Mears has picked up eight former Connaught contracts, saving a further 1,000 jobs.

Mears has bought up eight of Connaught’s remaining social housing contracts.

The firm paid what is believed to be a nominal fee for eight of the contracts left over after Morgan Sindall paid £28m for the majority last week.

Bob Holt, chairman of Mears, said that the latest deal did not include work for Norwich City Council where Connaught held a £125m five-year contract, which is Connaught’s most controversial contract, after it bid considerably lower than competitor Morrison.

The Mears deal will safeguard a further 1,000 jobs, after 2,500 were secured by Morgan Sindall’s purchase. Some of the Mears contracts are believed to include work for soem of the 700 workers who were laid off last week. In total 4,400 people were employed by the Connaught social housing division, which is now in administration.

Topics