About Us

Together we inspire better ways of creating the places, communities and business of tomorrow.

We are Wates, the UK’s leading family-owned development, building and property maintenance company. Founded over 125 years ago, we know about the built environment. We partner with a wide range of public and private sector customers and partners to create the places, communities and businesses of tomorrow.

4,321

Employees (2023)

£2.18bn

Turnover (2023)

£225m

Social value generated (2023)

45%

Reduction in Scope 1 & 2 emissions against a 2019 baseline

Wates family 2022

Reimagining places for people to thrive

Now in our fourth generation of family ownership, we are committed to the long-term sustainability of the built environment and to making our industry more inclusive and representative of the communities we work in.

Our goals are to be more sustainable, trusted and progressive, and our people are driven by our behaviours of ‘we care’, ‘we are fair’, and ‘we look for a better way’.

London business school atrium

Long term financial resilience

As a multi generational, family-owned business we are not driven by short term shareholder demands, but by decisions which are in the long term interest of the business.

Our owners, the Wates Family, are committed to handing over to the next generation, an even stronger, more sustainable business. This approach drives all our investment decisions and allows us to achieve progressive earnings growth and to partner with customers to deliver products and services that offer the best value for money possible. 

Zero harm, we're safer together safety campaign

Health and safety

Our safety strategy: Zero Harm: We’re Safer Together, has produced better results every year since it was first introduced in 2016.

It is aimed at eliminating physical and psychological harm entirely from all our workplaces. In 2022, we led the industry across all key health and safety metrics, while continuing to search for new ways to make us even safer still. 

we are committed to quality and sustainability

Quality

We are committed to eliminating the practical and economic impacts of any quality failures from each of our businesses, while also achieving full compliance with all relevant regulatory and legislative standards. 

Our commitment to quality across the industry was demonstrated through our role in helping draft the Government’s Construction Playbook best practice guide in 2022.

Our industry leading women in construction recruitment programme

Inclusion and diversity

Our ambition is to have a more diverse workforce and to be recognised as a leader in promoting diversity and inclusion in our own business and in the wider industry.

We are developing a more inclusive culture by establishing clear, non-negotiable expectations about colleagues’ behaviour and language.

We have developed award-winning inclusivity programmes to help change our culture, and we are always looking to build on that work further. 

University of Portsmouth sustainability

Environment

Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. We are committed to becoming a net zero carbon company and we’re working to eliminate Scope 1 and 2 carbon and waste from our business operations.

We are also collaborating with customers and suppliers to achieve reductions in Scope 3 emissions in response to rapidly developing customer demands as the net zero agenda becomes ever more important. 

Using offsite manufacturing we can improve productivity, efficiency and safety in construction

Innovation

We have always looked for new and better ways of meeting our customers’ needs and we are committed to developing and embracing the best new ideas that generate value and help us to tackle shared challenges.

Whether we’re cutting operating costs with optimised construction or saving energy with Passivhaus technology, we can connect you with the right answers.

Latest career opportunities

Resident Liaison Officer

Location: Finsbury Park

Job Type: Customer Service

Application Deadline: 04-10-2024

We have an opportunity for a Resident Liaison Officer to join our Wates team within our Planned Maintenance division. You will be covering the Slough External Wall Insulation (EWI), Cavity Wall Insulation (CWI), Window and Door Replacements, Door undercuts, heating upgrades, extract fan installation. You will be delivering support to our residents on our social housing contracts.Key Accountabilities will include: Set up, undertake and manage the Tenant/Customer/Resident Liaison Service across multiple sites. Attend regular client representative and tenant meetings to ensure highest level of customer service is provided at all times. Ensure a consistent approach to customer care is adopted, Manage the Tenant’s Complaints procedures as a point of escalation. Maintain and update the on-site Database to reflect on-going works.You must have a full UK driving licence with access to a vehicle.You will be an experienced RLO with proven track record of successfully managing the workload across planned maintenance programmes. As well as having a strong knowledge of internal and external programmes, you will be a strong communicator with excellent customer service and IT skills.

Site manager

Location: Tamworth

Job Type: Operational

Application Deadline: 20-09-2024

Here at Wates, we have an opportunity for a Site Manager to join our planned maintenance team in the Tamworth area. The project involves working with one of our existing social housing providers to build affordable housing, so we are ideally looking for you to have worked on similar projects previously. The primary focus of this role will be to ensure a project is built safely, economically to the agreed timescales and quality standards. Key Accountabilities will include: Responsible for input into and programming the works/short-term programming of works. Manage Operatives, Sub-Contractors and Suppliers to ensure quality control is always maintained along with Health and safety. Attend pre- and post-inspection works and advise on appropriate action and job requirements and assist with design solutions. This resulting in the successful delivery and handover of schemes. Carry out Weekly Site Progress reports per scheme that will be file electronically as well as submitting to Project Manager. Ensure that once works are completed, the full and completed job packs are sent to the Project Manager at the office along with completion details to guarantee a swift invoicing procedure to eliminate WIP (work In Progress) & certify cash flow. We are looking for an experienced Site Manager with a successful track record of completing internal and external planned maintenance works. To be successful in the role you will be an effective communicator with a positive and engaging approach to providing site leadership. You will have strong IT skills (including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook) with the ability to prioritise a wide range of tasks to set deadlines.

Supervisor

Location: Redditch

Job Type: Trades and Labour

Application Deadline: 03-10-2024

Here at Wates, we have an opportunity for a Voids Supervisor to join our Responsive Maintenance team in the Redditch area supervising, leading and overseeing the quality control operatives in accordance with Health and Safety and ensure good working practices of refurbishment work are met within Public and Private sectors. Key Accountabilities will be to: Lead a team of reactive maintenance operatives and allocate work on a daily basis Attend pre-inspection works and advise operatives on job specifics Attend post-inspection works and inspect operatives’ workmanship Ensure large Multi-trade jobs are booked in by the scheduling team and are checked to clarify what trades and timeframes are required and if a pre-inspection is needed Deal and respond effectively for variation requests highlighted by the operative adhering to the appropriate client rules and procedures   We are looking for you to have worked in supervisory position ideally from a social housing/residential field previously and can effectively manage a team of reactive maintenance operatives, coaching and advising on the best working practices. What we offer: Competitive salary, plus performance related reviews, opportunities for growth and advancement within the team Extensive corporate benefits including, Pension, Health and Wellness programme, Excellent range of learning and development activity to support your career progression. Industry leading family leave benefits to include 26 weeks fully paid maternity and up to 12 weeks fully paid paternity.

Team Leader

Location: Southampton

Job Type: Operational

Application Deadline: 03-10-2024

We have an exciting new opportunity for an experienced Team Leader to join our Facilities Management team in Hampshire – Southampton on one of our new contracts. Due to the contract being in it's infancy, experienced FM individuals would be desirable.Key Accountabilities will include:• Oversee a team of contract support and helpdesk administrators on a day to day basis• Lead a team to deliver against contract KPI’s & SLA’s• Support and drive outputs on administration of the assigned accounts• Manage updates on outsourced and Contractor work instructions• Support managing the technical functions and client side relationships• Oversee and ensure the team monitor all Sub contractors, and info is obtained and maintained, including associated RAMS & attendance updates• Plan in engineers PPM allocations in advance• Manage, monitor, and record performance including exception reporting of the respective accounts within your remitDesirable qualities:We are looking for you to have relevant experience gained from working in a similar industry and environment. To be successful in the role you be an excellent communicator with the ability to problem solve, multi task and work to tight deadlines.What we can offer: Competitive salary, plus performance related reviews, opportunities for growth and advancement within the team Extensive corporate benefits including, Pension, Health and Wellness programme, Excellent range of learning and development activity to support your career progression. Industry leading family leave benefits to included 26 weeks fully paid maternity and up to 12 weeks fully paid paternity.

Get in touch

To get in touch with us, simply fill in the form below and we’ll get right back to you.