be running an inaugural Instructors Conference this weekend, at the historic NCC East Training Centre at Bircham Newton, near King’s Lynn in Norfolk. NCC East was the very first scaffolding training centre to be given CISRS accredatation over 40 years ago.

More than 40 delegates invited from the UK’s top 27 training centres have signed up to this new event, which takes place on Friday 14th and Saturday 15th March.

The South Wales branch of Women in Property (WiP) has announced its new branch Chairman. Helen James of JLL takes up the role from 1st March for one year.

Helen who has been a member of WiP South Wales for four years and was previously a member of WiP South West branch, is Associate Director in Valuation Advisory at the JLL Cardiff office. Helen qualified in 1990 and has over 23 years post qualification experience, primarily in South Wales but also in the South West. Helen has valuation experience in both the public and private sector having worked for the former Welsh Development Agency for 11 years.