05 February 2015
Staff across Guinness were celebrating earlier this week when one of our major refurbishment projects was shortlisted for a number of national awards.
Cooper House in Manchester is in the running for a Housing Innovation Award for ‘Most Innovative Refurbishment Scheme’, as well as three further awards from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, in recognition of the quality of the project and the benefit it has brought to the Hulme community and surrounding areas.
And that’s not all. We’ve also been shortlisted for a Housing Innovation Award for ‘Most Innovative In-house Repairs Contractor’.
Update 20 February 2015: It’s just been announced that Cooper House has also been shortlisted for ‘Maintaining high-quality homes’ at Inside Housing’s UK Housing Awards.
Originally built in the 1970s, over time Cooper House had become cold, damp, inaccessible and expensive to heat.
Investing nearly £7 million over two years, we worked extensively with our customers who live there, offering them a wide range of support throughout the works. We also employed local tradespeople, created new apprenticeship posts in the business and even supported local arts projects.
As well as completely refurbished flats, with brand new kitchens and bathrooms, customers can also expect to save between £200 and £300 a year on their energy bills thanks to a new boiler system and improved insulation.
Paul Roberts, our Executive Director of Property Services, is leading the project. He said:
“We are incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved at Cooper House, and being shortlisted for these awards is fantastic recognition for all the staff who have worked so hard, and continue to do so, to make sure the project is a real success.
“I’m sure there’ll be some stiff competition but, with our outstanding safety and quality record to date, we’re looking forward to seeing how we measure up against some of the best refurbishment schemes in the country.”
