Walker Construction

Founded in 1964 by the Walker brothers, Walker Construction is a multidisciplined construction company that specialises in civil engineering, rail and building. The company has operated across the South East for the past 55 years with its head office located in Ashford.

Walker Construction has grown from a small family-run business to now having 225 employees in total, while still remaining true to their original values of respect, support and integrity. In 2015, the company closed their Folkestone and Maidstone branches in search for a central location that offered parking and good transport links. After 18 months of searching, Walker Construction opened their head office at Eureka Park in Ashford.

The company needed to be in a “perfect gateway to London” and their new Ashford location enables them to be on the M20 in minutes and to reach London in only 38 minutes by high speed rail. Access is crucial and their Eureka Park location was a “no brainer” with places close by for lunch break walks, an abundance of leisure facilities and great parking provision, combining everything a business and its staff need.

One of the most exciting projects that the company has worked on within the town is the expansion of Ashford Designer Outlet, which launched in November 2019. Their work includes underground infrastructure and groundworks, including the upgrading of pipework and sewerage, building the exit slip road from the new car park and creating Newtown Road’s traffic signal junction.

Charlotte Watts, Business Development Manager at Walker Construction said: “The business community of Ashford was a big appeal for us, as it gave us the opportunity to network and collaborate with other local businesses. Walker Construction also works closely with schools in Ashford to help support the next generation looking to go into the construction industry.”

“It’s extremely exciting to be in Ashford at the moment. The town is undergoing significant and unparalleled regeneration that is on a bigger scale than anywhere else in the South East and we’re excited to be among the businesses thriving here. Yet it also feels like this is just the beginning so we’re looking forward to see the benefits of the regeneration and tourism to the town increases.”

Walker Construction currently has 60 employees based permanently in Ashford and predicts an annual turnover of £55 million for 2019. By working closely with Ashford Borough Council, the company is hoping to grow its work within the town and continue to be part of the strong local business community.