Best Place to Work – Contractor

EKFB

Our workforce provided us with information on what mental health services may work best for them. The provision of an on-site counsellor has provided easy access for those who may not have otherwise sought support for their mental health concerns. To date over 370 counselling  sessions have been completed. We believe we have helped to reduce the stigma of mental health and created an environment where people feel supported no matter how they are feeling.   

Farrans Construction

In 2024 Farrans invested significantly to become the best place to work in the construction industry. The company places health and wellbeing at the centre of their employee offering, with access to private health care, free annual health checks, flexible working, enhanced maternity/paternity, bespoke career development opportunities and a range of policies designed to maintain a positive culture for everyone. Farrans remains at the forefront of industry leading practices in mental health support and training, giving mental health the same priority as physical health. Valuing a two-way flow of information, Farrans has taken time to engage with its employees to listen and react to their ideas in the areas which matter most. Data accumulated from qualitative and quantitative sources in 2024 will provide the road map to an even stronger employee package in 2025. In 2024 Farrans launched a quarterly newsletter to keep its long-serving, retired employees up to date.

Kilnbridge

Kilnbridge is a leading construction and civil engineering contractor, with a well-earned reputation for excellence, innovation, and employee wellbeing. In 2021, founder and Chairman Dermot McDermott announced that he would transition the business into an Employee Ownership Trust structure, saying, “I wanted to ensure that, when the time for change came, any new business structure would keep our exceptional team at its centre.”

Where other firms have struggled to make this change successfully, and many have failed in recent memory, the business has now completed two full financial years in this new structure; in December 2024 it paid out a third sequential EO bonus to employees.

Through a combination of robust people and community initiatives, all championed by the Employee Representatives Group (ERG), Kilnbridge is making strategic changes to ensure it is not only a place people are happy to work, but that they are proud to work too.

Spencer Group

Spencer Group is proud to be an exceptional employer, recognising that its people are key to its success. The company fosters a culture that encourages positive contributions every day. With a strong focus on diversity, inclusion, apprenticeships, training, staff wellbeing and social responsibility, they have earned awards for its Apprenticeship Programme and efforts to promote Women in Engineering.

The company supports young talent, offering apprenticeships and traineeships that allow individuals to grow and progress in their careers. Although operating in a traditional sector, Spencer Group is a modern employer, placing its people at the core of its operations. Young people have the power to shape their destiny and take ownership.

By actively responding to employee suggestions through the ‘Let Us Fix It’ initiative, they ensure a positive working environment, reflected in consistently high employee satisfaction scores due to a clear vison that they have the power to implement change.