Henderson eyes up private sector
A TEESSIDE engineering firm specialising in prison upgrades is seeking more work from the private sector ahead of expected public funding cuts.
Guisborough-based Henderson Campbell generates around 90% of its revenues from a contract with the Home Office, which runs to 2012.
But with the Government under pressure to reduce its £178bn budget deficit, there is no certainty that the contract will be renewed.
Henderson is planning to increase its options by boosting revenues from the private sector, although it remains confident of securing more prison-related contracts.
MD Antony Henderson said public budgets for prison infrastructure upgrades were likely to be maintained.
“In terms of prison population, they (the Government) usually find the money. They won’t want criminals walking the streets.
“Public money is cyclical. You either have a lot of it or none at all. We are looking to develop partnerships with the private sector in the North-east.”
He said he was eyeing supermarkets with funds to develop new outlets as well as other private infrastructure-led projects in the region.
“Rather than focus on the big, out-of-town stores, they (supermarkets) will focus on smaller outlets - like Tesco have done with Tesco Express.
“Companies like Lidl and Aldi have got money to expand.”
For now the prison sector is a lucrative outlet for Henderson, which recently won a £1.2m contract from the Home Office to work on a catering facility at a Merseyside prison.
The single-storey modular kitchen will have the capacity to provide 1,600 meals at a time for inmates. The eight-wing prison is a typical, austere Victorian building, constructed in 1855 on a 22-acre site to serve the whole of the Merseyside Courts catchment area.
Henderson has also completed a £1.5m contract at a women's prison at Eastwood Park in Gloucestershire - one month ahead of schedule.
It is the third time in 10 years that the Teesside company has been involved with developments at Eastwood Park Jail in Wotton-under-Edge.
Mr Henderson said Home Office work had been the company's mainstay since 1990 but they were now beginning to add more diverse projects to their portfolio.
“Modular/portable buildings are perfect for prisons but are also now welcomed by hotel developers as well as schools, supermarkets and the leisure centre so we are looking forward to diversifying as 2010 progresses,” he said.
Henderson became a preferred supplier to the Home Office in 2006, with a remit to expand 15 prisons across the UK in partnership with Newark-based Caledonian Building Systems.
Established in 1975, the Teesside firm employs around 60 staff and specialises in the construction of modular or pre-engineered buildings.
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