News & Insights

With new fire regulations coming into effect in January 2025, our head of technical, Marc Johnson discusses how Thurston is putting in the groundwork to ensure our products are, not only, exceeding fire regulations but providing clear evidence of performance.

For most people, when you hear the term “modular buildings”, you probably envision identical boxes on a construction site.

We’re pleased to announce that our latest financial results have revealed a growth in revenue and pre-tax profit, despite challenging market conditions.

At Thurston Group, we’re committed to helping our colleagues grow and thrive in their careers.

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We’re thrilled to announce the well-deserved promotion of Joe Hatfield from group production planner to Assistant Production Manager at our Wakefield facility.

At Thurston Group, we’re dedicated to providing educational institutions with cutting-edge, sustainable, and cost-effective solutions.

The education sector in the UK is largely underfunded and overcrowded. For example, English secondary schools are facing the crunch with the largest class sizes in 20+ years.

In 2021, the global modular construction market was valued at around US$137.8 billion.

The beauty of modular construction is its adaptability. And here at Thurston, we’ve perfected the art of creating bespoke solutions for a wide range of sectors.

We are delighted to have received verification of the new Gold Standard Constructionline accreditation this week and thought we would explain what that means to us and to our customers.

Modular construction is not a new idea – there have been waves of interest from the construction centre over the years. Prefabs from the 1950s and 60s are still around, for example.

Thurston Group has been in the construction industry for more than 50 years. Over the years, we’ve evolved along with the UK’s construction sector with innovative approaches to sustainability.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses have been scrutinising the purpose of ‘traditional’ offices and how they are used.

Warehouse space can be hard to find. In fact, according to a report by property agent Cushman last year, Britain could run out of warehousing space within a year. So, if you need more space, but can’t find it, or it’s too pricey, what are the alternatives?

You may have come across both ‘modular’ and ‘traditional’ as terms to describe different construction methods before. But what do they actually mean?

At Thurston Group, we are passionate about the environment, and we are constantly striving to be more sustainable in everything we do. We are proud of our reputation as one of the UK’s leading modular building manufacturers,

More and more schools are choosing modular building designs when creating new classrooms and educational spaces to accommodate rapidly expanding student populations across the UK.

Thurston Group, the Modular and Portable building manufacturer, has been listed on Frameworks tendered by ESPO for a number of years, and after a competitive tendering process in 2021

In 2015 the Department for Education set out its vision for English Apprenticeships following a review into the system, to increase the quality and quantity of apprenticeships through a transformational programme of change.

The Railway sector is on track for the biggest shake-up to its model since the 90s after Whitehall recognised the need for a complete overhaul.

We’re delighted to announce that we’ve signed up to the Mental Health Charter. Solidifying our commitment to improving mental health within our workplace and raising awareness to end the stigma surrounding it, enabling more people to open up.

Homes England set to make Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) push. Telling its potential strategic partners, if they want more deals, that they need to start committing to increasing the use of MMC on projects. 

After the government launched its ‘once-in-a-generation’ plan to reform the UK’s railways, a parliamentary watchdog has reported that the overhaul lacks detail and urgency. It has also questioned whether the government has the capacity to deliver the rail reforms. 

A coalition has written to Jeremy Pocklington, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government calling for tougher carbon controls.

In the education sector, not every project or client is the same. These institutions, schools especially, are generally overcrowded and underfunded. Expansion is the first step to solving overcrowding issues, which in turn helps students improve their performance.

Funding has been announced by the government for 30 towns across England to boost their local economies, create jobs and new homes, and improve local skills.

We’re extremely delighted to announce that we’ve picked up our first internationally recognised award; the Silver RoSPA Award, in recognition of our commitment to health and safety practices across our organisation. 

A £3 billion hospital building programme was launched by the Health Secretary back in 2019. This new scheme proposed around 40 new hospitals built across England over the next ten years.

The delivery of net-zero buildings doesn’t necessarily come under offsite and modern methods of construction (MMC) but it is one of the major benefits.

‘Defining the Need’ has demonstrated an objective approach to understanding the needs of the public sector estate. It also highlighted the need to harmonise and digitise demand across new build programmes.

Planning permission and building regulations can be a minefield. Even more so when you factor in modular construction and portable buildings. But what is it and do you need it if you’re planning on going modular?

Following on from our last piece covering the Platform Design Programme, this week we’re looking at the key insights found from analysis of the five-year £50 billion forward pipeline.

Not all projects are the same, so a ‘one size fits all’ approach just doesn’t cut it. Special Educational Needs (SEN) classrooms require even more planning and design considerations in particular.

The CITB Construction Skills Network forecast, produced with Experian, has indicated that the industry is set for a challenging few years ahead as we start our recovery from the covid-19 pandemic and navigate our way out of the EU.

In a market where shortages exist, building standards are extremely high. Sustainability, comfort and infection control are all important but budgets are tight. Modular construction needs to be a part of the solution.

The Construction Innovation Hub is collaborating with government and industry across four key themes of Value, Manufacturing, Digital and Assurance. The Hubs’ work supports the Construction Leadership Council’s strategy and the Roadmap to Recovery. 

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS) has written a white paper to set out its long-term plan to boost productivity and earning power of people throughout the UK.

We’re pleased to announce that we’ve successfully landed a place on the £1.6 billion NHS Shared Business Services Framework. We’ve secured our position across four core lots for “Building Purchase”

The movement to bring standardised, repeatable platform systems found in the manufacturing sector to construction continues to grow.

Some of the team attended Place North West’s in person Meet the Authorities: Public-Private Partnerships event last week. Discussing how a strong economic recovery will depend on successful public-private partnerships.  

Some of the Thurston Group team spent last week on an insightful webinar from The Business Desk and Bevan Britton. On the Renaissance of Towns and how new working practices can inspire towns and cities to reinvent themselves. 

Around eight million pieces of plastic pollution enter our seas and oceans every day. And around 33% of this plastic is used once and then thrown away, most of which cannot biodegrade. Do you need help cutting your use of single use plastic?

We’re pleased to announce that we’re now a proud member of the Mid Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce (MYCC), an accredited member of the British Chambers of Commerce. 

We’ve been awarded the Social Value Quality Mark (SVQM) CIC’s Level 1 Quality Mark. The Quality Mark recognises distinction in values-led business that benefits customers, communities and the planet, and is one of the most rigorously tested standards of its kind in the UK.

We’re delighted to announce that we’ve been shortlisted for two awards at this year’s Offsite Awards! Our Tameside Hospital project is up for Healthcare Project of the Year, while our ‘Meanwhile Housing’ scheme for Be First London is up for Social Housing Project of the Year. 

We’ve been in a housing crisis for quite some time. With the effects of the pandemic not fully known yet, it’s likely to only get worse. According to the National Housing Federation.

We’ve raised a phenomenal £10,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support after putting together a cycling team to cycle the equivalent of London to Paris throughout the month of May.

We spent today virtually attending the Modular and Portable Building Association’s (MPBA) second live event of the year.

We’ve achieved ISO Accreditations from the NQA for 9001 (Quality Management), 45001 (Health and Safety) and 14001 (Environmental Standards).

We’ve been making regular monthly food bank donations to St Georges Lupset. Giving back to the local community and making sure everyone is able to put food on the table. 

Our Business Development Manager, Gemma Darroch, spent the morning attending the IdeasHub from Willmott Dixon and the Procurement Hub.

We’ve chosen The Community Foundation, based in Wakefield, as our charity of the year. Which will see our employees raising funds throughout the year through a variety of events and fundraisers.

It’s estimated that around 400,000 people are homeless or at risk of going homeless in England. Sadly, a large proportion of those are children without homes.

London boroughs fear a ‘summer wave’ of homelessness in the capital as a result of covid-19. Councils have pointed to a series of upcoming risks threatening to significantly increase the levels of homelessness not just in London but right across the country. 

Now it’s no secret that we’re in a housing crisis and the numbers of those sleeping rough or at risk of homelessness are rising.

In what was described as a “landmark moment” by the Chief Executive of Crisis in March 2020, the Government asked local authorities across England to “get everyone in”.

The Government will provide up to £211.6 million in funding for councils across England to deliver over 2,700 Move-On homes. Their mission is to significantly reduce homelessness and provide support services so they don’t end up back on the street.

The idea of ‘meanwhile homes’ as a solution to the housing crisis is refreshing. It brings together some of the biggest topics in housing – sustainability, micro living and modular housing. 

Our Bid and Marketing Manager, Dean Hill, attended Yorkshire Insider’s online forum on the Humber Freeport. To understand how the Freeport will engage with local businesses in the Humber region, where two of our factories are based.

This week, we talk to our new Business Development Manager for Offsite. Responsible for the southern region of the UK, Bob Holloway brings over 30 years’ of experience in the industry.

A new, flat-pack style ward for seriously-ill coronavirus patients is under construction for Tameside General Hospital during the pandemic, the Manchester Evening News can reveal.

Thurston Group is building new modular ICU ward for seriously-ill coronavirus patients for Tameside Hospital during the pandemic, as covered in the Manchester Evening News.

Thurston Group is a leading manufacturer of blast resistant cabins and modular building solutions.

Thurston Group is a leading manufacturer of standardised and bespoke healthcare buildings that are designed and precision engineered to deliver the very best in clinical environments.

In recent years, there have been major improvements to health and safety in the construction industry. However, the industry still accounts for a high percentage of fatal and major injuries.

This week, we talk to Project Manager, Harrison Hudson. With a family history in construction and a passion for sustainability, Harrison believes the modular industry has a lot more to offer.

Offsite and modular construction is steadily on the rise with more companies choosing modular buildings as their choice of modern method of construction (MMC).

This month, we’ve been busy working on some really exciting modular building projects. From education to commercial and industrial units, here are our October project win highlight.

We’d like to congratulate Peter Speight, our Division Director, and Matthew Petch, our Financial Controller after reaching milestones in their Thurston’s career. Peter has recently celebrated his 25th anniversary at Thurston Group.

It’s been a busy week for the Thurston’s team! We’ve installed over 100 modular units in five sites across England, Ireland and Wales.

Today consumers expect to receive packages quicker. This puts added pressure on distributors and logistics services to provide a seamless service and quick turnaround.

If you’re running a business that needs one or multiple offices, then you’re going to be faced with sky-high prices with a traditional build. Fortunately, there’s an option that’s significantly better than traditional office space: a modular office.

For a business in need of systems buildings, modular definitely gets the best result. Here we explain the advantages of modular systems buildings, so that you can decide whether to invest or not.

If you’re looking for a cost-effective alternative to traditional methods, modular construction is the solution. Not only is it cheaper, there are also a range of benefits.

Having something that’s portable, but still highly secure, sounds difficult. This is because most portable cabins are designed to be portable: not secure. Fortunately, there are innovative options available.

When everything is so expensive in construction, an often-overlooked method of cutting costs is modular construction. So what is modular construction? What can be made and why are they so great?

If you’re looking at options when it comes to modular buildings, you’ve probably realised just how many there are. With so many choices available, it’s often difficult to decide which building is best for you.

Some industries are undisputedly and unavoidably dangerous. That’s why it’s important to make sure you’re always protecting your staff. You can enhance your business in multiple ways with an anti-blast container.

No matter what industry you’re in, it’s important to ensure that your staff are safe at all times. It’s especially vital to ensure the safety of your staff working on high risk sites.

We’re part of a wider collaboration of businesses. One of our sister businesses is an industry leader in portable and modular building solutions.

With the aim of helping you to find out what’s really the best option for you, we’re comparing two popular methods of construction: modular vs masonry.

Thurston’s is part of a wider group of businesses. Whilst we focus on modular construction, one of our sister businesses, Yorkshire Marine Containers (YMC), focuses on various shipping containers.

The history of modular buildings starts in 1837. Where the first on-record example of this type of housing was a home designed and constructed by London-based carpenter Henry Manning.

There has recently been a big focus on everybody becoming ‘greener’ and improving their carbon footprints, leading changes in our lifestyles. But there are also other ways of helping the environment that people may not be aware of.

Looking for a secure yet portable cabin? We specialise in robust and secure anti-vandal portable cabins, with plenty of ranges to suit your exact requirements. Helping you find what you need easily.

Portable modular buildings, specifically portable offices, are brilliant. They hold numerous benefits over traditional methods, making it an excellent option if you have to move to different sites often. For example, working in construction.

Portable modular buildings are increasing in popularity. Incredibly multi-functional, in contrast to traditional methods, they have vast uses and benefits.

Do you need more space around your school? Are you short on time? If so, then a factory built classroom is the solution.

Modular buildings are six sided steel boxes manufactured offsite and can be stacked or put side by side. They have distinctive advantages, making them a much better modular and portable building solution.