Daily briefing
National Construction News briefing: Tuesday 6 October 2026
15 stories from the last 24 hours, one event or deadline today, five dates for the week ahead and three closing dates from our recent stories.
Stories from the last 24 hours
Magenta Living starts £7m social rent scheme on former school site in Oxton Village
The Parchments will bring 30 apartments for social rent to the Wirral conservation area, backed by £3.57m from Homes England and built by The Casey Group for completion in January 2028.
Demolition starts on first phase of 1,600-home Holbeche Place scheme in Solihull
Muse has begun demolishing Mell Square Car Park and a former petrol station in Solihull town centre to clear the site for 346 build-to-rent homes, the first phase of a masterplan for up to 1,600 homes.
Transpennine Route Upgrade lays 2km of new track in 16-day Huddersfield closure
Network Rail says engineers installed two new lines, more than 50 electrification masts and a footbridge at Deighton during the 19 September to 4 October closure, ahead of a 38-day Christmas blockade.
Network Rail lifts £5m footbridge into place at Cardenden station in Fife
The steel span, built higher than the existing bridge to clear overhead line equipment, will carry two lifts and open to passengers in spring 2027 as part of the £311.5m Fife electrification programme.
Willmott Dixon completes pool structures at Portsmouth's Bransbury Park leisure and GP hub
The contractor marked the milestone on site with Portsmouth City Council, Mace and NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight as the two-storey centre combining swimming, fitness and a GP surgery heads for completion in 2027.
Loram starts ETCS fitment on second Network Rail grinder under East Coast Digital Programme
Hitachi Rail in-cab signalling is being installed on Colas-operated C44 grinder C44-02 in Derby, with testing at Melton later this year and handback planned for early 2027.
CITB promotes 24-month demolition operative apprenticeship with employer webinars
The Construction Industry Training Board is encouraging demolition contractors to take on Level 2 apprentices through its National Construction College, with two online briefings for employers in October and November.
JCB pledges £7,500 to Cheddleton church roof and damp-proofing appeal
The Staffordshire manufacturer's donation takes the Grade II* listed Church of St Edward the Confessor three-quarters of the way to the £30,000 it needs for porch roof repairs and damp-proofing.
CITB backs DfE drive to recruit construction tradespeople as further education trainers
The training body has given permission for its workforce forecasts and case studies to be used in a regional index showing where construction trainers are most needed, as the government seeks tradespeople for college roles.
Pagabo names shortlist for first Community Impact Awards ahead of Manchester ceremony
Procurement specialist Pagabo has published the shortlist for its inaugural Community Impact Awards, filling 41 shortlist places across project, sustainability, social value, housing and individual categories before a 19 November ceremony at Victoria Warehouse.
MACL Fishathon raises £24,800 for Lighthouse Charity in its sixth year
Essex groundworks contractor MACL's annual charity fishing weekend drew 45 participants in September and raised £24,801.25 for Lighthouse Charity, with the fundraising page still open.
Tees Valley traffic digital twin picks up two more awards in September, authority says
Tees Valley Combined Authority says its signal-controlling digital twin won at the 2026 Highways Awards and in Toronto, adding to a Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation award in June.
A170 Sutton Bank reopens after three-week closure for drainage and resurfacing work
This year's annual closure of the steep A170 climb between Thirsk and Helmsley ran for three weeks, with the drainage design changed during the work to protect springs supplying two houses.
RICS to promote CIWEM flood resilience training and register to surveyors
The two professional bodies have agreed to work together to increase the number of surveyors with recognised property flood resilience competence and make those firms easier for property owners to find.
Leeds, Wakefield and Kirklees start lane rental charges of up to £2,500 a day
Three West Yorkshire councils have introduced separately approved lane rental schemes built on common principles, with daily charges for works on their busiest roads at peak times, including the councils' own works.
Today
BCO Awards
Takes place today at Grosvenor House, JW Marriott Hotel.
This week
AT Awards
Takes place on Wednesday 7 October.
Housing Market Intelligence Conference
Takes place on Wednesday 7 October.
Structural Timber Awards
Takes place on Wednesday 7 October.
Energy Efficiency Awards
Takes place on Friday 9 October.
World Mental Health Day
Takes place on Saturday 10 October.
Closing soon
Northern Ireland Housing Executive is seeking tenders for "Response Maintenance and Improvement Works", estimated at £95,931,041 excluding VAT, with a deadline of 15:00 on 12 October 2026.
The consultation closes on Friday 16 October 2026.
Largest construction works tenders closing 5 to 18 October 2026
About this briefing
Published on weekday mornings. Every item comes from a story National Construction News has already published and checked against its sources, from dates organisers have published, or from our data trackers. See the events and awards calendar, or get the week's stories by email with the weekly newsletter.