One thing is clear, William Davis Ltd, does not just pay lip service to the provision of social housing; it views its role as ‘a builder of communities’ and not just a ‘builder of houses’.

It is a commitment the Loughborough-based developer and contractor clearly demonstrates, particularly when involved in the regeneration of housing estates.

For a great many years William Davis has been developing its expertise in the field of estate regeneration. This wealth of experience is now being applied to its latest flagship scheme for the SWaN regeneration programme in Sheffield on behalf of Home Group and Sheffield City Council.

Seen as one of the region’s foremost social housing providers, William Davis is expert in the regeneration of rundown housing estates and since being formed in the 1960s, the partnerships division has worked with many Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) and Local Authority landlords to produce hundreds of homes, rebuilding communities throughout the Midlands.

Working closely with RSL clients, the William Davis team believes that being fully involved at grass roots level, contributing to planning, design and liaising closely with residents, enables the company to not only provide a better environment and lifestyle for the people who will live in the new developments, but also to achieve true best value for the client - not just providing the ‘cheapest quote’.

“It’s not just a number crunching exercise for us,” says Richard Cornes, partnerships director, William Davis, “We take a holistic view of what is required and the provision of quality, sustainable housing is paramount to any project. Together with our partners we take into consideration all the elements of the
development and the needs of the community, as a whole”.

With heavy emphasis on taking an active role in the community, and a reflection of how committed William Davis is to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a dedicated project management team is appointed, which attends and contributes to tenant groups and residents meetings. They address sensitive issues, allay fears, instill trust and forge relationships with key members of the estate community.

It takes a special developer to handle these relationships and in many cases, the associations continue long after the completion of the redevelopment programme.

Cornes continued: “The transition and major upheaval that is inevitable in redevelopment projects can be a very daunting prospect for residents - some residents have lived in the same house for 50 years or more. We carefully manage and monitor the period of change, ensuring that all parties are kept informed at every stage of the project.

“Often there is more than one phase of a redevelopment project and as such, residents have to live on estates whilst further phases are ongoing. We recognise that this isn’t easy and endeavour to keep disruption to a minimum. We also try to ensure that the project team is always on hand to listen to the needs of the residents and react accordingly”.

Endorsing these core values, redevelopment projects are registered with Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS), a national initiative set up by the construction industry, with the main areas of consideration given to the environment, the workforce and the general public.

Cornes emphasises this: “We like to think that we take a balanced approach, in some ways ‘old school’ and ‘traditional’ in our commitment to residents yet pragmatic and innovative with our programme delivery”.

Even before CSR was a recognised phrase, William Davis has always endorsed the core values of community involvement. In 1998, whilst working on an estates redevelopment project (ERP) at St Matthew’s in the heart of Leicester, employment of a local workforce, schools involvement and community consultation evenings involving all partners and local residents, were a fundamental part of the build process.

The successful completion of 25 new two/three-storey timber framed houses, on behalf of Foundation Housing Association and ASRA Housing Association acted as a benchmark for community involvement and provided a blueprint for the success of similar schemes.

Now, at the outset of any major project, a number of initiatives are pre-planned, involving different sectors of the community, for example, local employment initiatives and school health and safety campaigns.

Employing local labour either directly, or through Government schemes emphasises William Davis’ commitment to reducing unemployment in the area and in essence boosts the local economy, as well as giving ‘local ownership’ to the project.

One such initiative has recently been undertaken with Future Skills Dudley, a scheme managed by Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council whereby local youngsters have been employed to work on a major redevelopment project in Wolverhampton.

By their very nature, estate regeneration projects provide a multitude of benefits not only for existing residents, who have exacting requirements for their new homes but also for future generations and as such, the welfare of children who live there is an integral part of the consultation process.

Dan Platten, health and safety advisor, William Davis said: “It’s important to demonstrate how dangerous construction sites can be. Launching poster competitions in schools local to a development makes the whole experience fun. As many children are injured on building sites each year we feel strongly about conveying this important message in an understandable format.

“When embarking on an estate regeneration project or indeed any partnership scheme, these strategies are extremely important to us and we are committed to ensuring that local communities are informed at every stage. Visiting local schools enables us to convey our message to the heart of the community”.

To further enhance their work with local schools, ‘trade days’ have proved to be a great success in not only giving children a taste of building skills but also to reiterate the dangers of a building site.

Organised in conjunction with project partners, schools, and resident groups, children of all ages have the opportunity to ‘have a go’ at bricklaying, laying drains, ground works and carpentry.

Crime prevention and a secure environment is one of the key requirements for residents and working closely with local police architectural liaison officers, scheme layouts are, as far as possible based around ‘defensible spaces’ ensuring that the heart of a development enables natural surveillance, with windows looking onto central landscaped and parking areas.

In addition, it is now standard practice that all front and rear doors, including frames exceed minimum quality and security standards. This provides added peace of mind to residents and these features reduce both crime and the fear of crime.

In recognition of its ‘secure’ building and design techniques William Davis has recently received a Secured by Design award by West Midlands Police Authority for the redevelopment project on behalf of Midland Heart at Westminster Road, Handsworth, Birmingham - one of many accolades received.

Jointly, all of these elements form the foundation of William Davis’ success in estate redevelopment projects, and over the years many housing developments have been transformed into thriving communities where people are proud to live.

The latest project to benefit from William Davis’ commitment in this area is a £135m redevelopment project in Sheffield. Over 1,000 new homes in total will be built on the Scowerdons, Weakland and Newstead estates (known as SWaN) in South East Sheffield, where the company has just commenced work on the first phase.

In partnership with Home Group and Sheffield City Council the initial £5m phase will replace 30 defective 1960s pre-fabricated properties and create 45 two, three and fourbedroom high quality new homes, with community gardens and landscaped areas due for completion in April 2009.

The dedicated William Davis Partnerships Division team has already sprung into action in Sheffield, implementing its tried and tested community initiative and as such, SWaN will soon be the latest housing development to benefit from the company’s wealth of experience foresight and commitment - hopefully setting a further benchmark for many more estate redevelopment projects in the future.