An Ipswich chartered surveyors – which this year celebrates its 130th anniversary – has welcomed two new staff members to its growing team.
Stuart Blakey and Lee Forbes joined the firm three months ago having both worked at Concertus.
Stuart joined the firm as a quantity surveyor having previously worked on a wide variety of projects in London and beyond.
He had kickstarted his career working for a housebuilder after studying quantity surveying at university.
“After that, I fancied a bit of a change,” he said, “I wanted to learn about other areas of the construction industry so I went into landscaping in London, commuting to the capital every day and working on some big projects.
“I was working on a project to landscape gardens for multiple high-rise flats.
“The project focused on redevelopment after the 2012 Olympics, on many of the new high-rise flats next to the Olympic Stadium.
“I was doing more project management there and it was another string to my bow.”
Stuart later joined Concertus in a consultancy role, before joining Castons, which became part of Artelia Group in 2024, three months ago as a quantity surveyor.
He said he was excited by the range of projects Castons worked on.
“It has been particularly interesting to work on NHS projects as there’s lots to learn, it has really increased my knowledge,” he said, “I’m really enjoying it”.
Lee Forbes had planned to study English and History at University after completing his A-Levels, but after deferring for a year, found himself starting a career as a construction professional.
“I started working for a window and conservatory company as a trainee estimator then secured a similar role at a building contractor where I worked while studying towards my quantity surveying qualifications.”
Lee then went to work for a large housebuilder in Essex, working there for five years as a quantity surveyor, before moving to London following the recession.
“At that company, I was involved in the biggest urban regeneration project in Europe,” he said, “it included thousands of homes, public transport stations and a whole new road network.”
He made the move back to Suffolk in January 2022, working for Concertus as a senior QS.
Since joining Castons in November, Lee says he is impressed with the variety of projects he has the opportunity to work on.
“I have been working on a recladding project at a hospital, a hospice refurbishment and the expansion of a mental health unit – lots of work to get my teeth into.”
For more on Castons, see www.castons.com
