Re Contract

Kier Group PLC
2 November 2000

                            
ISLINGTON BOROUGH SIGNS UP WITH KIER FOR 
£120M OUTSOURCING CONTRACT

Kier Group plc, the international construction and services company, announces
that the Group has this week signed a £120m partnering contract with the
London Borough of Islington to outsource the Borough's buildings maintenance
under the government's 'best value' programme.  This is believed to be the
first public private partnership of this nature in the country.

Over 500 Borough employees have transferred to the payroll of Caxton Islington
Limited, a special joint venture company set up by Kier to deliver the
services.

The scope of the contract includes day-to-day repairs to 29,000 properties,
gas maintenance to 18,000 properties and cleaning of around 100 municipal
buildings, colleges and schools.  Caxton Islington will occupy the Council's
Ashburton Grove site near Finsbury Park.

Kier Group chairman Colin Busby said: 'This negotiated contract contains many
innovative features to promote continuous improvement to the quality of the
services, as required by the government's best value legislation.  I am
pleased that we have concluded detailed negotiations to the timetable agreed
between ourselves and Islington when our appointment as preferred bidder was
announced in June.  This confirms that the growth of our support services
activities highlighted in our recent annual report is on track.'


Contact:       Colin Busby/Duncan Brand              Tel: [phone]