Foundations for Life provides tailored training and development, on-site mentorship and ongoing pastoral support to enable structured career development for disadvantaged individuals. Using a support network of specialist partners, we have established several impactful schemes including ROTL (Release on Temporary License) and Prison Leaver Programmes, Support for Hidden Homeless and Vulnerably Housed Individuals, Addiction Rehabilitation Pathways and Ex-Forces Employment for people struggling to find a new career direction after leaving the military.
Michael Howard, Managing Director at Howard Civil Engineering, said:
“We believe that employment can be the cornerstone of stability and dignity for people looking to rebuild their lives. By welcoming disadvantaged individuals into our workforce, we not only change lives but also enrich our own organisation with talented and committed people. Programmes like Foundations for Life benefit businesses and the wider community by promoting inclusivity, addressing skills shortages, and contributing to a more equitable society. One of our key partners of the Howarth Foundation, a charity committed to securing meaningful employment and housing for individuals who have experienced homelessness. The Howarth Foundation has played a big part in the success of our programme to date, connecting us with individuals and supporting our mentoring process.”
Foundations for Life is now established as part of Howard Civil Engineering’s recruitment policy and wider commitment to social responsibility. The programme has become a proven blueprint for rehabilitation, having successfully supported the professional development and long-term career progression of people from a range of challenging backgrounds.
Ewan Mason, Recruitment Manager, said:
“In the last financial year, we provided employment for 11 disadvantaged individuals. This included six from HMP Hatfield joining our ROTL programme, two recruited via the Howarth Foundation, two T Levels and one ex-forces.”
While the statistics are encouraging, they only tell a fraction of the success story. The substance lies in the experiences and words of our Foundations for Life employees who embraced a second chance in life and grasped the opportunity with both hands.
Few examples illustrate the positive impact of Foundations for Life better than Kiel Tetley. Kiel joined Howard Civil Engineering via the ROTL programme and was placed in a Site Operative role on one of our major projects at Full Sutton. With the guidance of Senior Project Manager, Steve Dakin, Kiel rapidly distinguished himself through his attitude, work ethic, and commitment to learning.
Steve said:
“Kiel has become a valued member of the team. He has gained experience in all aspects of our current work fronts including drainage, slab preparation, waterproofing and ducting. He has shown a great attitude toward learning and his own personal development, resulting in us funding his banksman training course. Kiel has now also been tasked with controlling all site materials and plant deliveries to the ancillary buildings, a task that he completes to an excellent standard, communicating well with both the delivery drivers and our site team.”
Kiel has spoken highly of his experience. He says that his second chance with Howard Civil Engineering has improved his mental health and confidence, helped him to upskill and allowed him to enjoy family life. He recommends others from similar backgrounds to “jump at the chance” to participate in the programme. We couldn’t be happier to hear feedback like that.
Adam Wilson – who joined us from HMP Hatfield via the ROTL programme and brought prior experience in construction – has thrived in his role as Site Manager.
Reflecting on the ROTL programme and its personal impact, Adam shared how much he valued the opportunity to re-enter the industry, begin saving money, and re-establish the routines and responsibilities of everyday life, both at home and at work. He praised the friendly, helpful, and accommodating nature of our workforce, which has strengthened his resolve to relocate and continue working with us following his upcoming release from prison.
Adam also spoke about the peace of mind that comes from knowing he will leave prison with secure employment and the financial stability that brings.
A passionate advocate for the ROTL programme, Adam believes it “gives you the chance to feel like a normal person, and the potential to go back to what you were doing before, or learn a completely new skill.”
When asked about the future, Adam expressed a clear ambition to progress into a Contracts or Project Manager role and to remain with Howard Civil Engineering for the long term. For him, the most important factor is feeling like he’s at the right company – and for Adam, that company is us.
Outside of work, Adam volunteers in schools, where he educates young people about the realities of prison life and encourages them to be the best version of themselves. He is now a committed ambassador for the construction industry and a valued member of our team. We look forward to supporting Adam in his continued development.
Steve Dakin said: “The ROTL programme has quickly become an invaluable resource avenue for us. Adam joined us with a wealth of experience, and has quickly become an integral part of the team. Our ROTL colleagues have demonstrated an excellent work ethic and a real determination to learn and improve their skills. As a result, we have been able to offer full-time employment and further training to operatives on their release, with more planned for the future.” The success of Foundation for Life has strengthened our belief in the lasting, positive difference Howard Civil Engineering can make within the communities we serve. The construction industry not only has the power to build our homes, schools, offices, hospitals and infrastructure – it also has the potential to build a better future for those who need it most.
A brand-new Urgent and Emergency Care Centre (UECC) at Scarborough Hospital has officially opened its doors, marking a significant milestone for healthcare provision across the region. As the largest capital scheme ever undertaken by York and Scarborough Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the success of the development has been underpinned by the contributions of key project partners—including Howard Civil Engineering.
We played a pivotal role in delivering Scarborough Hospital’s £47m UECC, completing a 50-week programme of critical groundwork and structural works that earned high praise from the client. Our standards also contributed towards an overall project performance which received a glowing report from the Considerate Constructors Scheme.
This £47 million investment brings together an expanded A&E department and acute medical unit in a purpose-built, two-storey facility—enhancing emergency care provision for tens of thousands of patients annually.
To support this landmark development, we were engaged by Integrated Health Projects (IHP)—a joint venture between Sir Robert McAlpine and VINCI Construction—to undertake a £6.4m package of civil engineering works. Building on our successful collaboration with VINCI at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, we delivered an extensive and technically demanding scope of works that created the foundations and framework for the new facility.
Key elements of our scope included:
– Extensive enabling works and service diversions across a live hospital site
– Relocation of the existing helipad to ensure continuity of emergency operations
– Installation of surface and foul water drainage systems, including two large geo-cellular attenuation tanks
– Construction of a three-storey reinforced concrete frame for the new A&E ward
– Building two reinforced lift and stair cores, requiring complex temporary works
– Delivery of 4000m³ of concrete in foundations and superstructure
– Installation of 1600m of deep drainage (up to 5m), 1000m of service ducting, and over 2000m of kerbing
– Construction of a new car park to facilitate site compound setup
The reinforced concrete works formed a key element in the scheme, providing the structural strength and stability required to meet the demands of the new facilities. In the new A&E ward, the reinforced concrete frame is capable of supporting large loads and withstanding stresses from medical equipment and high footfall within a multi-storey configuration.
The construction of the two stair cores posed an operational challenge due to their proximity to existing features that needed to be retained. To overcome this challenge, Howard Civil Engineering planned and implemented an extensive temporary works solution to allow the safe installation of the stair core bases.
The fast and efficient delivery of the reinforced concrete cores were critical in achieving the client’s ambitious programme within the required timeframe. Howard Civil Engineering accelerated their completion with a fast-track build programme deploying additional resources and equipment.
Executing these works in a live hospital environment presented considerable challenges, particularly in maintaining access routes for ambulances, staff, patients, and visitors, while also navigating around existing underground services. Nevertheless, our team approached these obstacles with professionalism, foresight, and flexibility—earning commendation from the project team.
Gary Connor, Senior Construction Manager at VINCI Construction, was impressed by our service, stating:
“While Howard Engineering has been on site, the team has been extremely proactive, and the site manager, Patrick Furlong, has been excellent. With this in mind, I would definitely use Howard Civil Engineering on other projects.”
In addition to this strong endorsement, Howard Civil Engineering were proud to be part of a project team recognised for its outstanding performance under the Considerate Constructors Scheme. IHP achieved a flawless 100% score across all quality categories in the report by the Considerate Constructors Scheme. Inspectors noted the exemplary collaboration between IHP, the NHS Trust’s Capital Projects team, and the contractors involved.
This success of the UECC project reinforces our growing reputation as a trusted delivery partner on complex, high-profile healthcare infrastructure schemes. Howard Civil Engineering’s ability to deliver high-quality outcomes under complex conditions continues to set us apart—making us a contractor of choice for major civil engineering schemes across the UK.
To start the New Year off right, we were thrilled to work with the Barrie Wells Trust and their Box4Kids initiative to provide three children with an incredible VIP experience: watching Leeds United take on Blackburn Rovers, all from the comfort of an executive box at Elland Road!
The Barrie Wells Trust works with seriously ill children and their families to provide unforgettable experiences. The team reached out to our Managing Director Michael Howard last month to discuss the possibility of partnering up and providing such an experience, and we were more than happy to oblige.
Lexi and Bailey (both 10), and Alfie (17), all fight various serious conditions of their own, but refuse to let this get in their way. Their bravery in the face of adversity is inspiring, and we couldn’t be happier to take away these stresses from them and their family for a time as they enjoyed a first-class football experience! We were also pleased to donate £100 to cover all drinks purchased on the day.
Barrie Wells Trust Event Coordinator Katie Strickland had this to say: “Thank you so much for your support. I am sure your generosity will have provided these families with some brilliant, lasting memories.“
Additionally, parents of the three children also got in touch to extend their gratitude:
“We had the best day ever. Thank you so much.” – Lexi’s Mum
“A massive thank you for organising such a fantastic day, we really appreciated it.” – Bailey’s Mum
“We had a wonderful time. Once again thank you so much for the opportunity.” – Alfie’s Dad
We’d also like to extend a huge thank you to the Barrie Wells Trust for reaching out and allowing us to work together in bringing this day to life. Thanks are also in order to Leeds United for their continued support of both us, and groups like BWT who make dreams come true for so many.
As part of our annual tradition of giving back over the Christmas period, our 12 Days of HCE campaign is returning once again! We selected a number of charities/groups located around both our head office in Leeds, as well as the various sites we inhabit across the North of England, to support over the festive season…
Day 1: LS14 Trust
Kickstarting this year’s #12DaysofHCE campaign is the LS14 Trust, who we were thrilled to donate £250 to! Located a stone’s throw away from our head office in Seacroft, Leeds, we previously supported the charity back in 2022 for that year’s Christmas giving campaign.
After being set up in 2009, the group embarked on a mission to impact their communities across Seacroft, Swarcliff and Whinmoor. The team describe this mission as “promoting the area as a vibrant and exciting place to live, work and bring up a family”, and are working towards their goal by developing activities and opportunities for residents to get involved with; from food and hospitality services, fun activities for young people and families, and promoting health and wellbeing, to their collaboration with Climate Action Seacroft to share skills and learn how to both protect and nurture the spaces around their communities.
While many of the groups we support during this campaign are located close to our various projects around the country, the LS14 Trust is much closer to home, and we love being able to support the local area that surrounds us. A big thank you to the Trust for their incredible work, and we wish them all the best going forward – you can visit their website and learn more about them here: LS14 Trust Home
Day 2: The Old Fire Station
It is our great pleasure to once again be supporting the incredible Old Fire Station, located only a short distance away from our Leeds head office. This is our third year of supporting the community hub, and their continued hard in creating a joint social space for their local area is inspiring to say the least.
Since opening in 2017, the Old Fire Station has aspired “to create a thriving, welcoming and self-sustaining community hub in East Leeds”. In addition to providing an active social hub for their surrounding area, the station offers access to support and opportunity to children, young people and adults.
To reaffirm our support, we pledged £350 to the Old Fire Station to help them continue their crucial work. If you’re interested in supporting them and want to learn more about what they do, consider visiting their website here: The Old Fire Station | Opening Doors In East Leeds.
Day 3: Support Dogs
Support Dogs are another new addition to our 12 Days of HCE campaign. Based in Sheffield, the group are responsible for training dogs to assist with autism, epilepsy, as well those suffering from a variety of disabilities. In the last 12 months alone, Support Dogs has provided over 600,000 hours of life-saving support, and spent over 300,000 hours volunteering – as a result of this, we felt their work was a great cause worth supporting as part of our Christmas giving initiative.
Also located in Sheffield is our ongoing Waverly scheme, which we began work on in 2024 for our client Harworth Estates. To support the local area, Project Manager Paul Fox personally suggested Support Dogs as a cause he felt was worthwhile, which is why we are happy to be donating £300 to them.
Jack, the furry friend you can see in the photo, will soon be going to a young girl with autism. The incredible work that these animals are capable of is inspiring, and we’d like to wish Support Dogs the best of luck as they continue to provide such a life-changing service. To learn more about their work, take a look at their website available here: Support Dogs
Day 4: Mission Christmas – Cash for Kids
Cash For Kids are once again embarking on their Mission Christmas campaign: a huge operation aimed at ensuring as many children as possible receive a gift this Christmas. Last year, Marketing & Social Media Executive at HCE Jack Cameron-Dolan, and Junior Estimator Dan Heffernan, joined the Leeds team to hand over a donation, in addition to lending a hand in the sorting and packing process that allows the team to manage so many presents.
This year, we were thrilled to once again provide a cash donation of £300 to the group to help the team in their admirable undertaking. In 2023, the team were able to provide over 16,000 gifts to disadvantaged children – an astounding amount of support – and so we hope through donations like ours that the team are able to raise that number even higher in 2024.
To learn more about the initiative, and donate if you are able to, please visit the team’s website here: Mission Christmas | Cash for Kids
Day 5: Guide Dogs
A new addition to our 12 Days of HCE campaign this year, the Guide Dogs Leeds Community Team are helping those with sight loss across West, South and North Yorkshire live their lives to the fullest! Their services extend to adults and children with visual impairments, and they provide guide dogs, buddy dogs, life skills, sighted guiding, information and advice – to put it bluntly, they do a whole lot of important work!
To aid the vital service the team provide, Howard Civil Engineering are donating £400 to Guide Dogs. The organisation has been in operation since 1931, and has since transformed more than 36,000 lives over their subsequent nine decades of work. It’s clear to us that their incredible work provides a life changing service to those it affects, and so we couldn’t be happier with our decision to support them.
This week, our Marketing & Social Media Executive Jack popped over to Guide Dogs’ Leeds office to meet the team and their furry companions. Only four weeks into their training, the skills the dogs were capable of was already impressive, and over the course of their roughly 30-week journey they will develop into life-changing support animals that will undoubtedly make a huge difference to someones quality-of-life.
If you are interested in learning more about their work, or would like to sponsor a puppy for yourself (something we’d highly recommend), you can visit their website here: Guide Dogs | The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
Day 6: Wakefield Hospice
Wakefield Hospice provides an essential service to its local area, in the form of symptom management and care for those with advanced active, progress and life threatening illnesses. Since accepting it’s first patients in 1990, the annual costs of running the hospice are now between £3.9 million and £4.2 million – that’s £11,500 per day! This means it relies heavily on the good will of its community to ensure it’s crucial operation can continue.
Wakefield is also home to our Langthwaite scheme, which we began in 2024. The scheme is currently in phase one, as we prepare the site to open for future commercial developments. With this new work comes a desire for us to support the surrounding area, and Wakefield Hospice truly stands out to us as a pillar of their local community.
To show our support of their life-changing work over the Christmas period, we’re donating £450 to help with the hospices’ costs. We absolutely encourage others to do the same if you are able, and you can do this, as well as learn more about the charity, via their website here: Hospice, Charity, Fundraising, Palliative Care – Wakefield Hospice
Day 7: The Howarth Foundation
The Howarth Foundation are a long-standing partner of Howard Civil Engineering; for several years now, we have worked together to raise funds, and provide new infrastructure for the group’s endevours. The team there work incredibly hard to ensure those experiencing homelessness can get themselves back into the work place, and get their lives back on track. By identifying clients ready for work, finding them a suitable role in a place of employment, and providing ongoing mentorship and support, they are able to provide homeless people a foundation to build back their lives.
With a donation of £1,000, we hope to show our continued belief in the Howarth Foundation’s hard work, as well as our gratitude for the continued partnership we have shared over the years. We are certain that they will continue to do immense good, and look forward to seeing the impact they make in the years to come. If you’d like to learn more about their work, and support them if you can, visit their website here: Home – The Howarth Foundation
Day 8: Fortus Foundation
The Fortus Foundation are on a mission to help businesses improve their corporate social responsibility efforts, and support the various schools, community groups and small charities across the York region. They do this by simplifying the process for businesses; allowing them to choose the charity they want to support, fund said charities through their foundation, and ensure that money goes as far as possible.
Also in York is our Woldgate School & Sixth Form College redevelopment scheme, which we began earlier this year. As the Fortus Foundation targets schools like Woldgate, we felt supporting the foundation in its efforts to improve their surrounding community was the best way to show our commitment to the area.
We are pledging £400 to the Fortus Foundation to assist them with continuing their mission over the festive season, and we look forward to seeing the good that their work is able to do over the coming years in York. If you’re interested in learning more about their operation, visit their website here: Fortus Foundation
Day 9: Happy Days UK
Our sister company, Erris Homes, previously supported a Halifax-based group called Calderdale Smart Move; an organisation that support those going through tough times with food, shelter, and assistance moving towards independent living. Now, they’ve merged with Happy Days UK, and continue to benefit those who need them most.
Happy Days UK provide a plethora of services to ensure people in their local area are not alone; running a community supermarket, helping to find accommodation, providing shelter over the winter period, organising social enterprises, hosting a community cafe, and more. It’s abundantly clear that their services have become a staple of the Halifax area, and it’s why we are dedicated a day of our Christmas campaign to them.
Howard Civil Engineering are pledging £400 to Happy Days UK to provide some support over the festive season. As colder months settle in and Christmas approaches, these times can be some of the hardest for many. We’d like to extend our gratitude for all the work Happy Days does for their community, and wish them the best of luck going forward. If you’d like to learn more about them, head over to their website here: Happy Days UK – Registered Homeless Charity in Halifax
Day 10: Homeless Street Angels
Multi award-winning charity Homeless Street Angels are providing outreach to those currently on the streets of Leeds. Every Thursday evening, the team ventures out into the city to distribute hot and cold food, clean clothes, toiletries and more. In addition to this, they assist with housing applications, hold fundraising events, help with furniture donations, as well as delivering food parcels. They believe in helping homeless individuals make a change, and enable them to do so in a supportive and non-judgemental environment.
We have a history of supporting homeless charities and organisations – like long-time partners of ours, the Howarth Foundation (you’ll find them in this campaign too) – which meant that the Homeless Street Angels team felt like a perfect fit for us to support. At a time like Christmas, while many get together with family and enjoy luxurys we commonly take for granted, it becomes especially important to recognise that many miss out on this. Taking this all into account, we’re making a donation of £500 to assist the charity with their hard work as they persevere throughout the season of giving.
If you’re interested in learning more about the team’s excellent work, please visit their website, and consider donating if you can: Homeless Street Angels | Award Winning Charity
Day 11: Candelighters
You may remember that, in 2023, we organised our big annual fundraising drive – taking on the arduous 15KM Tough Mudder – in aid of the Candlelighters charity: a group dedicated to defeating cancer, and improving the experience of young people suffering from it. Driven by a desire to make a difference, the group have worked tirelessly for nearly 50 years, and as a result we are more than happy to show our support as they continue their inspiring mission.
This is why Howard Civil Engineering are donating £400 to the Candelighters to assist them over the Christmas period. Having been named Children’s Charity of the Year in October at the Yorkshire Children of Courage Awards, the team also recently launched their Supportive Care Research Centre at the tail end of 2023. Since then, the centre has won four academic prizes, produced numerous academic papers, opened a project looking into how to manage febrile neutropenia – an increased risk of serious infections that cancer treatment can produce – and more.
We sincerely hope that the money we and many others donate is able to continue this groundbreaking work. If you’d like to learn more about the charity, and donate yourself, you can visit their website here: Candlelighters – Fighting Children’s Cancer
Day 12: Mind in Bradford
For the fourth consecutive year, we are pleased to be supporting Mind in Bradford this festive season! Their incredible mental health advocacy has helped so many – from 2023-2024 alone they helped over 17,000 individuals with their mental health and well-being – and it’s because of this that we continue to aid them.
For many years, Bradford has been a key area of focus for us on a number of projects, most recently the Bradford TCF scheme. This year, we announced a key milestone for works, that being the bus route switch-over officially taking place. These works precede Bradford being named City of Culture in 2025, and we are thrilled to be helping the city prepare for this prestigious title.
To show our immense support of Mind in Bradford, we are pledging £500 (a Silver Sponsor) to the Mind in Bradford team, earning us a bauble on their Christmas Appeal website! The team are attempting to raise £15,000 before Christmas, so we urge people to head over to their website and help them achieve this target – you can donate via their website here: Winter Appeal 2025
Last year, we announced the introduction of Field View as part of our day-to-day operations; a software that removes the need for pen and paper when it comes to forms & permits, snagging issues, project delivery, and handover. Being available on computers and handheld devices such as tablets massively streamlines the aforementioned processes by being accessible from anywhere – a huge boost to our overall efficiency – in addition to being far more sustainable by minimising the need for paper use.
Over the last year, we have been thrilled at the positive impact Field View has had on our work. One area in particular the software has impacted massively is quality assurance – to learn more, we spoke to our QA Manager (and golfing extraordinaire) Ewan Bromley to see how Field View is benefitting his work…
How has Field View helped you improve the accuracy of quality checks on-site?
The software has helped by being able to specifically pinpoint tasks to certain areas, uploading site-specific drawings to drop a pin in the correct location where the task has been raised. When carrying out Quality Inspections it allows me to insert images of the specific type of work that I am looking at on-site and specifically score that section, which then, once all questions have been answered, will give me an overall score.
What are some of the biggest challenges the software helps you overcome in your role?
One of the biggest challenges that Field View helps me overcome is the tracking of QA, and the forms being raised for each specific piece of work, which then also links to the above when carrying out the Quality Inspections. It also helps to keep track of the tasks that have been raised; for example, in our audits, we have introduced in a 7-day deadline for tasks to be completed and signed off. Once the status of the task has been changed, I will be receive a notification.
In what ways has the Field View improved your team’s ability to comply with industry standards and regulations?
Field View has improved the team’s overall abilities, as there is more to go through on the forms, and we have slightly changed ITPs to contain certain elements if we have been caught out in the past. This then makes the site team adapt to changes in regulations, especially from Yorkshire Water over the recent years.
In your view, how does the software contribute to HCE’s long-term goals?
In my opinion, the software will help us contribute to our goal of zero defects. As mentioned above, we can easily change the forms that the teams use to carry out their own quality checks to ensure that everything has been captured, and then is also up to date with any regulation changes by the highways or Yorkshire Water.
In addition to the questions above, we asked Ewan if there were any recent examples of Field View having a direct impact on his work. In response to this, he shared some details of a Quality Inspection from one of our latest schemes, as well as a snagging list from another one of our projects. Both of these documents were able to be completed and signed off with ease and efficiency as a result of Field View’s streamlined accessibility.
A huge thank you to Ewan for taking some time to answer these questions. We hope this provides a more cohesive view of how this tool is allowing us to maximise our efficiency, in addition to increasing the sustainability of our day-to-day operations. It’s just one of a number of examples highlighting how we are levelling up our SHEQ processes to ensure the work we do is safer, more sustainable, and higher quality than ever.
Throughout September and October, our Senior Leadership Team gathered to strategise how we can more actively shape and influence cultural trends that promote a safe, supportive, and collaborative workplace for all our teams. To accomplish this, we have identified a number of key priorities designed to reinforce safety as a cornerstone of our business.
Our primary goal is to both reduce workplace accidents, in addition to fostering an environment that prioritises the well-being of each employee. Beyond technical skills, we are emphasising the importance of behavioural and interpersonal skills that make HCE a safer, more cohesive place to work. Traits like teamwork, trust, and clear communication are central to our approach – it’s crucial we recognise that positive relationships and attitudes drive overall company performance.
To make this vision a reality, we’re implementing several impactful initiatives aimed at building a culture of safety, respect, and continuous improvement. This includes…
- Each of our sites now actively participating in safety observation reporting, where observations are gathered across locations and sent to our head office.
- Black Hat Training being completely rolled out for all our supervisors company-wide.
- Further training on company policy and procedures to ensure everyone has a clear understanding of how we operate.
- Comprehensive Safe System Of Work training, and its subsequent implementation.
We invited Project Managers from all of our various sites across the country, as well as Engineers, to discuss how we’re actively seeking their support in driving a cultural shift across our sites. As we continue to embed these initiatives across our schemes, we are excited to see the positive impact a strong, safety-focused culture can have on our company.
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