BUILDING more homes and recruiting more local people is on the agenda for York housebuilder Persimmon as the firm closes in on the £300 million profit mark.

Announcing its half year results yesterday, the Fulford based firm posted a 31 per cent rise in pre-tax profits, up from £208.9 million in the first half in 2014 to £272.8 million for the same period 2015.

The six months ending June 30, 2015, also saw an 11 per cent hike in revenues to £1.33 billion, while legal completions increased by seven per cent to 6,855, with a 4 per cent rise in the average selling price to £194,378.

Simon Usher, deputy managing director of the company's Yorkshire business, said: "As we continue to grow, so do our teams.

"Since January, our headcount across the group has increased by just over 500 to 4,000 people and this doesn’t include the thousands of suppliers employed to support our internal teams in delivering new homes.

"Locally, we’ve recruited more people into our sales, construction and technical teams and we continue to recruit each month.

"Our ex-military recruitment drive goes from strength to strength and nationally, we have 120 Combat to Construction trainees and a further 42 ex-forces employees who have joined us from the military. We expect to have close to 200 ex-military employees by the end of the year."

Such has been the success of Combat to Construction, Persimmon is extending the programme for bricklayers and joiners to non-military entrants. Aimed at ‘career changers’ who want to move to a job offering training, a qualification, security and increased earning potential, ‘Up-skill to Construction’ will be launched locally in September.

The company has already opened new developments this year in Hull, Doncaster and Selby and is focused on launching further new sites in Harworth, Sherburn in Elmet, Selby, Scunthorpe and Bentley in the second half of the year.