After 18 months as NG Bailey’s chief executive, Jonathan Stockton’s strategy is paying off
In June, NG Bailey announced record revenue of £662m and a workforce of 3,400. The scale is a far cry from the borrowed wooden cart and dozen staff that launched the firm more than a century ago.
Its most recent accounts, for the year to 28 February last year, show pre-tax profit rising 65 per cent to £17.7m on a 10 per cent increase in turnover to £661.7m.
Two years earlier, the profit line showed a £25m loss. High inflation, project delays and supply chain failures had hit the business hard, with the collapse of Britishvolt leaving it £2m short. The contractor was an equity investor in the firm, which had plans to build a £300m gigafactory in Northumberland before it entered administration in January 2023.
“With the energy, expertise, and culture we’re building together we’re ready to achieve even greater things”
Jonathan Stockton, NG Bailey
The company’s recovery forms the backdrop to Jonathan Stockton’s first 18 months as chief executive. Covid, he says, exposed the dangers in fixed-price mechanical and electrical (M&E) contracts as material costs surged. The strategy since has been to pursue direct deals and adopt a cautious stance on risk. Stockton says the business has emerged “stable”, with no external debt and cash to invest in people and acquisitions. This stability supports a physical and organisational refresh. In January 2025, NG Bailey moved its headquarters to a 2,300 square metre office at White Rose Business Park in Leeds and launched executive development programmes to expand leadership capacity. In October, it added a warehouse to support its work on Tata Group’s £4bn gigafactory project in Somerset.
Stockton joined the firm in 2016 as deputy chief finance officer after nine years at Deloitte. Before his arrival, NG Bailey’s most recent acquisition was IT firm s2s in 2008. Stockton’s restructuring of the finance team helped set the conditions for the 2018 purchase of £104m-turnover Freedom Group, a facilities management and power-engineering business. Its integration has broadened the firm’s reach into defence, airports, data-centre assets and ports. Stockton says the subsidiary is now a key driver of growth through strategic partnerships with UK distribution network operators.
As the UK moves deeper into the energy transition, Stockton says Freedom is well placed to benefit from investment in renewable connections, electric-vehicle charging and decarbonisation infrastructure. Much of the world is “going down the electrical route”, he says, and NG Bailey sees its core strengths aligning with that shift.
Diversification from traditional M&E contracting has been central to the strategy, Stockton says. The market for M&E work remains tough and the firm is taking a careful approach to bidding, he adds. Even so, NG Bailey holds roles on major schemes including the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre’s development facility and the Somerset gigafactory.
“Our strong financial position and balance sheets mean we are able to invest in talent”
Jonathan Stockton, NG Bailey
Stockton says the growing electric-vehicle infrastructure business has a strong pipeline and that long-term partnerships are positioning the firm to support wider transport decarbonisation.
Nuclear work remains another long-standing pillar. NG Bailey’s involvement dates back to the 1950s and includes work on the UK’s first nuclear power station Calder Hall. Today the firm is installing M&E, heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems at Hinkley Point C and holds a place on the Sellafield decommissioning programme. Defence and nuclear frameworks are core recession-resilient markets, Stockton says.
The aviation sector is also part of the mix. The firm has worked on projects at Gatwick and Heathrow and recently contributed to Manchester Airport’s £1bn transformation programme.
The wider market remains challenging. Stockton notes that high interest rates and economic uncertainty have made customers cautious. The firm therefore has stringent selection criteria for new work. After Britishvolt’s collapse, it is particularly alert to supply chain fragility. Late payments, he says, have driven insolvencies across the sector, with failures placing pressure on surviving firms. Stockton contrasts this with NG Bailey’s performance on payment times, claiming the firm remains a top performer among peers.
Maintaining a strong balance sheet has been a key differentiator for customers seeking stability, he adds. The stance has meant prioritising bottom-line returns over top-line growth. This approach helped lift NG Bailey’s order book to £1.6bn in the latest accounts, up from £1.4bn.
The firm took on its first apprentices in 1934 and continues to expand its intake. Stockton says 53 joined last year – a critical step given the structural skills shortages facing the sector. He stresses the need to recruit and retain talent across all functions to deliver future growth.
Investment in training and development programmes continues, building on a legacy that includes the launch of one of the UK’s first electrical academies in the 1960s. “Our strong financial position and balance sheets mean we are able to invest in talent,” he says. “Every colleague plays a vital role in our journey. We’re starting from a position of strength – and with the energy, expertise, and culture we’re building together we’re ready to achieve even greater things.”
Looking ahead, “selective, low-risk, strategic acquisitions” remain firmly part of NG Bailey’s strategy, Stockton says. Its Journey to 2030 plan sets out a path focused on selective, low-risk purchases that broaden capability without stretching risk appetite. Last February’s acquisition of ductwork manufacturer OSM Ventilation was the latest move.
Stockton says the firm expects significant opportunities in the coming years and is prepared to spend strategically. “[We] have committed to investing for the long-term,” he says. “Our ambition is to strengthen our position as leaders in the built environment and infrastructure services sectors by staying true to our values, embracing new opportunities, and continuing to innovate.”
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Nicola Harley