Wates has appointed a new Regional Director for its construction business in the North West.

Sarah Cooke will lead the region and help deliver the Group’s strategic growth objectives.

Sarah brings more than 20 years' experience within the construction industry, gained primarily at Tier One contractors including Morgan Sindall, Lendlease and Galliford Try. Most recently, she spent more than two years at Balfour Beatty as National Framework Director where she was responsible for its successful re-procurement of the SCAPE Civils framework, the Crown Commercial Services framework and the Midlands Highways Alliance.

Having started her career on site delivering large scale complex projects both within the public and private sector, her experience spans multiple strategic sectors including education, health, retail, residential, and leisure. Most recently she has focused on pre-construction and building strong relationships with clients, both regionally and nationally.


The breadth of Sarah's experience has seen her deliver iconic buildings in the North West, such as the Liverpool Arena and Conference Centre and work at the Trafford Centre, with a vast pedigree of delivering education projects in the region for the Department for Education.

In her new role she will be responsible for leading Wates' North West operations and contributing to the growth of the Northern region as a whole, by strengthening partnerships with key frameworks including CCS and Procure North West, as well as managing the delivery of major public and private sector projects.

Sarah's appointment replaces Dave Saville, who was appointed as Wates' managing director for the North earlier this year. Her hire follows a period of growth for the region, with the team working on multiple complex projects for the Department for Education – including the first tranche of schools delivered via its Modern Methods of Construction framework – as well as major leisure projects at The Sands in Carlisle and Halton Leisure Centre.

She said: "The North West has a rich pipeline of current and potential development and I'm excited to be operating in the region again, for a contractor that has such solid values clearly evident throughout its business. With a strong focus on customer relationships and delivering a quality product, safely, our aspirations to grow the business will develop over the next two to three years and I’m looking forward to leading this expansion."