Community Centres offer Mansfield and Ashfield tradespeople new opportunities

Work is due to start shortly on the two £8 million Derbyshire County Council community care centres – one in Market Place, Heanor and the other adjacent to the Whitworth Hospital in Darley Dale, near Matlock.

The two care centres, which will offer a range of services for older people including specialist residential care and community facilities, are being built for the county council by Mansell Construction Services Limited.

Both the county council and Mansell are keen to use local businesses and tradespeople in both developments, and an event was held earlier this month in Darley Dale to highlight the type of work that is on offer.

Nearly 40 representatives from businesses of all sizes across the county attended the event to find out more information about the projects and discuss them in more detail with county council and Mansell representatives.

They are now being asked to submit `expressions of interest’ in the work they would like to be considered for and all bids will go through a tendering process.

A wide range of construction jobs are available on both the Darley Dale and Heanor sites, from labouring, fencing, plumbing and landscaping to tiling, electrical work, cladding and joinery.

Derbyshire County Council Deputy Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Greater Heanor member Councillor Paul Jones said: “During these difficult economic times this is an ideal opportunity for local companies and tradespeople to benefit from these two major projects.

“The county council is making a significant investment in these schemes and the more local businesses get involved the more it will help to stimulate the local economies.

“I am pleased so many people came along to the event to find out more and if they couldn’t make it there is still the opportunity for businesses to get involved and register an interest.”

For more information about the projects and the trades and skills that are needed, businesses should call Mansell on 0115 853 3730.

It is expected that the Darley Dale site will open by the end of 2014 and the Heanor site shortly afterwards in January 2015.