Westcliff Rugby Club, New Clubhouse, Airport Business Park, Cherry Orchard Way, Southend on Sea, Essex

Southend Borough Council, with the close co-operation and assistance of Rochford District Council, set out a joint plan to provide a large, new Business Park straddling the border of the two council boundaries. This plan has been developed alongside the expansion and development of London Southend Airport.

As part of the expansion plan, the local Westcliff Rugby Club pitches and clubhouse were re-located from the south side of the park – the airport-side of the development area – to the north side of the estate.

A.W. Hardy & Co. Limited were invited to submit a competitive bid on a Design and Build Contract for the new clubhouse. The proposals for the project also required extensive external parking areas and an access road, all of which was conducted on an open-tender basis.

We were delighted to secure the contract to provide a two-storey clubhouse with six ground floor changing rooms and a gym area along with first floor function rooms including a bar, kitchen facilities and an external viewing balcony. The building also incorporated a self-contained flat for the use of a club employee.

A challenging design brief called for brickwork cavity walls, precast concrete floors and metal-clad roofing to contain the facilities outlined above on a greenfield site (the site was so ‘green-field’ that the estate roads had not been completed by the time A.W. Hardy started work). As part of the tender and construction process, the scheme had to include for temporary access and utility services provisions, which were ultimately required for the bulk of the contract period.

A.W. Hardy & Co. Limited are pleased to have been able to serve the local community by providing new premises for the use of this progressive, successful and growing Rugby Club.