30 Mar 10

Photograph shows General Officer Commanding 4th Division, Major General Lamont Kirkland; Lt Col James Landon, Commanding Officer 1st Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers; Arthur Moore, Chairman for Aspire Defence Limited outside the 100th junior ranks single living accommodation block at Mooltan Barracks in Tidworth.

Soldiers from 1st Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (1RRF), based in Tidworth, and from 1st Battalion Welsh Guards (1WG), based in Aldershot, are benefiting from the delivery of new living accommodation by Project Allenby/Connaught two years earlier than planned. Among the buildings is the 100th 36-man block delivered by the Project.
 
Delivered by Aspire Defence, a joint venture between Carillion and KBR, the ten new state of the art buildings comprising 248 en suite bedrooms as well as communal rooms, kitchens and personal storage areas, was made possible thanks to the £50m injection from the Treasury, announced as part of last year’s Budget, to be spent on improving military accommodation for all three services. This money was part of a wider package of Government measures to stimulate economic activity in the construction sector, and is further evidence of the commitment to ensuring that service personnel are given the high standard of accommodation they deserve.
 
Major General Lamont Kirkland, General Officer Commanding 4th Division, said:

“Having these blocks available two years early is great news for the soldiers, and was possible only because of the dedication and commitment shown by our contractor, Aspire Defence, to get this work done to a very demanding timetable. It shows the excellent working relationship that has been established between the MOD and Aspire Defence to deliver first class accommodation for our soldiers – exactly what they deserve.”

Welcoming the early delivery of the new accommodation, Lt Col James Landon, Commanding Officer 1 RRF, added:

“I am delighted that nearly 250 soldiers from my Regiment and from 1st Battalion Welsh Guards will be able to enjoy these excellent facilities, much earlier than would have been the case. The soldiers who until now have shared rooms and washing facilities will now have their own bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms – something I’m certain they will really appreciate.”

Andy Jones, Managing Director of Aspire Defence Capital Works, the construction ‘arm’ of Aspire Defence, said:

”There is no doubt that we were set a difficult challenge, but with the good working relationships we enjoy with the MOD and our sub-contractors, it was a challenge we were able to meet to deliver the finished buildings to a delighted customer and client. Aspire Defence is providing soldiers with new accommodation which is of a standard they deserve and of which the nation can be proud. Project Allenby/Connaught is quite simply making soldiers’ lives better.”

All of the buildings will also be fully maintained throughout the remaining 35 years of the contract by Aspire Defence.

Further Information

Paul Munro Communications Officer Project Allenby/Connaught on 01252 348245 or 07789 926305
Sarah Rolfe Aspire Corporate Communications on 0845 168 2035 or 07776 244774

Background

1. As part of the Budget on 22 Apr 09, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that £50M was to be advanced to the current financial year (09/10) from 2010/11 and 2011/12 to improve Service accommodation.
 
2. The £50m is being spent on a specific programme of improvements to both Single Living Accommodation (SLA) and Service Family Accommodation (SFA) for all three Services. The advancement of the building works at Tidworth and Aldershot, brought forward from April 2012, was achievable because the Allenby/Conaught PFI contract is already in place; the sites were available for construction to commence with no demolition required and with Council Planning already in place.
 
3. Project Allenby/Connaught is the largest infrastructure PFI ever undertaken by MoD, which is providing modern, fully serviced, living and working accommodation for 20% of the trained British Army in the Salisbury Plain and Aldershot Garrisons.  It has a particular focus on SLA providing some 11,500 single en-suite bedspaces.  The Project encompasses a number of support services including domestic services, estate management, document production and handling, stores, transport and waste disposal. The Project has a value of circa £8Bn over 35 years. Aspire Defence Ltd (a consortium of Innisfree, Carillion, KBR, and HSBC Bank) were awarded the contract for the project in March 2006.
 
4. In just 4 years more than 250 buildings have been completed and over 4,500 soldiers are now living in their own modern en-suite rooms. In addition to the living accommodation the Project is delivering dining centres, regimental headquarters, training wings, etc, as well as community and sports centres. On average, more than one building is handed into service each week.