Natta celebrates Astbury Manor in Bracknell topping out

From left to right – John Whelan (Natta), Mark Danis (Avery Healthcare), Adrian Doyle (Avery Healthcare), Ash Merry (Mayor of Bracknell), Isabel Mattick (Mayoress), Matt Sainty (Natta)

Natta commemorated this special event today with Avery Healthcare to mark the completion of the shell and core of Astbury Manor.

Located near the town centre in Bracknell, Astbury Manor is a 3 storey 64-bed new care home that Natta, as main contractor, is building for Avery Healthcare.

Topping Out Ceremony

The aim of a Topping out Ceremony is traditionally to commemorate the construction of the highest point of a building. The history of the ceremony can be traced back a thousand years to Scandinavia. Back then a tree was placed on top of a building to appease the tree-dwelling spirits disturbed by the sourcing of the timber for the predominately wooden structures of the time.

These days with the multitude of materials used in the construction of modern buildings and building regulations, not to mention planning constraints, the placing of the tree has passed.

During today’s ceremony the Mayor of Bracknell Ash Merry laid a commemorative block to signify the topping out point. Counsellor Merry commented, “It has been a great pleasure to see first-hand what I’m sure will be a fantastic facility for local people who need a little more assistance in their daily lives. This is a wonderful example of dignity empowering people to live full lives even if they need to relocate for whatever reason. We wish Team Avery and Natta Building Company every success and look forward to the opening and to the moving in of the first residents.”

From left to right – John Whelan (Natta), John Ecclestone (Natta), Ash Merry (Mayor of Bracknell), Isabel Mattick (Mayoress)

John Whelan, Natta MD said, “I would like to express my thanks to Avery for awarding us this project. Natta’s first full build and fit out of a nursing home, based on their experience of our work carrying out complex civil engineering groundworks in prior projects for them. It is very important to Natta as a business to differentiate our product from others as being of high quality, carried out in a professional manner, respecting the wishes and aims of our clients, consultants, subcontractors, adjoining neighbours, and the surrounding environment.”

Adrian Doyle, Director of Developments for Avery Healthcare said, “Avery are delighted together with Natta to deliver a stunning asset to service the local community. We feel that with this project and also the new care home that we are building together in Northampton we have found a long term partner with whom we can carry on developing care homes. We look forward to opening the doors to Astbury Manor in 6 months’ time.”

From left to right – John Whelan (Natta), Adrian Doyle (Avery Healthcare), John Ecclestone (Natta), Ash Merry (Mayor of Bracknell), Isabel Mattick (Mayoress)

Click on the link to see some time-lapse footage of the build that we are doing for Avery on another care home in Northampton.