Ringwood Hill comprises a number of Council Built Hawksley type non-traditionally constructed 2 storey houses.
Westdale was awarded the contract to refurbish the 23 properties that were still owned by Newport City Homes, the remainder having been bought under the Right-to-Buy legislation, in times past.
Many of the private houses had since been repaired to a PRC approved scheme, and the aesthetic of the estate remained one of brick finish. NCH wished to retain the appearance and thus engaged Westdale to externally refurbish them, comprising new roofs, roofline plastics and to externally insulate the houses with a brick effect render finish.
Key Challenges
One of the key challenges came about due to the unexpected discovery of significant quantities of notifiable asbestos, lining the gable apex walls. This not only needed to be removed by specialist operators, but it also became necessary to rebuild the gable apex in timber frame lined with ply.
Another challenge which will likely be the case with the proposed tender, whichever lot is awarded, will be the logistics of working in and around occupied properties. Many are now privately owned and are situated in streets that are narrow and with very limited space for unloading deliveries, positioning skips for removal of existing materials and for parking.
Otherwise, the works were fairly straightforward for Westdale, who now have a roofing division and EWI division and have replicated a similar scope of works many times.
