It has been a very busy start to the year

by Dorcas George-Jones | Feb 2024 | Journal

In London, our retrofit project is gathering pace, with the application of Diathonite nearing completion and, on that subject, we were absolutely thrilled that our November journal made the front page of PrimeResi.com in January.

We are busy across all of our offices with some exciting projects going on and we will tell you more about those another time. We have new joiners, Flo and Tim, to introduce to you and this month we have been exploring the varying colours of Cotswold stone across the region.

HOLD THE PRESS!

We were absolutely over the moon when the leading on-line journal of luxury property, PrimeResi.com, featured our November journal on their front cover in January. We couldn’t have been more proud that the beating of our retrofit drum was resounding. It was very apt that, at the same time, we were hosting a meeting at Claridge House to show members of the Grosvenor team progress on their building. They came to witness Diathonite being applied to the walls – it is not glamourous but the application of Diathonite represents a key milestone in this super-prime retrofit project in the heart of Mayfair and it was great to show the client team the various stages involved. This product will increase the thermal efficiency of the external walls four-fold. For more information about retrofit, do look back at our November journal.

ROCK ON

We often have to help our Cotswold clients source new stone and it’s not such surprise that Cotswold stone varies in colour so much when you consider that this designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, runs through five counties (predominantly Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire but also Warwickshire, Wiltshire and Worcestershire) and covers almost 800 square miles.

Cotswold stone has been quarried since Roman times and the colour of the stone varies from quarry to quarry. It’s a fossil rich limestone and has brown hues in Oxfordshire, grey tones in North Gloucestershire, it’s honey coloured in villages around Broadway and golden as you move towards the central and southern towns of Cirencester and Dursley; by the time you get as far south as Bath it is a much paler creamy colour.

The quintessentially English towns and villages made up of beautiful stone houses and cottages that litter this area are highly sought after but the landscape is also richly rural with more than 3,000 miles of footpaths and bridleways and more than 4,000 miles of Cotswold stone walls dividing up the countryside.

Blenheim Palace and Windsor Castle are both built from Cotswold Stone; so too were the Colleges of Oxford University and Eton and stone quarried in Minchinhampton formed the Houses of Parliament. Buildings crafted from local stone were certainly built to last and Cotswold stone remains an excellent construction material. It is incredibly strong, highly weather resistant and breathable and it splits easily. It is a material much favoured by craftsmen. We have, we think, some of the best stonemasons in The Cotswolds and have been lucky enough to work on multiple stone houses, some very old and some brand new.
It comes as no surprise that this is one of the most desirable areas of the country in which to live.

Fun fact: Cot means sheep enclosure and Wold means hill – the direct translation of Cotswolds is ‘sheep enclosures on the hills’.

NEW TO THE CASTELLUM FOLD

This month we are introducing Flo and Tim who both joined us towards the end of 2023… and we are so pleased they did!

Florencia Rica

Born in Argentina to a father who builds houses, Flo has always been fascinated by construction. Looking for a better life for his family, Flo’s father looked for work in Miami, but then settled in Granada Spain and, at 29, Flo decided it was time to pursue her property building dream and moved to the UK to work. She began at ‘the deep end’ working for Crest Nicholson on a highly pressurised complex mixed use project in Farnham. During her time at Crest, she also participated in discussion groups for women in the workspace and equal opportunities. Providing her experience and positivity to a highly sensitive topic, and helping make sure construction continues to evolve into a equitable and multicultural place of work.
She then brought her passion for property to Castellum, under the mentorship of Miguel Dos Santos leading a highly prestigious project on the Wentworth Estate.

Flo has completed her SMSTS with distinction and is on her way to achieving her CIOB (with distinctions throughout her coursework). She says that her goal is to become a valuable and indispensable member of the Catellum family as a Site Manager in the next two years by working tireless under Miguel’s guidance – she is well on the way!

When she isn’t working, Flo is equally busy. She and her partner Tom love visiting London and exploring the UK on foot. She swims four times a week and does pilates. Podcasts and audio books are also her thing (she and I need to compare notes on this one). Travelling is unsurprisingly on her list of favourite things to do and so far, top marks to to Florence (let’s hope she shares that info with Tim for one of his weekend trips).

Tim Enright

Also from overseas, Tim is originally from Melbourne, Down Under. He has been in the industry for over ten years and made his move in 2019, drawn by the opportunity to work in the super-prime residential market. Initially employed by a property developer, he moved into main contracting, building boutique hotels and high density skyscrapers and from there he progressed to development managing and became a QS, joining us in 2023.

Tim is clearly, like the rest of us, property obsessed, and loves buying and renovating old and decrepit homes. He currently lives in Wimbledon and has a German Shepherd and a Golden Retriever (Oh yes! We do love our dogs at Castellum!). A keen sportsman, he plays Five-a-Side Footy and Aussie Rules Footy (whatever that is) and, to top that off he is training for a Marathon in May. He loves a weekend trip and can’t say no to meeting a mate in a pub!