Business Weekly - Cambridge, UK

The contract, signed with Hull City Council under the Government's Decent Homes Program, will be to deliver repairs and maintenance for 10,000 homes. Work will begin immediately and run for an initial five years, with possibility of up to two, five-year extensions.

Kier is currently working on a further 195k homes across the UK, including contracts in Sheffield, Leeds, Lincoln and Hull, the firm said.

Shares in Kier have risen 19 points to 2556p.