Builders crack the art of consideration

You may have wondered if it is a trick of the imagination or whether building sites really are less conspicuously noisy and dirty than they used to be, or whether there are quite so many wolf-whistling brickies swinging from the scaffolding? If so, you are almost certainly right, there has been a change for the better on each score. Some of it is undoubtedly due to more stringent environmental and health and safety legislation and the effect of the widespread adoption of policies of corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, part of the improvement follows a deliberate effort by the construction industry to clean up its act and repoint its image. The origins of this smarter, more grown-up industry can be traced to the 1994 publication of Sir Michael Latham's review of the construction industry, Constructing the Team, one of the spin-offs of which was the considerate constructors scheme (CCS). Officially launched in June 1997 when 75 sites were registered, the considerate constructors scheme had clocked up 1,000 sites by November 2000, and by December 2009 - recession notwithstanding - 40,000 sites had been registered by construction companies, all keen to toe the line and abide by the 'site code of considerate practice' which forms the basis of the scheme. Building companies of course benefit from the scheme, but so too do their clients, who after all have a longer-term vested interest in being a good neighbour. Given recent levels of construction activity among public sector organisations and their need to be beyond reproach, it is no surprise that government and local authority building projects are prominent among them. The CCS top 50 clients include the Highways Agency, which has registered 786 sites, the NHS (501), the Environment Agency (153), Defence Estates (138) and the Department for Work and Pensions (92). Local authorities in the top 50 include: Leeds city council with 322 sites registered, Hampshire county council (226), Kingston upon Hull city council (198), the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (194) and Staffordshire county council (174). An awareness of the environmental impact of the site The site code of considerate practice sets out to ensure that work is carried out with consideration for traders, businesses, site personnel, visitors and the general public and with an awareness of the environmental impact of the site as well as the effects of noise, light and air pollution. Contractors have to use local resources when possible, reusing and recycling materials when they can. Sites have to be kept clean with facilities such as offices and toilets well maintained. Dirt and dust has to be minimised and contractors have to communicate regularly with neighbours. They also have to ensure respectable and safe standards of dress. "Lewd or derogatory behaviour and language should not be tolerated under threat of severe disciplinary action," according to the code. In north Staffordshire, Newcastle under Lyme College has just taken delivery of a new £60 million campus. Both the college and its contractor, Hertfordshire based building company BAM construct have been keen CCS participants. The college's vice principal Craig Hodgson said that he was not aware of the CCS prior to starting the project but one of the key requirements was to fit in with the local community. "We didn't just want to arrive, put up hoardings and be a nuisance for two years," says Hodgson. The reality was that after the construction period finished in December the college had not received a single complaint. "That's unusual for any project of this size," says Hodgson. "It was managed in an incredibly sensitive way and the first thing that the project manager did was to go out to the community groups and tell them what we were going to do and when we were going to do it – that takes the steam out of any complaints – then they stuck to their word." "When you are a public sector organisation you want the public to feel positive and reassured because, after all, you are spending public money."