CONSTRUCTION firm Morgan Sindall Group has delivered strong profit growth in the first half of this year with operating profit up 37 per cent to £24.9 million on revenue of £1,307m.

The group's local subsidiary Morgan Sindall is currently working in partnership with Bournemouth council as the Bournemouth Development Company, and the firm has an office in Poole.

The group reports an order book of £3,801m, a five per cent rise. Adjusted earnings per share were up 46 per cent for the period to 43.6p.

The interim dividend has been increased by 23 per cent to 16.0p per share, with the group confident of another strong performance in the second half of the year.

Simon Smith, managing director for infrastructure, said: "We are working on numerous prestigious projects across the country, delivering both new projects and redevelopment schemes in our chosen sectors of highways, rail, aviation, energy, nuclear and water.

"These projects are instrumental in driving the UK’s prosperity.

"We are proud to be working with our customers, both new and established, to realise these schemes for the benefit of local communities and the surrounding areas."