£51m deal to build 340 Stafford homes for soldiers
A £51 million cash pot has been set aside for the construction of 346 homes for soldiers. The Ministry of Defence has awarded a £51m contract to housing firm Lovell to build homes in Stafford for soldiers and their families returning from Germany.
The contract will see the construction of the homes for soldiers based at Beacon Barracks in Beaconside, Stafford.
This news follows the announcement in October last year of a £100m contract to carry out a major redevelopment of the barracks. Stafford will be the new home of two signals regiments returning from Germany, bringing three signals regiments together on one site.
The homes should be completed by summer 2015 when troops from 16 Signal Regiment and 1 Armoured Division Signal Regiment will move to Beacon Barracks, allowing for the closure of German base Rhine Garrison by the following March. Defence Minister Andrew Murrison said bringing troops back from Germany is set to save the MOD more than £350m per year.
He added: "This significant investment in Stafford further demonstrates that we are determined to provide the best possible accommodation for our soldiers and their families.
"Bringing troops back from Germany will save more than £350m a year in running costs, make best use of the Defence estate and provide a boost to the UK economy." The contract was yesterday awarded to Lovell Partnerships Ltd, which has its regional office in Birmingham and head office in Tamworth, by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, which manages and maintains land and property for the MOD.
The investment is in addition to the £1.8 billion announced for the Army Rebasing Plan, which will see 15,000 personnel return to the UK from Germany by 2020.
