How Sizewell C construction site in Leiston is taking shape

He was also the construction director of the Athletes’ Village for the London 2012 Summer Olympics – a project described as the safest construction in the history of the Games.

Sizewell C site delivery director Damian Leydon (Image: Sizewell C) I’m very proud of that safety legacy,” said Damian. “We had a great team at the Olympics with a clear objective – and there are plenty of similarities with Sizewell C.

“Some of the team here worked on the 2012 London Olympics, as well as other major projects like Hinkley Point C, Heathrow Terminal 5 and big international infrastructure projects – so we’ve got great people with incredible experience.”

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One of the key objectives for all the big projects that Damian has worked on is to ensure that they work for the local communities in which they’re built.

“A big part of this is to deliver the job with the least impact as possible,” said Damian. “Logistics is key for that – it’s the lifeblood of any big project. And communication is vital too. 

"For Sizewell C, that means that, as we ramp up activity, we’ve got to do everything we can to minimise inconvenience, we’ve got to listen to communities to make sure we’re doing it right, and if there is any disruption we’ve got to be really clear about what, why and when.”

So what are the latest developments on the project?

Main development site

“Last year was about getting the site ready and preparing for bulk earthworks,” said Damian. “This year we’ve been making great progress across the site.” Works have begun to enable the team to build a concrete batching plant and temporary desalination plant in 2025.

“We’ve welcomed our Civil Engineering team onto site, who will deliver our enabling earthworks and are already undertaking essential ground trials.”

By the end of this year, earthworks will commence in preparation for building the accommodation campus.

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“It will be able to sleep up to 2,400 people,” Damian explained. “The campus will have a recreation building, medical facilities and more. It’s an exciting project for us – and we’ve got a really clear Accommodation Strategy in place to ensure we deliver it with the least local impact.

“We’ve begun work on the main access road into site. Anyone driving by our Ancillary Construction Area (ACA) to the east of Leiston will also see that we have built a fantastic new project office there. This houses our occupational health facilities and new induction centre. Much of the team have already moved into the facility – and the building will be fully open by the start of next year.”

The Civils team is onsite to deliver earthworks and undertake essential ground trials this year (Image: Sizewell C)

Off-site infrastructure

There are numerous off-site infrastructure projects essential for the delivery of Sizewell C, with improvements to railways, roads and other infrastructure underway.

“In October, we’ll be commencing archaeology ahead of the construction of the Sizewell Link Road,” said Damian. “That’s an important project to create 6.5km of new road bypassing two local villages: Theberton and Middleton Moor. We resurfaced a long stretch of the B1122 earlier this year, as we’ll need to continue using that road until the Link Road is complete.”

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Archaeological work is also about to take place at the northern and southern Park and Rides, at Darsham and Wickham Market.

“We’re delivering around 60% of construction materials by rail and sea, and we’re creating a new rail route from the existing Sizewell Branch Line into our Temporary Construction area to allow Sizewell C to achieve that,” said Damian. “We’ve already begun preparation for the archaeology work to commence at Buckleswood Road outside Leiston, ahead of the construction of the compound there later this year.”

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These works will help Sizewell C to reduce the impact of the project and will provide long-term benefits to local communities.

“As ever, we are committed to listening to feedback and people can come and speak to the team at our Information Office in Leiston if they have any questions or concerns,” Damian said. “We also have forums throughout the year that the public can attend, which provide insight into what’s happening on and off site.

“The next one is on October 9 at High Lodge near Darsham – I’ll be there to give an overview of the project, so I hope to see some of you there.”

For more information, visit szcworkstracker.co.uk

(Image: Newsquest) This article is part of the EADT's Clean & Green campaign, which aims to promote our region as the biggest in the UK and Europe for all forms of renewable energy.