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.

4,021

employees (2022)

£1.89bn

turnover (2022)

£163m

social value generated (2022)

99%

of waste diverted from landfill (2022)

Wates family 2022

Creating tomorrow together

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.

Everything we do is guided by our purpose of working together to inspire better ways of creating the places, communities, and businesses of tomorrow.

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

Commercial Administrator

Location: Streatham

Job Type: Clerical & Administration

Application Deadline: 27-12-2023

Wates have an opportunity for a Commercial Administrator to join our team in Lambeth to engage in full administrative duties and provide ongoing support for the team in a number of key contract areas. Key Accountabilities will include: Amend and improve various Excel trackers to ensure the data can be utilised effectively for data reporting. Create and maintain information on systems and databases and manage efficient filing systems. Close down jobs on the system to ensure reports reflect current work levels. Coordinate meetings when required and greet guests and visitors. Assist with the ordering of Personal Protective Equipment as and when required. Deal with a range of administrative queries that come through to the team. General administrative duties including filing, faxing and photocopying.We are looking for an experienced Administrator who is a confident communicator, highly computer literate (Microsoft suite – Word, Excel etc) and extremely organised. The successful individual will have ideally have worked in the construction and/or maintenance industry but this is not essential.

Contract Supervisor

Location: Notting Hill

Job Type: Trades and Labour

Application Deadline: 27-12-2023

We have an opportunity for a Contracts Supervisor to join our Wates team within our Responsive Maintenance division. You will be working out of our Finsbury Park office on one of our social housing contracts, delivering reactive maintenance to our residents.Key Accountabilities will include: Ensure high quality service is provided with the management of the work scheduling in accordance with company procedures, standards and SLAs Represent Wates at client and resident performance meetings as requested by the Operations Manager Manage the responsive repairs function to ensure consistent performance against targets Effective and efficient management of material costs and ensure that all are following correct processes and procedures Monitor quality of work through inspection, inspection reports, analysis of key performance indicators and analysis of customer satisfaction surveys. Lead, manage and contribute to the development of your team and determine optimum employment levels to comply with the provision of the serviceTo be successful in the role you must be an excellent communicator with the ability to problem solve, multi task and work to tight deadlines. Prior Responsive Maintenance experience is crucial to the role.

Multi Trader

Location: Walton-On-Thames

Job Type: Trades and Labour

Application Deadline: 27-12-2023

Wates have an opportunity for a Multi Trader to join our Wates team within our Responsive Maintenance division. You will be working out of our Walton-On Thames office on one of our social housing contracts, delivering reactive maintenance to our residents.Key Accountabilities will include: Undertaking repair/renewal works Advising Supervisor in a timely manner where other trades are required Working solely on certain tasks Working in partnership with other operatives to complete certain tasks Completing daily work sheets detailing work undertaken and materials used after each job undertaken Working in a timely and productive manner to complete programme tasksTo be successful in the role you will be an excellent communicator with the ability to problem solve, multi task, work to tight deadlines, have high standard of workmanship, productivity levels and ability to provide excellent customer service at all times is essential.

Project Director

Location: Swindon

Job Type: Operational

Application Deadline: 27-12-2023

Wates are looking for a Project Director to join our Southern Construction team on an exciting new project in Wiltshire area.If you are Project Director with proven technical skills looking for an opportunity to challenge the norm, bring fresh new ideas and elevate yourself within the industry then join us and help to create tomorrow together.This is a great opportunity to progress your career as part of a talented, diverse, and supportive team.ABOUT THE ROLEOur Project Directors are a valuable part of our business, the focus of this role will be to provide visible leadership, insight, direction and foresight in the safe and profitable delivery of schemes, while also providing excellent customer satisfaction and successfully develop a team.As our Project Manager you will: Lead the project team and manage the supply chain to deliver projects to time, cost and quality targets and standards Ensure safety targets and standards are maintained by understanding what safety excellence looks like Foster a continuous improvement culture by actively seeking input from all members of the project team and encouraging them to implement safety improvements Lead, manage and deliver operational excellence and efficiency through appropriate use of leadership indicator health check reviews through the Bid, Pre-construction and Construction phases of the projectWHAT WE OFFER Competitive salary & profit share scheme Flexible working  Car Allowance / Company Car (subject to Role/Grade)  Travel covered to any of our sites (subject to HMRC advisory rates)  Extensive corporate benefits including, Private Medical, Pension 8% employers’ contribution, Health and Wellness programme, 26 days holidays + bank holidays and much more… Excellent range of learning and development activity to support your career progression Industry leading family leave benefits to included 26 weeks fully paid maternity, 8 weeks fully paid paternity.  To find out more about LIFE AT WATES please click on the following link https://www.wates.co.uk/careers/ REPLACE THIS BOX OF TEXT WITH THE VACANCY DETAILS. PLEASE BE AWARE THAT THIS WILL BE THE ONLY SECTION THAT WILL FEED INTO THE JOB BOARDS.

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