Final developer signs Gove’s building safety remediation contract

Abbey Developments, which is chaired by Charles Gallagher, recorded a post-tax profit of £41m off turnover of £175.2m in the year to April 2022, according to its last published accounts at Companies House. It sold 509 homes in the same year.

The reason for its delay in signing the government’s contract is unclear, but the firm has been approached for comment.

Rydon Group Holdings Limited, the parent company of Rydon Homes, which refurbished Grenfell Tower through Rydon Maintenance, its contracting arm, was the penultimate company to sign the contract last month.

In June, Rydon said it “continued to be in dialogue” with the DLUHC, but the reason for the delay was not disclosed.

Firms that did not sign the contract faced the threat of being banned from building new homes under the government’s Responsible Actors Scheme. 

Rydon and the DLUHC were contacted for a response.

However, a spokesperson for the DLUHC told Inside Housing in June: “We have been clear that those responsible must pay to end the cladding crisis. Those developers that fail to sign the contract without good reason will face the consequences.

“Our Responsible Actors Scheme will make sure that eligible developers that do not sign are unable to operate freely in the housing market. Their investors will see that their business model is broken – only responsible developers are welcome here.”