Knights Lane, Stratford-Upon-Avon

Fitzgerald has successfully delivered a series of highway improvements to Knights Lane in Stratford-upon-Avon as part of a new Taylor Wimpey / Spitfire Homes housing development. The £1.135m S278 scheme was our first award under the newest iteration of the Warwickshire County Council (WCC) Engineering & Construction Works Framework. The scheme has seen road widening and footway construction works which will help facilitate access to the new housing development which consists of 270 new houses and parkland, and a new children’s play area.

The scope of works included site clearance, hedgerow and vegetation cut back, carriageway road widening, carriageway and footway surfacing, road markings, the provision of new street lighting columns, and the installation of signage. We also worked closely with utility providers to coordinate Severn Trent Water and BT utility diversions and provide new Aco kerb drainage and connections into the existing storm water sewer. We worked collaboratively with National Grid to facilitate installation of a new low voltage (LV) electric cable and jointing for the new street lighting.

Additional works included the construction of a new footway from the new houses to Alveston Church of England (C of E) Primary School and Tiddington village. This has opened-up up a convenient, safe and accessible route for local residents to get to key services, and at the same time, encouraged the use of more sustainable modes of travel. We completed the scheme by undertaking landscaping works to Knights Lane verges and parkland off Knights Lane where our compound was located.

Throughout the scheme we worked with WCC, local residents and stakeholders to maintain designated pedestrian routes through the works, and resident vehicle access into Townsend Road, which was the only vehicular access route into the new estate. We also engaged proactively with a local landowner to ensure vehicular access to his fields off Knights Lane and installed additional traffic management signage to maintain ease of access to the nearby Stratford Town Football Club.

Strengthening our local links with the community, we took the opportunity during the scheme to highlight the dangers of construction sites to local people. This started with a visit to Alveston C of E Primary School. Members of our team gave an interactive presentation to 200 of the school children during a morning assembly, talking about the works we were doing near their school and the dangers posed by construction sites and why they should not play on them. The children were asked to design posters based on what they learned. These were displayed next to our site boundary. A prize of a model digger, donated by The Morris Leslie Group Plant Hire was awarded for the winning poster. The project was completed in September 2024 – on time and on budget and to the satisfaction of WCC.

“Fitzgerald provided excellent service on the Knights Lane project, demonstrating a proactive approach by identifying issues early and incorporating GlassGrid to enhance surface durability. They kept residents and the local school informed through a workshop, which helped build strong community support. Their commitment to quality, adaptability, and proactive problem-solving contributed greatly to the project’s success. I highly recommend Fitzgerald for future projects”.

Gadar Gabow Engineer – S278 Major Schemes , Warwickshire CC