[4][5][6][7][8][9][1] The company was one of the largest privately owned building contractors in the UK, but sold that business to Wates Group in 2015.

They diversified from house building to general contracting, and incorporated, in 1924, as F Shepherd and Son Ltd. By the late 1930s there was a workforce of 700 that operated throughout Yorkshire, and also the North East of England.

[11][15][14] The old headquarters site became a Mecca Bingo hall before that too was demolished[16] to make way for the construction of Frederick House student accommodation in 2022.

[14] Shepherd Group was a main contractor for leisure, commercial, industrial, residential, healthcare, education, retail, and research buildings.

The construction division also included companies engaged in mechanical and electrical services, facility management and housebuilding.

[2][11][18] In 1951 Donald Shepherd, grandson of the founder, developed a bulk cement silo, for use in precast concrete construction, as an alternative to paper sacks.

He changed the construction to metal in 1953, and diverted joinery shop capacity released to the production of portable, prefabricated site huts.

A heavily insulated Pullman variant earned subsidiary Portakabin Ltd a Queens Award for Technological Achievement in 1992.

It had been used to suggest Portakabin products did not comply with Irish building standards; were of poor quality, and that named managers were incompetent and dishonest.

[33] In 2008 Shepherd contracted with William Hare Group to provide structural steelwork for the Trinity Walk shopping centre in Wakefield.

Shepherd subsequently sought, under a pay when paid clause, to withhold payment in the sum of £996,683.35 because the ultimate client had gone into Administration.