Case Study 1

Hewell Grange Ruins, Worcestershire

Hewell Grange Ruins form part of the nationally significant Hewell Grange estate near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. The Grade II* listed ruins, including a prominent sandstone portico with pediment and columns, had fallen into a perilous condition, with unstable wall heads, failing foundations and significant weathering to the historic stone fabric. The site lies adjacent to a lake and within an ecologically sensitive landscape, with nesting birds and bats confirmed by specialist surveys.

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were appointed as Quantity Surveyor following a problematic first phase of works by others. At the point of our instruction, the project had an inherited contract sum, a partially complete and outdated bill of quantities, and a risk profile that did not reflect the realities of working on a fragile ruin in a complex ecology-led and conservation environment.

Our role was to:

  • Undertake a retrospective commercial review of the contract position, including risk registers, allowances and contingency.
  • Complete a detailed add/omit exercise against the original bill of quantities to align scope, specification and current market rates.
  • Advise on and manage the re-procurement of specialist conservation works, including sandstone wall stabilisation, high-level portico and column repairs, structural interventions, basement excavation and foundation strengthening, and stone remediation.
  • Establish a robust revised cost-to-complete and overall contract sum, giving the client and Bromsgrove Council’s Conservation team confidence in both affordability and deliverability.

 

Through rigorous measurement, transparent reporting and close collaboration with the wider design team, conservation officers and ecologists, Staffordshire Cost Consultants helped unlock a stalled project, re-baseline its commercial position, and support the safe, conservation-led stabilisation of one of Worcestershire’s most significant historic ruins.

Case Study 2

Hewell Grange Footbridge, Worcestershire

Situated on the historic Hewell Grange estate, the Grade II–listed cast-iron footbridge to the north of the lake crosses a small watercourse and serves as a key connection within the larger designed landscape. Believed to date to around 1820, the structure pairs cast-iron components with sandstone abutments, parapets and approach walls, making a notable contribution to the estate’s overall character.

After decades of exposure, the bridge exhibited open joints, displaced sandstone copings, localised stone loss and evidence of scour around the abutments. The condition posed both structural and safety concerns, and risked long-term loss of original historic fabric if left unchecked.

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were appointed as Quantity Surveyors to support in planning, procuring and commercially managing a scheme of remedial works. The project focused on the sandstone and masonry elements of the structure, including:

  • Localised dismantling and rebuilding of sandstone parapets, spandrel walls and wing walls.
  • Replacement and re-bedding of copings, with lime-based mortars and discreet stainless-steel dowels.
  • Repointing, consolidation and mortar repairs to weathered stonework.
  • Scour protection and localised foundation remediation at the river interface.
  • Integration of conservation-led ironwork repairs within the overall contract.

 

Our role encompassed pre-contract cost planning, development of a conservation-sensitive procurement strategy, preparation of a measured bill of quantities, tender evaluation, contract sum negotiation, and ongoing cost and risk management during delivery.

Through careful measurement, realistic allowances for working over water, and close co-ordination with conservation officers and engineers, Staffordshire Cost Consultants helped deliver a value for money, conservation led remediation scheme that has extended the life of the footbridge and safeguarded its contribution to the Hewell Grange landscape for years to come.

Case Study 3

Midland Heart Housing Association

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were commissioned by Midland Heart Housing Association to support a strategic shift in how day-to-day and planned repairs were delivered across their housing portfolio. The organisation was moving away from a traditional main-contractor model to a mixed approach of direct delivery and tier-2 specialist contractors, underpinned by stronger internal commercial capability.

Our role was to help shape and embed the commercial controls, processes and documentation required for this new model to function effectively. Working alongside Midland Heart’s in-house team, we provided both Commercial Management and Commercial Administration support across a broad range of social housing workstreams, including:

  • Planned works programmes and cyclical renewals.
  • Void property repairs and re-let refurbishment.
  • Disrepair and litigation-related works, including damp and mould.
  • Heating and boiler replacements, and associated compliance works.
  • Kitchen and bathroom replacements, and wider component renewals.

 

Through a combination of structured cost control, practical process design, and hands-on support with live workloads, Staffordshire Cost Consultants helped Midland Heart to gain greater commercial grip over its repairs and maintenance spend, strengthen supply-chain performance, and improve value for money while maintaining a resident-focused service.

Case Study 4

DWP Jobcentre Plus Critical Security Infrastructure Programme

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were engaged as Quantity Surveyors on a nationwide Critical Security Infrastructure upgrade programme across Jobcentre Plus sites for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Initially appointed by Mitie as main contractor, we supported the commercial strategy, procurement and delivery of front-of-house security enhancements across circa 300 Jobcentre Plus offices throughout the UK, with each site averaging around £350k and a typical 12-week construction period.

The works focused on public-facing areas and included enabling works and installation of:

  • New security hardware and access control
  • Fire doors and secure door sets
  • Panic alarms and staff safety systems
  • CCTV infrastructure and monitoring capability
  • Lockdown rooms and associated protocols
  • Structured cabling and containment

 

All works were undertaken predominantly out of hours, with centres remaining fully operational for staff and the public during normal working times. Procurement was based on a two-stage selective tender process underpinned by a Schedule of Rates, requiring robust commercial controls to manage tendering, call-offs and variations at scale.

Our role combined strategic commercial input with hands-on delivery support: shaping the procurement approach, running the two-stage process, onboarding a national supply chain, managing Schedule of Rates applications, and providing ongoing cost, risk and performance reporting across the programme.

Following a retender by DWP, the national contract was subsequently awarded to ISS, who re-commissioned Staffordshire Cost Consultants to provide the same commercial support for a further circa 300 sites nationwide. This live commission runs through to January 2026, extending and refining the commercial model we helped establish under Mitie.

Case Study 5

HMP Gartree Prison Wing Refurbishment & Fire-Safety Stairwell

HMP Gartree, located near Market Harborough in Leicestershire, is a Category B prison. As part of a broader Ministry of Justice initiative to upgrade fire-safety standards across the site, work was carried out to renovate an existing housing block and add a new external stair tower to improve the fire strategy and provide compliant escape routes.

Working on behalf of Vinci, who were contracted by the MoJ, Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd provided full Quantity Surveying services on a live, high-security site. The project scope included the new-build stair structure and the refurbishment of cells, corridors, stair cores, showers, toilets and common areas over three floors. Works encompassed building fabric and finishes, electrical power and lighting, heating, emergency lighting, fire doors, flooring, ventilation, fire stopping, external brickwork/steel/groundworks and roofing.

Our role covered setting the contract sum, managing the budget through to completion, and administering the contract in the face of complex operational constraints. These included frequent prison lockdowns, movement restrictions and tight controls on access, deliveries, labour and equipment – all of which had implications for programme, preliminaries and loss-and-expense.

Staffordshire Cost Consultants delivered the full range of project QS duties: applications for payment and valuations, profit and loss reporting, subcontract and supply-chain management, procurement, payment certification, change control and variations, early warning notices, loss-claims management and final account settlement. This ensured the scheme remained commercially controlled, defensible and aligned with MoJ fire-safety objectives despite the demanding prison environment.

Case Study 6

Walsall Housing Group Planned Investment & Cyclical Maintenance

Walsall Housing Group (WHG) is a leading housing provider in the Midlands, responsible for the ownership and management of roughly 22,000 properties, and delivering an extensive, ongoing programme of upgrades and maintenance to ensure residents’ homes remain safe, energy-efficient and in good condition.

Kier were appointed to deliver a range of planned and cyclical programmes for WHG, including kitchen and bathroom replacements, roof renewals, boiler and heating upgrades, and associated fabric works. The delivery model was heavily subcontracted, with multiple tier-2 contractors engaged across trades and geographic areas.

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were commissioned by Kier to provide day-to-day Quantity Surveying support across these programmes. Our role centred on managing the commercial aspects of a high-volume, multi-stream maintenance contract – from procurement and subcontract management through to valuations, profit and loss reporting, change control and final accounts.

By embedding robust QS processes into Kier’s model, we helped maintain cost control and commercial transparency across the portfolio, ensuring that WHG’s investment in kitchens, bathrooms, roofs and heating systems was delivered efficiently and in line with budget, while supporting Kier’s contractual and financial objectives.

Case Study 7

7 Market Place, Derby

7 Market Place is a Grade II–listed former bank prominently positioned within Derby’s City Centre Conservation Area. Built around 1910 in a Renaissance-inspired design using stone ashlar, its three-storey street front features pronounced end bays, refined sash windows set within moulded surrounds, a Greek-key frieze and decorative parapet urns.

Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd have been appointed as Quantity Surveyors to support the careful adaptation of this notable structure, creating high-end apartments on the upper levels and a bar-restaurant at ground floor. The scheme demands a considered approach that aligns commercial goals with rigorous heritage requirements, ensuring the building’s architectural and historic significance is preserved and enhanced in accordance with Historic England advice and Derby City Council’s conservation standards.

Our role spans the full commercial lifecycle: establishing a robust project budget; shaping an appropriate procurement and tender strategy; building a heritage-capable supply chain; and, once on site, managing cashflow, applications for payment, variations, value engineering and final accounts. We provide clear reporting of the financial position, advise on delivery strategy and protect the client’s commercial interests, all while recognising the specific risks and opportunities inherent in changing the use of a listed former bank into high-quality residential and hospitality space.

Case Study 8

St George’s Hospital, Stafford & Staffordshire Clinics Measured Term Contract – NSR Final Accounts (Contractor-Side)

St George’s Hospital in Stafford is a long-established NHS mental health facility, originally opened in 1818 as Stafford General Asylum and now part of Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust. The main historic building is Grade II listed and has been partly repurposed, with modern mental health inpatient facilities and trust headquarters remaining on the wider site.

Within this estate, a Measured Term Contract (MTC) was in place for responsive and planned works, procured on a Schedule of Rates basis using the National Schedule of Rates (NSR). Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were commissioned by the main contractor to undertake a comprehensive programme of final accounts on approximately 500 individual works orders, with values ranging from £200 to £50,000.

Our role involved the detailed valuation and measurement of both subcontractor-delivered works and directly employed trades and materials, ensuring that each order was correctly coded, measured and priced under the NSR. Through rigorous application of the schedule and a fair, evidence-based approach, the final suite of accounts showed that the contractor’s revenue on the contract was more than double their initial internal expectations.

By bringing specialist QS expertise and deep familiarity with NSR-based measured term contracts, Staffordshire Cost Consultants helped unlock legitimate, previously unclaimed value, while ensuring that all valuations remained defensible, transparent and in line with the spirit of a fair and reasonable public-sector contract.