Commended Prize at Painting & Decorating Awards Ceremony

Bagnalls Newcastle branch was commended for a painting and decorating project at Ormesby Hall for the National Trust at the recent Painting & Decorating Association Annual  Awards ceremony in London.

The project involved the redecoration of Ormesby Hall, an attractive rural mansion just outside Middlesbrough.  This project followed on from the success of painting The National Trust’s Souter Lighthouse in 2006.

In the past, the painting of Ormesby Hall had been split into two phases.  However, Bagnalls were commissioned to undertake the entire project in one go in order to achieve a uniform finish in the Hall and out buildings.   The planned programme for the contract was six weeks. The completion was achieved in the given time period despite a number of difficult circumstances.

The museum remained open to the public during the conservation works, including quite a number of visits from young school children therefore health and safety was paramount on site, at all times.

In addition, decoration works for the National Trust are more demanding and bespoke than standard decorating contracts, as a clear understanding is required of the necessary conservation techniques.

Conservation Gifts

Receiving their T-shirts for their Ecuador Conservation Trip from Angela Nock of Bagnalls Cardiff Office, are the pupils and staff at Bryn Hafren Comprehensive School in Barry.

The T-shirts have been sponsored by Bagnalls in Cardiff who have established strong community links with the group.

Angela Nock of Bagnalls said: "The company is happy to support such a worthwhile venture and wish the girls well on their exciting journey."

Safety is Key at Shell

"I would like to take the opportunity to highlight an outstanding level of commitment and behavioural attitude towards safety and safe working practices that has been demonstrated by Steve Hickey at Shell Lubricants Centre throughout 2007 . His contribution and proactive approach towards improving the safety awareness and practices has set a shining example to the rest of the project and operations group. I would like to recommend Steve to be formally recognised within the Bagnalls group."

Norman Gray , Project Co-coordinator, Shell U.K. Oil Products Limited

Branching Out in the East Midlands

Bagnalls has recently opened a new branch in Leicester, just off the M1 and in easy reach of Nottingham, Derby, Peterborough and  Northampton.  This new branch will strengthen our local presence in this area where we already have a number of established industrial, commercial and public sector customers.  We are looking to establish our number of directly employed painters by winning more local contracts and developing long term partnerships.

Another Successful Painting Project for the National Trust

Bagnalls was awarded the project to re-paint this attractive rural mansion on the edge of Middlesbrough, following on from the success of painting The National Trust’s Souter Lighthouse in 2006.

Ormesby Hall is a mid 18th Century mansion lived in by the Pennyman family for over 370 years, with a 17th century wing and is one of the North East’s most popular tourist attractions. The hall is host to various attractions such as civil weddings and receptions and open-air concerts.  Therefore the painting project had to be undertaken with a great deal of care for visitors and guests.

Due to the complex and exacting standards that were required for this project, the team of painters selected had to be trained and experienced in this type of work.  Our decision for personnel was made easy as the same team of painters were requested by the National Trust who undertook the excellent work at Souter Lighthouse, in 2006.

Home visit to Academy

We were happy to welcome residents and employees of the Home Group to the Painting Academy in September.  A day’s visit was arranged to demonstrate first hand Bagnalls commitment to Apprentice Training.  Four apprentices from Bagnalls York were being taught new skills, including Tom Norton, who was recruited as a direct result of our partnership with the Home Group.  The day was also supported by personnel from our supply chain partner, ICI Paints, who discussed the benefits of new products which could be adopted in the partnership to deliver continual improvement.

Putting on the Paint in Piccadilly

Bagnalls undertook the painting of all external elevations and masonry around Piccadilly 111 in the city centre of Manchester on behalf of Bruntwood Estates.  They wanted a specification that could withstand the carbon emissions from the city centre traffic. The chosen paint came from a specialist manufacturer in the Netherlands.

For work to be carried out on all 4 elevations of this 17 storey building, special access equipment had to be erected or hired. There was a fixed scaffold erected around 2 elevations of the building, a slung scaffold for access underneath a bridge to gain access to the bottom of the louvered vents and a cherry picker was hired for other areas of high-level access. The four mast climbers and cradles were the most used items of access equipment on this site, operated by painters specially trained in these types of access equipment.

Al this hard work and dedication to the project led to a very impressive finish.

Bagnalls Star in Bafta Winning Movie Premier

Bagnalls painted the Regent Cinema in Redcar in preparation for the Regional Premier of the Bafta winning film, Atonement.

The red carpet Premier was on Wednesday 5th September and was only for the extras who took part in the filming of the war scene on Redcar beach. The film was on general release to the public on Friday 7th September.

Manager of the Cinema, Neil Bates, is delighted with the finished and the new look, as are the residents of Redcar.

Bagnalls Announce Scottish Acquisition

Bagnalls has today strengthened its position as the UK’s leading painting, decorating and specialist coatings contractor, with the acquisition of James Hodgins & Sons Ltd in Glasgow. 

Stephen Bagnall, Group Managing Director commented: “This is a very exciting time for us as we continue to grow and develop the business. We are absolutely delighted to have reached an agreement with James Hodgins & Sons Ltd, as there is an excellent synergy between our two companies, because both are successful, long established and family owned companies with a clear commitment to investing in and developing their employees. We look forward to welcoming all the James Hodgins & Sons employees into the Bagnalls family, and we are very much looking forward to working with them.”

The acquisition is part of an ongoing investment programme by Bagnalls to develop and expand the business, which included the opening of a new branch in Leicester in September.

PDA Paperhanger of the Year Award 2007

Two apprentices from Bagnalls Bristol, Mark Walton (Right) and Jason Defrietas (Left), came second and third respectively in the 2007 PDA Paperhanger of the Year award.   The announcement was made on Saturday 20th September at the PDA's Annual General Meeting in Brighton. Thanks to the staff at Bristol, especially Roy Curry, who have given them the opportunity to reach these high standards. Lets hope they can hit the top next year.

Bagnalls Apprentice Crowned Young Decorator of the Year

Christopher Jenkins from Bagnalls Bristol is the new ‘Crown Trade Young Decorator of the Year’ after putting in a superb performance at a demanding three-day painting and decorating contest held at South Birmingham College last week.

The competition is part of ‘Skillbuild’, an annual CITB-backed skills extravaganza for the construction industry, which encourages the tradesmen and women of the future to excel at their craft and to showcase their talents.   

21-year-old Christopher earned his place in the national final of the Crown Trade Young Decorator competition after winning one of fifteen regional events held in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland over the spring and summer months. Chris walked away with a handsome trophy, the ‘Crown Trade Young Decorator of 2007’ title, and a cheque for £1000.

Leon Shines at Crown Young Decorator of the Year

Hot on Christopher’s heels was Leon Noble of Bagnalls York.  He was a close runner up in the final ranking with a place in the Top 5, a superb achievement because Leon was pipped at the post in the Yorkshire heat and earned his place in the final as one of the highest scoring runners up from all the regional contests.

Leon was winner of the PDA Apprentice of the year award in 2006 and has represented the UK painting industry in Europe.  Leon has been studying for his NVQs at York College and just has one last written test to do before he is fully qualified and out of his apprenticeship.

Place Your Bets – Bagnalls is a Winner!

Bagnalls has just finished the final touches to Doncaster Racecourse’s £32 million refurbishment.  Bagnalls won the contract to paint and decorate the new build areas of Doncaster racecourse last year.  Richard Britten, local Branch Manager says “New build projects are complex.  There are always so many other trades to work around and ensuring that all the paintwork was finished in time for the racecourse’s landmark opening of the St Leger was a challenge but our site management and teamwork meant we were ready on time.”

Bagnalls used its UK branch network of trained personnel to deliver teams of up to 30 directly employed painters to the site at peak painting times.  This is no mean feat in the middle of summer when painters are in high demand as John Stead, Site Manager explains “Bagnalls has over 550 directly employed operatives and this means we can deliver skilled teams of painters when they are needed most.  We won’t let the customer down and know we have the ability to form teams of skilled personnel all trained to Bagnalls health and safety standards when new build projects near completion, and demand for painting increases significantly.”

The racecourse initially opened its doors to punters on Friday 17th August in readiness for the September race meeting.  Additional works were then undertaken by Bagnalls before the classic St Leger race meeting in September.

Young Decorators Aim for ‘Master of Rolls’ Title

Two of our apprentices have put brush to paper to pitch for one of the industry’s top titles.

Jason Defreitas and Mark Walton have reached the finals of the 11th annual Apprentice Paperhanger of the Year contest, organised by The Painting and Decorating Association (PDA) and held at the Basford site of New College in Nottingham.

The youngsters now face an anxious wait to see who will be named the top young wallpaper hanger in the UK, when they make a trip to Brighton - to the PDA’s National Conference on 20th October - where the winner will be announced.

Mark and Jason are both 19, and work for Bagnalls in Bristol, The company enjoyed success in last year’s contest when another of their apprentices, Chris Jenkins, also of Bagnalls Bristol took the top title.

Purdy Supports Apprentices' Success

In recognition of Bagnalls' apprentices achieving the Construction Award for painting and decorating, Purdy, the world renowned brush manufacturer, is embarking on giving all successful PDA member candidates a set of trade brushes to set their careers as painters and decorators off to a good start.

David Sunderland, Bagnalls' Group Technical & Training Manager says "Purdy brushes have an excellent reputation in our industry and we are pleased that they are awarding the apprentices for their success.  They have also been very supportive of our training initiatives at the Bagnalls Painting Academy over recent years, which was purpose built for apprentices to develop their site based skills."

Pictured: Richard Britten Branch Manager of East Midlands with one of his 2nd year apprentices Craig Newson and David Sunderland Bagnalls' Group Technical & Training Manager.

New Honorary Life Member of the Painting & Decorating Association

John Bagnall, Chairman of Bagnalls was elected as an Honorary Life Member of the Painting and Decorating Association on 28th March together with Alick Whittle and Walter Smith.  They were presented with their certificates at a luncheon in London on 27th June by Andrew Stokes, Immediate Past President.  John Bagnall is a former President of the Painting & Decorating Federation.

Bagnalls Supporting the Drive for Building Schools for Future

Bagnalls was commissioned to paint three new schools in the Leeds area by Carillion Construction in 2006.

Tight timescales and demanding quality standards were required to ensure that the schools were open for teachers and pupils to start a new academic year in September 2006.  As with many new build projects the timeframe for completion of the decorations was continually being compressed.

Bagnalls, with its strong presence in the Yorkshire region, was able to bring together teams of personnel from other branches to deliver the customer’s requirements on time.

Competition Success for Bagnalls' Apprentice

21 year old apprentice Chris Jenkins of Bagnalls Bristol put in a great performance at the South West heat of the Crown Trade Young Decorator of the Year Competition.

His attention to detail and professionalism impressed the judges so much that he came first in the regional event , winning a place in the national final of the competition, which takes place October.

Chris, who has been working at Bagnalls for 2 years, and who is currently studying for his NVQ Level 3 in painting and decorating is no stranger to success in skills competitions. Last year he won the 10th annual Apprentice Paperhanger competition, organised by the Painting & Decorating Association (PDA).

David Sunderland, Group Training and Technical Manager of Bagnalls is very proud of Chris’s  achievement:  “This competition really pushes our young decorators to new heights and gives them a chance to excel. They return to work armed with improved skills and techniques and with lots of new-found confidence which is fantastic for them and very beneficial for us.”

Kidderminster Town Hall

Bagnalls in Wolverhampton recently completed the repainting of Kidderminster Town Hall for Wyre Forest District Council.

The Town Hall is a formidable building.  The two main rooms date back to 1855, the Music Room, with its Victorian décor, is enhanced by the Baroque style casing of its William Hill Organ and the Corn Exchange which is now used for bazaars, dances and many public activities.

Bagnalls carried out redecoration works to the external of the building before commencing on the internal highly decorative work which was the final task to be done once all the other refurbishment trades had left site.   The work was extremely complex and required great skill from our workforce and earned us a nomination for the refurbishment category in the Johnstone’s Painter 2006, Painter of the Year Awards.

Durham Bandstand

Bagnalls North East recently repainted Durham’s Bandstand which is sited on the banks of the River Wear, on what is known as “the racecourse” (as it once was one 1733-1887), but is now the University Playing fields.

The Bandstand was revamped for Durham’s Annual Regatta on 9th/10th June, founded in 1934 the Regatta is the second oldest in the country.  The 174th Regatta also coincided with the 175th Anniversary celebrations of Durham University. 

In July, the Playing fields also host part of the annual Miner’s Gala where the bandstand will be a prominent feature.

Chester & District Residents Over the Moon

Residents of Newton House and Tiverton Close, part of Chester & District Housing Trust (CDHT), are over the moon with the professional standard of the painting works currently being undertaken. 

Linda Ramsey, Manager said “They are very professional in their work as a team, making sure of cleaning up after themselves, cooperating with all the security and safety issues, interacting with tenants as well as being friendly and helpful towards tenants, staff and visitors.  There’s been no disruption to the day to day running of the scheme, they have all been brilliant – a team to be proud of.”

The Re-Painting of Souter Lighthouse Wins Prestigious Award

The National Trust and Bagnalls are celebrating after winning a prestigious award for the external painting of Souter Lighthouse.

Bagnalls scooped the industrial category of the Painting and Decorating Association Premier Annual Trophy Awards 2007.

Nick Dolan, Property Manager of Souter Lighthouse, supported Bagnalls' entry into the competition and is delighted by their success.  He said:

“There is no doubt that Bagnalls are worthy of this award and the recognition it brings.  Paul Smith, Project Foreman, and his team would certainly be welcome on any future work Bagnalls carries out for the Trust”

Bagnalls Supports Decorative Paint Market

Bagnalls has joined the Armourcolor Premier Decorator Network. The Premier Decorator Network has been created to provide architects and interior designers with the highest level of service and specification support. By working together, we can provide a seamless provision of technical back-up and advice, through to expert preparation and application.

The ArmourColor range comprises of three products, each offering a creative and inspirational design alternative to paint, wallpaper and vinyl wall coverings. The finishes are exceptionally hardwearing and easy to clean, making them highly suitable for commercial interiors such as hotels, hospitals, schools, offices and high traffic areas where cleanliness is essential.

Northumberland Estates

Bagnalls has worked for Northumberland Estates for some years now.  We undertake the external painting of all the tenants’ houses on the estates. 

The clerk of works, based at Alnwick Castle, home of one of the world’s largest tree houses, wrote in his testimonial letter “many of our agricultural and residential tenants have asked that we pass on their thanks for the professional and friendly manner of the painters.”  Bagnalls has successfully carried out the external decoration works to properties within Northumberland Estates for the last 4 years. With properties off the beaten track, up hill and down dale, through fields, climbing over fences and fighting off the livestock for access, nothing is too much trouble.

Bagnalls Lights up the North East

Bagnalls recently completed the painting of Souter Lighthouse which stands 23-meters high and was the first lighthouse in the world to be powered by electricity.  Since 1999, the National Trust has taken over the care and ownership of this magnificent landmark and the associated keeper’s cottages, which are let out as holiday homes in the summer months.

The work consisted of the proprietary painting of the external of the lighthouse and surrounding buildings - but it was no ordinary job.  Bagnalls had to contend with harsh weather conditions due to its seaside location and the airborne debris created by a working quarry only 400 metres away.

Bagnalls were the main contractor on site and assigned a local scaffold company to work hand in hand with the painters to ensure the site ran safely and efficiently. The lighthouse had to be fully scaffolded to ensure the safety of both the Bagnalls operatives and the general public, because the lighthouse remained open throughout the refurbishment works.

Photograph by kind permission of Souter Lighthouse and The National Trust

Bagnalls Apprentice represents the UK in Europe

Leon Noble, an apprentice at Bagnalls York and the winner of this year’s PDA Apprentice of the Year competition, represented the UK in the EuroPainting Skills contest, held at Olomouc in the Czech Republic. The event was held in conjunction with the Union Internationale Des Entrepreneurs de Peinture (UNIEP) – the association representing the painting industry in Europe.

Contestants from all across Europe were given a series of challenges to complete including wallpapering, the preparation and painting of doors, and the replication of a given design. Although Leon did not achieve a place in the top three, he worked well and demonstrated his abilities in every task.

David Sunderland, Group Training and Technical Manager at Bagnalls, said: “This was a great opportunity for Leon, as the PDA’s current Apprentice of the Year, to test his skills on the European stage. He also gained an insight into the different techniques used across Europe.”