Strong customer relationships, in-house technical expertise and diversification lay the foundations for further growth in 2025.
McLaren Construction’s annual results for the year ending 31 July 2024 show we are a tier one contractor delivering larger and more complex projects with efficient systems and strong in-house technical expertise.
Consistency in our leadership and customer relationships and effective management of inflation were reflected in financial performance. Turnover of £924 million (2023: £964 million) keeps the business on course to exceed £1 billion and pre-tax profit almost doubled to £11.9 million (2023: £6.3 million).
The award of the Sizewell project has paved the way for the creation of a new construction management division in August 2024. The Regeneration division was awarded the £200m refurbishment at Thirty High for Landsec. The London & South division signed contracts for the £132m refurbishment and repurposing of 318 Oxford Street for Publica Properties Limited, in addition to commencing the £200m ExCeL London expansion for ADNEC in the division’s portfolio of major projects.
Landsec’s Thirty High was representative of the high proportion of business from long-standing customers. Of the firm’s turnover in the financial year, 74% was repeat business from valued developers such as, British Land, Landsec, Stoford, GLP, Be First, DFE, McLaren Property, Argent, Miller Developments, and the Cadogan Estate.
We continue to build expertise in education, taking on construction of the new High Leigh Primary School for Hertfordshire County Council and handing over the Sport and Wellness Centre for Chigwell School. These projects provide a great springboard for the renewal of the DFE framework 2025 facilitating an additional pipeline of work across the country.
As part of the business strategy to develop the health sector, we handed over both the Moorgate Outpatient Centre for Cleveland Clinic and work continued on upgrading the infrastructure of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust. The successful completion of that project in Autumn 2024 positions us well as the Government confirms funding for the New Hospital Programme and Private Finance Initiative (PFI) investors start the process of handing back hospitals as contracts expire.
More public sector engagements will come from McLaren’s frameworks with central and local government and registered providers. Winning a place on the LHC Procurement Group Fire Safety Framework in April 2024 took McLaren to a total of 22 frameworks, with the business also targeting the CCS framework during 2025.
The McLaren UAE business brings further success to the group by focusing upon its core markets of industrial, data, technology, retail, entertainment and commercial.
The Midlands and North business continues to strengthen its position within its core sectors through repeat business in industrial and logistics, student residential and sports and leisure, and continues to diversify its portfolio with local and national frameworks and new projects from blue chip customers.
Under the leadership of Managing Director Andrew Beaumont, the Yorkshire & North East division will build long term customer focused relationships with the public sector through established frameworks, alongside relationships with the McLaren Property York Central team, and other well established private sector customers
McLaren has invested heavily in the systems to deliver remediation and new high rise residential development in line with the requirements of the Building Safety Act. The firm continues to deliver the £100m plus recladding and refurbishment of four towers on Camden’s Chalcots Estate.
A growing proportion of work is gained from public sector customers, with the firm remaining active in a broad range of sectors – offices, mixed-use, residential, retail, student accommodation, education, healthcare, building safety, industrial and logistics, hotels and leisure and data centres. The firm’s expertise positions it well to meet high demand for industrial and logistics hubs, office refurbishments, and the building safety & refurbishment sector.
Efficiency and resilience are supported by our continuing investment in technical expertise that brings consistency and management scrutiny as the business and its projects grow. A further £2.5 million was invested in specialist resource and digital systems, helping to meet evolving customer expectations and the demands of carbon reduction targets, building safety legislation and the move to digital construction.
