About Us

Building with integrity for over 158 years

For over 158 years, Kingerlee has shaped the built environment with craftsmanship, integrity and vision. Founded in 1868 by Thomas Henry Kingerlee, the company has evolved through five generations, balancing tradition with innovation to deliver buildings of lasting quality.

Our heritage is not only a story of continuity but of progress, a testament to strong values, enduring relationships and a deep belief in doing things the right way. Today, under the guidance of David Kingerlee, great-great-grandson of our founder, those principles remain at the heart of everything we build.

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Leadership Team

David Kingerlee

Chairman

David Kingerlee is the fifth
generation of the Kingerlee
family and the great, great
grandson of Thomas Henry
Kingerlee, who founded the
company in 1868.

Darren Arekion

Managing Director

David Warlow

Finance Director

Alex Allinson

Commercial Director

Simon Woodgate

Operations Director

Graeme Culliton

Pre-Construction Director

James Smith

Special Projects Director

Emma Allinson

Business Development Manager

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Over 158 Years of Construction

Established in 1868, Kingerlee has been building for over 158 years. From our roots as a small Oxford-based builder to becoming a trusted name in construction across the region, our history is one of craftsmanship, continuity, and commitment.

1868

In 1875, at the age of 25, Thomas Henry Kingerlee took over his father’s plumbing and glazing firm while living at 5 Butchers Row in Banbury. This marked the beginning of a long and distinguished family business.

1881

By the time of the 1881 census, Thomas described himself as a master builder, employing 20 people, a reflection of the firm’s early growth and rising reputation.
In the following years, the business expanded into general building and contracting, earning a reputation for quality workmanship across Oxfordshire.

1884

In 1884, one of Thomas’s first major commissions in Oxford was the construction of a new isolation hospital for infectious diseases at Cold Harbour, a mile south of the city along the Abingdon Road.

1889

By 1889, Thomas had established himself as a respected figure in the city. He was elected Mayor of Oxford for 1898–99, and again for 1911–12. By 1900, he had become Oxford’s largest housebuilder and landlord, holding considerable influence within the community.

1903

In 1903, Kingerlee built Frank Cooper’s Marmalade Factory, a building that still stands today and is now listed.

1908

In 1911, Kingerlee constructed the Oxford Picture Palace on Jeune Street, which remains the city’s oldest surviving cinema.

1928

By 1928, when Thomas Kingerlee passed away, the business had already entered its second generation. His two sons and a grandson had joined the company, continuing its work across building, joinery, and merchant operations.

1930

In 1930, Kingerlee built the Oxford Ice Rink on Botley Road, one of the largest single-span buildings in the country at the time.

1938

By the mid-1930s the company had built over 700 new houses throughout Oxford’s suburbs, making it by far the city’s largest developer.

1948

During the war Kingerlee built various MoD facilities around Oxfordshire, and joinery production continued. Kingerlee carried out extensive work at Wolvercote Paper Mill until the mid-1950s.

Late 1950's

In the late 1950s the building at the top of the High Street, next to Lloyds Bank, was demolished by Kingerlee, the buildings either side propped, and a new building for supermarket International Stores was built.

Late 1950's

Kingerlee carried out work at the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Midland Bank (now HSBC) in central Oxford. Kingerlee are now carrying out works for All Souls college in this same area.

Late 1958

The joinery workshop moved to Lamarsh Road (off the Botley Road) in 1958. By 1962 Kingerlee’s head office had moved from Queen Street to Lamarsh Road to join the joinery works.

Late 1962

During the latter part of the century the company concentrated on general contracting, playing its part in rebuilding after the Second World War.
The construction of the paint shop at Pressed steel was the first Kingerlee project worth over £1m.

Late 1968

Kingerlee did a lot of work at Blenheim Palace and throughout the 1960s and ‘70s we still had a team of painters and plumbers permanently on site. A project to stabilise the Palace’s South West Tower was carried out in 1977.

Late 1970's

1978

Kingerlee completed extensive work at Lloyds Bank on Carfax (below) in central
Oxford. Not far from the High Street project that Kingerlee are currently undertaking.

1980's

Kingerlee carried out a £1m extension at Headington School (pictured in an article at the time) plus a series of projects for the Dragon School during the 1980s, where Kingerlee recently returned to build a state-of-the-art music school.

1981

In 1981 Kingerlee built an office block at Cambridge Terrace (left) on St Ebbe’s in Oxford. Unfortunately the drain survey was inaccurate which caused the team to accidently pile into the Trill Mill Stream, a historic underground waterway running beneath the city. However, they were able to repair the damage and the waterway still exists today. The Cambridge Terrace project later went on to win awards for brickwork excellence.

1987

In 1987 Kingerlee built the St Anne’s College boathouse, the last boathouse on what is known as ‘boathouse island’ on the eastern bank of the River Thames in Oxford. A temporary bridge was built
to get machinery, materials and labour to the project, and other supplies were brought in by barge. Pictured are Neale Harrison, labourer, and John Fathers, project foreman, unloading a barge carrying roof timbers.

1988

In 1988 Kingerlee built the BBC Radio Oxford studios in Summertown.

1995

In 1995 Kingerlee built the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building for St Hilda’s College in Oxford. The building was tested for acoustic performance and achieved exceptionally high standards, the first time newly-introduced testing had been carried out on a Kingerlee project.

1995

A large amount of joinery was produced for the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building for St Hilda’s College in Oxford the photo shows joinery manager at the time, Dennis Hedges, on the front cover of the University Magazine talking about the joinery element of this impressive building.

1999

In 1999, named after Kingerlee Founder, Thomas Henry Kingerlee, Kingerlee constructed a brand new purpose-built premises, with extensive yard and joinery workshop facilities, at Langford Locks, Kidlington. Thomas House, their home to this day.

2006

Since the move to Kidlington the profile of the business grew, leading to a number of major projects. These included: office and residential developments at the former Morrell’s Brewery site and the Stream Edge site in St Thomas’s in Oxford, where Kingerlee completed a residential development in 2006.

2009

Terry Hart, Jon Halliwell, Keith Shackleton, Paul Rolston and Sam Brown prepare to install an Anthony Gormley statue on the roof of Blackwell’s music shop on Broad Street, Oxford, on 15 February 2009, for Exeter College.

2010

In 2010 Kingerlee carried out the construction of a new four- storey quadrangle (Kendrew Quadrangle) around a large protected beech tree for St John’s College, Oxford

2013

In 2013 Kingerlee completed the construction of a 170-seat multi-purpose auditorium, an art gallery, a new café, teaching and function rooms, all set around two quadrangles at Pembroke College in the heard of Oxford.

2015

In 2013 Kingerlee worked on the construction of Flint House, a domestic dwelling on the Waddesdon Estate, Buckinghamshire, commissioned by Jacob Rothschild. Completing in 2015 Flint house won that years RIBA House of the Year Award.

2018

In 2018 Kingerlee completed the construction of the Toddington leisure facility on a private estate in Bedfordshire. The project encompassed a large-span, high-quality concrete frame, external cladding crafted from “burnt” timber, and expansive glazed façades.

2018

In 2018 Kingerlee celebrated 150 years with a celebration at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.

2018

In 2018 Michael Puttick retired & Darren Arekion was appointed as Managing Director. He leads the company to this day.

2020

in 2020 Kingerlee completed a brand refresh. This included the new Logo mark still in use today and a website redesign to to improve user experience and showcase projects.

2020

In 2020 Kingerlee compleyted the construction of a 7 bedroom detached country house for a private client in Oxfordshire, in collaboration with Richard Parr Architects.

2024

Completed in In 2024 Kingerlee worked with Wright and Wright Architects and the wider client team to deliver an extension to Corpus Christi College’s existing library. In 2025 The Spencer Building was officially awarded Passivhaus certification. It is among the first projects of its kind in the UK to be built within a Grade I listed setting.

2024

In 2024, Kingerlee completed the construction of a state-of-the-art music building at The Dragon School in Oxford. The project held particular significance for us, as our Chairman, David Kingerlee, is a former pupil of the school, making this a proud milestone in our long-standing relationship with the Oxford community.

2024

In 2024 Kingerlee compled the construction of The Helios Buidling at the Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire, to BREEAM excellence stabdard.

2024

In 2024 Kingerlee completed a 3 phase Spa, hotel and event complex, the largest of its kind in Oxfordshire and a real milestone for Kingerlee.

2025

In 2025 Kingerlee were named both Contractor of the Year at the OXPROP awards and SME of the Year at the Constructing Excelence Awards. It is an honor to be recogniser for our dedication to qulity construction.

2025

In 2025 Kingerlee completed a refurbishment of it's Thomas House offices. A well desered refresh of it's home since 1999. Caried out by Kingerlee Special Porjects and well recieved by all at the company.

2025

In 2025 our Chairman David Kingerlee, 5th genration of the Kingerlee family, celebrated 45 years with the company. Congratulations and what a mile stone!

At Kingerlee,

At Kingerlee, we value family At Kingerlee, we are collaborative At Kingerlee, we prioritise health and safety At Kingerlee, ESG sits at the heart of our business

Shaped by reliable people with integrity, a strong work ethic and shared family values

We foster a culture of teamwork that positively shapes how we think and act.

Guided by integrity, we create buildings of exceptional and sustainable quality.

Collaboration builds local partnerships founded on trust, capability and commitment.

Quality Without Compromise

For over a century, standards have defined our reputation.

Every project is delivered through certified systems and experienced oversight.

ISO 9001:2015 | Independently Certified

Certificate of Registration

Quality Policy

Home Safe

Home Safe is our bespoke behavioural safety programme, developed with specialist advisors to strengthen our health and safety performance.

Beyond formal systems and certification, it shapes how we think, act and care for one another every day. Rooted in our family values, it ensures safety is a shared commitment across every site and workplace.

At Kingerlee, the safety, health and wellbeing of our people, partners and communities, together with the protection of the environment, is fundamental to how we operate. Our integrated management systems are independently certified to ISO 45001 and ISO 14001, with ISO 45003 principles embedded to support psychological health and wellbeing. Through rigorous standards, ongoing training and active engagement with industry bodies, we continually strive to minimise risk, prevent harm and reduce environmental impact across all of our operations.