A BUILDING company based in the Holme Valley is defying the uncertain economic climate.

Conroy Brook Developments has seen strong demand for houses at its prestigious Broomfield Avenue development at Savile Park in Halifax while it has also sold 40 out of 46 apartments at its Holme Valley Court retirement complex in Holmfirth – with the remaining six all reserved.

It is a thoroughly satisfying state of affairs for chief executive Richard Conroy, who sees it as vindication for a long-standing policy to focus on quality design and construction – even in the face of a damaging recession.

The Halifax development of eight town houses and eight detached homes is being marketed by Conroy Booth as Savile Row Meets Savile Park. Fourteen of the 16 natural stone properties have been sold or reserved – with all interest secured prior to development. The first four homes – which were sold off-plan in the first phase of the scheme – are now complete and Conroy Brook’s housebuilding arm Towngate Homes is now progressing with the remainder of the scheme.

“It has been a tough last couple of years,” says Richard. “But Broomfield Avenue has continued to sell well. We are having to work hard, but we are getting results by working hard.

“But because we are relatively small, we are light on our feet. We can work with individual customers and give them an individual service. For instance, customers can choose the kitchens, bathrooms, woodwork and even the door handles for their home.

“At Holme Valley Court, we could have sold the apartments twice over. We now have a waiting list for the six that are currently reserved.”

The firm’s apartment development at Somersbury Court, Almondbury – which boasts money-saving air source heat pump technology – is now 50% full. Although initially aimed at first-time buyers, the flats are proving popular among older people downsizing from the family home.

While Conroy Brook and its operating companies – Towngate Homes and Conroy Homes – are weathering the storm, Richard says more could be done to revive the housing market.

“The market picked up earlier in the year, but since the general election it has gone quieter,” he says. “There is uncertainty over the new government’s planning policy and how it intends to meet demand for new homes and the budget hasn’t done anything positive to help the industry.

“People are still struggling to get mortgages and until first-time buyers can get onto the property ladder it is difficult for others to move up it.”

Richard gained valuable experience of the property industry before joining his father, Ivan, in the family business.

Richard studied surveying at Reading University and worked for 10 years in London – first for Taylor Woodrow and later for Stanhope plc, where he was assistant to well-known London developer Sir Stuart Lipton. After that, Richard took a year out to complete a masters degree at Harvard in the USA and sample “design and real estate American-style”.

“Following that, I was supposed to go back to London to resume my job, but my wife Rachel and I had enough of London. She was training to be a teacher at Sheffield University and I decided to work for the family business.

“I very much enjoyed working in London. I was working on some big, high-profile projects, but I had always wanted to be my own boss, albeit in a much smaller way. Working on those projects taught me a lot. It was excellent grounding.”

Richard still makes a point of visiting America every year “to catch up on things and look at some of their skyscrapers”. He says: “In the USA, they build a lot more efficiently and more cost-effectively. They have a lot of space, so they don’t have the same planning restrictions. They also have a ‘can-do’ attitude.

“However, we do a lot of things right in this country. We need to keep the best of the traditional buildings we have, but you have to combine that with more modern element. For instance, people are looking for open plan and flexible space.”

Richard was brought up in a world of building sites and bulldozers. “I can remember first going on a building site at Scholes when I was two or three,” he says. “I worked on sites during school holidays and I have mixed my fair share of cement and carried my fair share of bricks.”

Now he shares an office at the firm’s Brockholes headquarters with his father. Ivan retains a key role in the business – and has recently been in Romania where Conroy Homes is building a one-off house for a friend in a suburb of Bucharest.

Working closely with his father is no problem for Richard. “We have some interesting moments,” he says. “We see eye to eye on most issues because we have both been brought up with the ethos of providing quality and doing your best.

“I suppose he is a traditional entrepreneur while I’m slightly more cautious. But we work well together and we have a very good team behind us.”

Conroy Brook and its subsidiaries posted combined turnover of £10m last year. Richard says the aim will continue to be consolidation – positioning the business in the gap in the market between the “one-man band” and the big housing companies.

Being flexible has allowed Conroy Brook to diversity – into the health sector through its scheme to deliver a close-care unit for the Hollybank Trust at Holmfirth – as well as the retirement homes market. Richard is also talking to potential partners about social housing.

Richard gets away from work by finding time for family. He and wife Rachel have an 11-month-old daughter, Elsa.

He also has a passion for motorbikes – and hill walking.

“I started by competing in moto-cross as a kid and eventually raced at club level,” says Richard. “I have fallen off at most race tracks across the country, but luckily without major injury. The worst that happened was breaking my foot. I officially retired about five years ago and I now have a Kawasaki ZX10. It’s hellishly fast and you have to treat it with respect. I still keep my hand in at the occasional track day.”

Hill walking couldn’t seem more of a contrast, but Richard’s just as happy trudging in the Peak District as he is pounding the tarmac.

Not surprisingly, he is intensely interested in design and architecture and seeks to include elements of the best in modern architecture in Conroy Brook’s own schemes. “It’s not just about making buildings, it’s about making places,” he says.

“We are very conservative in this country and people are scared of anything innovative or new. Most building schemes get dumbed down to the lowest common denominator and we end up with architectural ‘pastiches’ and red-brick boxes. Good design can make a difference and modern architecture and design at its best can have a beneficial effect.”