Construction contractor toasts King’s Awards success

Construction and fit-out contractor Willmott Dixon is celebrating after being awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise.

It is the fourth time the company has secured the UK’s most coveted prize for business excellence having won the honour in 2014, 2018 and 2019, for both its sustainable development work and how it is supporting social mobility.

This year, the firm was one of only nine companies to be recognised in the Promoting Opportunity category for delivering wider benefits to society far beyond its work in the built environment.

This includes the many thousands of hours its people volunteer to improve local community infrastructure, as well as its work providing careers advice, skills development and creating job opportunities for people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

This includes ground-breaking initiatives to improve job prospects for ex-offenders.

Rick Willmott, group chief executive, said: “Being recognised by the King’s Awards for Enterprise is a tribute to our people’s hard work and really underlines our commitment to leave a positive, sustainable legacy for future generations beyond the buildings we create and improve.

“Our people value working for a company that sets the standard for how we deliver social value in our communities.

“This is evident from the many hours they invest in initiatives that improve the life chances of people not as fortunate as them.”

Sarah Fraser, head of the Willmott Dixon Foundation, which oversees the company’s social value projects, said: “This honour shows how much Willmott Dixon’s people care about making a difference in communities.

“I am immensely proud of the work we have done as a company to deliver positive outcomes for people.

“From the skills development work of our drylining academies in prisons to our people volunteering to give careers advice in schools, winning a King’s Award for Enterprise is ultimate recognition of our stated goal to be a company with a purpose beyond profit.”