Henry Construction (builders of the Wembley Link) no longer trading - 40 staff made redundant. Status of Wembley Link site being investigated.

The two Wembley Link towers behind the High Road at an earlier stage

 Update from the Construction Index (LINK)

As previously reported, Geoff Rowley and David Hudson of specialist business advisory firm FRP were appointed as joint administrators to Henry Construction Projects Limited on Thursday 8th June 2023.

Since the appointment, the administrators have been assessing the position of the business with support from sector professional advisors.

The business is no longer trading and most of its 40 staff have been made redundant. A small number has been retained to assist the administrators in their duties.

Gateley Vinden, the property and construction consultancy, is supporting the administrators as they contact developers across sites in progress along with Hilco Valuation Services, the asset valuation, advisory and sales practice of Hilco Global, which is assisting with the asset recovery and disposal strategy.

Mark Henry’s own personal property portfolio is understood to be unaffected by the collapse.

David Hudson, partner at FRP and joint administrator of Henry Construction Projects Limited, said: 

Henry Construction was a significant player of scale in the UK market. Unfortunately, given its financial position, it was not able to continue trading and so all operations have ceased. Regrettably, the majority of staff have been made redundant and we are supporting them in making the appropriate claims to the Redundancy Payments Office.

We continue our work to gather information about the assets and liabilities of the business and understand the events leading up to the insolvency. As part of that process, we are engaging with developers regarding the status of each site.

Wembley Link delayed after Henry Construction hits problems

 

Credit: Wembley Link

Wembley residents have probably seen the two towetrs emerging behind the Twin Towers (Uncle Bulding) on Park Park, wedged between the High Road and the Chiltern railway.

This is the 'Wembley Link' two towers of 16 and 18 storeys being built on the railway embankment by Henry Construction Projects  for Hub  (developer of the Uncle building) which will provide 256 apartments.

The Construction Enquirer LINK reports that Henry are having problems in paying sub-contractors and suppliers. London drylining contractor Ozel Group issued a winding-up petition against Henry Construction in an attempt to settle outstanding payments.

The Enquirer, in their  story published 2 weeks ago  about the builder struggling to complete their schemes, quotes a source regarding the Wembley Link:

There are problems at Henry’s Wembley job for developer Hub. A lot of firms have not been paid. And the scaffolders turned up last week and took their kit away.

The 16 and 18 storey towers have reached second-fit stage but firms are complaining about not getting paid. Several subcontractors are in the same position.

The Link is so-called as it is part of a scheme to link Wembley Central new deveopments with the Quintain etc developments around the stadium.

Consultation on more blocks behind Chesterfield House 'Twin Towers' closes on July 16th

Consultation is taking place on the building of two blocks, one of 16 storeys and another 18 storeys, behind the 'Twin Towers' (26 and 21 storey) replacement for Chesterfield House at the junction of Park Lane and Wembley High Road.

The consultation closes on July 16th. The buildings will be behind the shops on the High Road and bordered by the Chiltern railway line.  The designers make great play of a green 'Wemba Forest' corridor  around the blocks, name after Wemba who cleared a space (lea) in the forest in the area. Forest is perhaps a rather grand name for what is planned behind the shops but the artist's impression is extremely imaginative to say the least. Across the railway line there is a wooded embankment and the 2 storey houses of Park Court that will now be overlooked by four tower blocks.

I have published the design brochure below and the consultation  survey can be found HERE
Click lower right corner for full size version

Building plans for Wembley section of the Chiltern line green corridor

HUB developers have issued their early plans for a site alongside the Chiltern railway line in Wembley. They are already developing the former Chesterfield House site on the corner of Park Lane and the High Road.

The HUB website states:

HUB has purchased two pieces of Network Rail land on the Eastern Fringe of Wembley High Road, situated behind its Chesterfield House scheme.

Development of the sites will be carried out over two phases, delivering up to 300 homes, continuing HUB’s involvement in the revitalisation of Wembley High Road.

Glenn Howells Architects has been appointed to draw up plans for the first phase, which will consist of around 200 homes across two buildings.

HUB has been working closely with the London Borough of Brent to help ensure the sustainable and coherent development of the Wembley Housing Zone, within which this newest development will reside.

As its name suggests, the Wembley Link area is the crucial crossover between new developments in the town centre and those emerging in Wembley Park.

Given the height of the 'Twin Towers' that HUB are building on the site of Chesterfield House I asked HUB about the height of their proposed Wembley Link development.

The 'Twin Towers' with Chiltern line in foreground

 HUB responded:

At this point we are at the very earliest stage of formulating the plans for Wembley Link and so don’t have more information that we are ready to share. We will be conducting widespread engagement with the local community in advance of putting in a planning application, in order to ensure that the proposed scheme pays due regard to local aspirations and wider plans for the area. We will get in touch with you as soon as there is more detailed information to share.

Residents have expressed concern about the loss of  part of the 'green corridor' that not only acts as a passage for wildlife and provides a green space in a built up area but also helps alleviate air pollution and muffles the sound of trains to the benefit of residents.

Residents fear that following Network Rail's sell-off of land to HUB that the opposite embankment and that further north could also be sold for development.

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