Publication Date: 23-07-2025 09:00
Bellway site managers in Essex division win coveted industry award
Site managers across Bellway’s Essex division have been recognised for the quality of their work with a host of coveted national awards.
Five site managers from the Essex division, which is based in Chelmsford and is building homes across Essex, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, have secured Quality Awards in the National House Building Council’s (NHBC) annual Pride in the Job competition.
They were among only 450 winners selected from a pool of more than 8,000 site managers whose developments have been inspected by the NHBC over the past year, placing them among an elite group within the industry.
The winners were Adam Hawkes at Sapphire Fields, in Great Dunmow; Joe Gracey at Oakfields Park, in Halstead; Phil Taylor at Beaulieu Grange, in Chelmsford; George Robertson at Springstead Village, in Cherry Hinton; and Jason Adams, at Lark’s Place at Kennett Garden Village, in Kennett, which is being built under Bellway’s Ashberry Homes brand.
Project Manager Adam, 46, from Burnham on Crouch, has won his second Quality Award, having achieved the accolade for the first time in 2024 – when he also went on to win the Regional Award and be named national runner-up in the Supreme Awards Large Builder category.
He said: “To get the award for the second year in a row is a proud moment for myself and my team as we put in a lot of hard work here at Sapphire Fields. It’s a massive achievement to win again because there are so many great site managers out there who are pushing to win a Quality Award.
“The team here at Sapphire Fields feel honoured and grateful for the recognition that we receive from wining these Quality Awards and they all should be applauded. We aim to build the best homes possible for our customers and these awards show that we are on the right track. My name is on the award, but I wouldn’t be able to do it without them.”
Senior Site Manager Jason, 50, from Soham, is also celebrating the second Quality Award of his career.
Paying tribute to his site team, he said: “They were ecstatic about the win. It’s a big achievement for everyone. We are constantly telling the trades about Pride in the Job so on that Friday when you get that email telling you you’ve won, it’s great.
“And it’s not just about me or my assistant, it’s all the people on site. We just steer the ship, but they deserve the accolade because they do the work.”
Project Manager Joe, 40, from Basildon, who also won a Quality Award last year, said: “It’s really nice to win one after another. I wasn’t as confident this year as I know it gets harder every year because everyone ups their game.
“Winning it two years on the spin shows the consistency on the site. It’s a great team effort. The team have bought in to what we want to achieve and worked hard.”
Site Manager George, 65, from Peterborough, is also celebrating a second successive Quality Award – more than delivering on the pledge he made to win the accolade for Springstead Village when he first took over the site.
This year marks 40 years since George became a site manager and he now has six Quality Awards and a Seal of Excellence to his name.
George, an experienced contracts manager who decided to return to site management seven years ago to be more directly involved on-site, said: “Everybody is over the moon. They are all really delighted because it reflects so well on everybody. The whole team shares this accolade, it’s not all about me. This is not possible without a team.”
This year’s Pride in the Job success is the third Quality Award for Project Manager Phil, and follows a Seal of Excellence in last year’s competition, also for the team at Beaulieu Grange.
Phil, 61, from Chelmsford, said: “It’s fantastic news for me and the whole team and reflects the hard work and dedication they’ve put in. It would be great to get through to the next stage again this year and win a Seal of Excellence.”
All the winners will go forward to the next stage of the competition – the NHBC’s Seal of Excellence and Regional Awards, which will be announced this autumn.
The Pride in the Job awards involve a rigorous process including spot checks on the day-to-day running of a site. Each site manager is assessed across six key areas which are consistency, attention to detail, leadership, interpretation of drawings and specifications, technical expertise and health and safety.
Paul Feeney, Construction Director for Bellway Essex, said: “As you can see from the number of sites that are judged nationally, winning this award is no mean feat. The NHBC Quality Award is recognition of a job very well done and is universally respected throughout the construction industry as a mark of distinction.
“At Bellway we are constantly striving for excellence and seeking to maintain the highest of standards. Utilising our internal communications platform Pathway, successful Bellway site managers have been sharing advice and best practice with their colleagues and this has resulted in an improved performance across the business.
“I would like to congratulate Adam, Joe, Phil, Jason and George and their excellent site teams for this achievement and wish them all the best in the next stage of the competition later this year.”
To find out more about developments being built by Bellway’s Essex division, see https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/essex.
