Nationwide Building Society
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Location: Nationwide Buildings Society, 111 branches across the UK
Project Manager: Ben Hunter, BSc. Hons, MRICS
Scope: Building Surveys
Client: Nidus Riley
Nationwide Building Society own most of their branches throughout the UK.
They invest in these branches as part of their overall investment strategy for the business. This comes with property maintenance and compliance obligations that they take very seriously.
After identifying a few compliance issues at a some of their properties, Nationwide Building Society decided to undertake a thorough audit of all their properties. This required each property to be inspected by a Chartered Building Surveyor to produce a bespoke report.
Nationwide has a varied portfolio of properties.
Nationwide has chosen each building for its location on high streets across the nation. This meant there was a wide range of property styles and architecture. This varied from decorative, listed buildings in the centre of Durham to modern shopping centres in Meadowhall, Sheffield. In Darlington, for example, the branch is a former Quaker Meeting House. It has retained many of the features, making the staff room quite impressive!
When surveying a building, the surveyor must take the location and local geography into consideration. Nottinghamshire and Northeast England, for example, have been extensively mined. We always have to look for evidence of movement cracks that could be attributed to this, or evidence of retrospective repairs in these locations.
Water or damp ingress (entry) is an important issue that can lead to commercial buildings closing. The source of the problems can be beyond the boundary of the building, such as defective neighbouring properties, drains or the water course.
The world changes around a building and what worked 100 years ago may not work now. Gutters and drains may not be adequate for the volume of water needed. Once permeable land now has tarmac on it, which can concentrate run off.
All commercial property must comply with legislation
This legislation is designed to keep all members of the public and employees safe. Retail properties must function to market conditions and sell goods. Residential properties must also be safe for people to sleep in. We will always consider our client’s proposed use of the property. This enables us to tailor our advice to their circumstances and allows them to be clear exactly what they need to do to their property.
For this portfolio, we had to consider both commercial and residential issues as there is often residential accommodation above the branches. We had to consider whether they were safe in terms of fire protection and means of escape.
We are very happy to collaborate and work with other firms we trust
Nidus Riley subcontracted us to help deliver this project. It is important to develop a clear and robust quality checking process during any collaborative work to ensure consistency.
We surveyed 111 branches in all across Scotland, North East England, Cumbria, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire – these properties are all shown north of the line on the map above.
Method BC worked throughout the first lockdown of 2020 with careful consideration for restrictions.
We checked with guidance issued by our regulatory body (RICS) and government websites. We worked from home as much as possible, but we had to go and survey buildings to do our work.
Delivering projects to a deadline in the Covid-19 pandemic
The covid restrictions often presented good opportunities to get into buildings and undertake inspections. These premises would have ordinarily been problematic with staff and members of the public around.
We completed the project in less than 4 months and within Nationwide’s required timeframe. The reports provided Nationwide with all the information they required. They then implemented the plan of works recommended for each branch. This ensures their large portfolio is well-maintained and fully compliant.
We also suggested sustainable solutions where possible, such as adding an extra layer of insulation before a new roof membrane was applied.