News

The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) has welcomed the announcement from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of a £60m investment which is designed to generate up to 20,000 apprenticeships nationwide, alongside changes to the apprenticeship levy and cuts to red tape. The Federation has said this package will provide a boost to …

A report by the National Audit Office (NAO) has stated that every household needs to be engaged in order for the Government to achieve its objective to decarbonise home heating. It stated the number of heat pump installations by December 2023 was less than half of the planned projections; also …

Bradfords is launching a formal partnership with Target CO2 to roll out domestic retrofit support across the South West; this follows its employee domestic retrofit assessment scheme in summer 2023. Using the findings from its initiative which saw it provide retrofit assessment of employees’ homes, Bradfords now offers a full …

Covers Timber and Builders Merchants has announced it is continuing its support of the Sussex Heritage Trust Awards for the ninth time. The awards celebrate excellence in conservation, restoration, and the design of newly built projects, while also advocating for the utilisation of traditional skills and crafts. Henry Green, managing …

The Government has announced its decision to delay the implementation of the Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM), which was due to start next month. It has said it will reconsider the scheme in April 2025, which is after the next general election, according to a statement issued by the Department …

CCF has opened a new branch in Norwich to serve customers across the East Anglia region with both interior building materials and technical support. Headed up by branch manager Adam Newton, its new CCF Norwich team is on hand to provide specialist product guidance and technical advice such as ways …

Travis Perkins has teamed up with The AF Group (Formerly Anglia Farmers) to provide farmers and other rural businesses with access to its range of building materials, tools and accessories at highly competitive prices with minimal hassle. The partnership means that The AF Group can procure key construction materials for …

Independent builders merchant buying group National Buying Group has announced its new managing director. Mark Hughes joins the group with more than 35 years’ experience in a number of senior positions with building products manufacturers. During that time, he has worked closely with independent merchants and buying groups, developing a …

Haldane Fisher has been fined £380,000 after one of its staff members fell and suffered a brain injury while working at its Walsall site; pleading guilty to breaching Sections 2 (1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The incident occurred when Timothy Bates was …

Revenue at brick maker Ibstock fell 21% to £406m for the year ending December 31 2023, taking pre-tax profits down 71% to £30m, on the back of the slowdown in the new housebuilding market, and  an exceptional charge of £31 million,   following the restructuring programme undertaken during the year. The …