Building consultancy picks Leeds for second office

Building surveying and project management specialist Silverstone Building Consultancy has chosen Leeds to open its second regional office.

The firm, which has its head office in Newcastle upon Tyne, was established by co-directors Richard Farrey and Ben Hunter in 2009 as an independent building consultancy operating in the commercial property sector and has since grown to employ 12 staff.

Hunter said: “We are delighted to be expanding into Leeds as part of our long-term strategy to become the leading independent building consultancy for the North of England. We will continue to offer the same specialist services but to a much wider market, which will open up new opportunities, enabling us to grow.

“We continue to champion the Northern regions and reinforce the message that there are mature and innovative professional services outside of the M25.”

The expansion has led to the appointment of a new director, Ben Rennocks, who will manage Silverstone’s Leeds office.

Rennocks was formerly a director within the project management and capital projects team at CBRE’s Leeds office, where he acted on behalf of global corporate companies including Towers Watson, Convergys, EDS, Hewlett Packard and Aon.

Rennocks will be joined by building surveyor, Jack Margerrison, who already works at Silverstone’s Newcastle office but will be returning to his Yorkshire roots to help establish the Leeds office.

Rennocks said: “The opportunity to launch Silverstone’s Leeds office is very exciting and I look forward to working with the team. Leeds is currently in a very positive position with city centre office take-up reaching over one million square foot in 2017, which is the highest ever recorded. The financial and business services sectors are particularly strong with the city establishing itself as a key destination for entrepreneurs.”