Walter Thompson Contractors has been declared Most Considerate Site 2016 at the prestigious Considerate Constructors Scheme’s National Site Awards.

The award, which was presented at The Mermaid in London on Friday 29 April, was given within the category of sites with a project value of £500k to £5m.

This project was one of four sites to win the esteemed Most Considerate Site accolade, as a result of ‘value bands’ being introduced, to enable sites to be assessed with projects of a similar value.

Its award-winning Linthorpe School Extension and Refurbishment project in Middlesbrough involved major phased refurbishment of many areas of an existing live school, including KS2 ground floor area, reception area, relocation of ICT suite, foundation stage alterations, a new standalone nursery building and a two classroom extension all while school life continued.

The annual awards recognise the highest levels of consideration and care shown by sites registered with the Considerate Constructors Scheme towards their local neighbourhoods, the general public, their workforce and the environment. They are judged by Scheme Monitors visiting the site and rating their considerate performance against the Code of Considerate Practice.

A hallmark of this award-winning project was its rapport with and support of the school, including educating the children about construction, engaging and inspiring a pupil with special needs and providing local job opportunities.

Describing its performance, the visiting Scheme Monitor said, “This site has done everything conceivably possible to achieve the rating of “exceptional” in improving the image of construction.

“Engagement with the school was extraordinary and included the erection of a special wall for a troubled child to display his paintings, and the dressing of the boundary fence on Remembrance Day for children to display their poppies and other tributes.”

Walter Thompson’s Site Manager, Mike Hamm and his project team were hugely appreciated by parents, children, staff and neighbours, and the writing of a special song for them by the school was almost certainly an industry first.

Over 3,500 guests from construction sites of all different sizes attended award ceremonies held between 11-29 April at venues in Edinburgh, London and Manchester.

Paul Hammerton, Managing Director, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have won this prestigious award, and I’m delighted for the team who worked so hard and so closely with Linthorpe School.

“As with all of our valued clients, we worked tirelessly to ensure we kept any disruption to an absolute minimum.

“The bond struck up between our team and Sarah Lymer and her staff at Linthorpe was very close – we helped organise a Remembrance Day service, sang in the school choir and even had our faces painted for a charity day.

“One pupil in particular took a shine to Mike Hamm and wrote a whole diary about him.

“We have a reputation for being considerate on site, but I think the team working at Linthorpe went above and beyond what was expected.”

Considerate Constructors Scheme Chief Executive Edward Hardy commented: “Huge congratulations to Walter Thompson (Contractors) Ltd on achieving the accolade of Most Considerate Site 2016 (for projects with a value of £500k to £5m). This site has shown truly exceptional performance, making tremendous efforts in going way above and beyond compliance with the Scheme – taking considerate construction to a new level. It is a beacon of best practice for improving the image of the construction industry.”