Lindum and Melfort build polytunnel and accessible path at Kirkby-in-Ashfield veterans' allotment

Lindum Group and its groundworks supply chain partner Melfort Construction have installed a polytunnel and a wheelchair-accessible path at a veterans' allotment in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, the contractor said on 10 November.

The work was carried out at the Horticultural Therapy Allotment Project, which is run by the Military Community Network Group (MCNG) CIC, a community interest company registered in the town.

Lili Terry, MCNG events and secretary officer, said: "The paving will make the garden safer and more accessible, while the polytunnel will support year-round growing, learning and sharing skills."

Lindum said the contribution also included a donation of wooden remembrance poppy labels sourced from the Royal British Legion.

The contract behind the work

The two firms are on site in Kirkby-in-Ashfield building Ashfield District Council's 3,500m² Automated Distribution and Manufacturing Centre (ADMC), with Melfort acting as subcontractor to Lindum. The job was procured through the SCAPE Regional Construction framework, and Lindum said the allotment improvements were made in support of SCAPE's Community Legacy programme.

SCAPE describes that programme as a collaboration between itself and its framework delivery partners. Firms that sign its Community Legacy Mission Statement commit to delivering environmental and social sustainability initiatives on every SCAPE project in the UK. Lindum is among the signatories SCAPE lists, alongside Balfour Beatty, Kier, Mace, Morgan Sindall and Willmott Dixon.

Nicole Hill, Social Impact Co-ordinator at SCAPE, said: "Construction has the power to deliver much more than buildings and infrastructure."

Melfort director Craig Pratt said it had been rewarding to put the firm's groundworks skills to use for the cause, while Lindum construction director Nigel Parker said he hoped the improvements would give people a more accessible space and new opportunities to use the allotment for years to come.

The ADMC

Ashfield District Council appointed Lindum as construction partner for the ADMC in June 2025. Lindum said the centre is the flagship project within the government-funded Towns Fund programme and forms the central component of a wider £100m park on Lowmoor Road, which Lindum has called the Ashfield Innovation and Technology Park and the council calls Ashfield Automation Park, opposite Sutton Parkway train station.

In August 2026 Lindum reported that erection of the steel frame had begun. Edward Chambers, Lindum co-chair, said at the time that the next stages would be installing the roof and external cladding. The 3,500m² building will include space for businesses to develop and test new products, and Cllr Rachel Madden of Ashfield District Council said it is expected to support more than 2,000 learners and 675 apprentices.

Lindum and the council have published different figures for the building's value, so this article does not give one.

The beneficiary

MCNG supports veterans, serving personnel, reservists and their families, as well as the wider Armed Forces community, and works to reduce isolation and improve wellbeing, according to Lindum. Companies House records show Military Community Network Group CIC under company number 14144535, with a registered office in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.

Lindum, which has offices in Lincoln, Peterborough and York, has been partly employee-owned since 1994. The company says it has more than 600 employees, over 500 of whom are shareholders, and that it made a net profit of £9.93m on sales of £209.3m in 2025.