House-building continues to prop up construction

Despite the resilience shown during the Brexit countdown and the COVID-19 pandemic, the sector has been faced with a host of new challenges. The skills shortage shows no signs of easing; materials prices are rising; and energy costs are the topic of day.

There have been times over the past three years in which the house-building sector has carried the wider construction sector, often accounting for more than a third of all new construction contract awards. Similarly, while outlying regions have come close, London has remained a beacon of consistently high levels of construction demand. While the house-building sector continues to be the crutch upon which the entire industry leans; there are signs that regions outside London might be enjoying some positivity; and the uptick in office construction points to ongoing confidence among the UK business community.

March 2022

In the first 10 days of March 2022, the BCLive league table recorded more than £3.3 billion in new contract awards, however, the final two thirds of the month depicted a different outlook. Top of the pile in March 2022 were Mace, who secured three new contract awards with a total value of £725 million. The largest of these is the construction of a new eight/nine storey tower block comprising 30 new dwellings at Audley Square House in Westminster for client Caudwell Properties.

In second place Sisk Group picked up a single contract valued at £325 million with a refurbishment and repair framework at Dublin Airport that will include the upgrading of pavements, drainage and electrical systems at the boarding gate piers, aircraft stands, aprons and taxiways.

Willmott Dixon collected eight new contract awards totalling £311 million to take third position on the BCLive league table for March 2022.

Regionally, London retained the crown as the busiest and most profitable area with 131 new contract awards valued at more than £2.1 billion. The North West (£618 million) enjoyed a welcome increase in activity while the South West also saw a rise to £485 million. The East and West Midlands slipped back to £105 and £253 million respectively while Scotland also fell to £275 million. Housing, predictably, saw most activity during the month with 161 new contract awards valued at a combined £1.87 billion. Offices enjoyed an excellent month, climbing to £1.08 billion split across 62 individual projects, while education and health and welfare produced £567 million and £447 million respectively.

April 2022

While 215 businesses won 319 individual contracts and pushed the league table to a creditable £5.1 billion total, Bear Scotland came out on top. The company secured a single £740 million contract for the refurbishment and repair of the A96 trunk road in North West Scotland. While Bear Scotland were winning in the North West of Scotland, Amey were leading in the North East, securing a £530 million contract award for the refurbishment and repair of the same A96 trunk road.

Those two contracts – together with 30 smaller contract awards - were enough to propel Scotland to the very top of the regional countdown.

Kier Group also rediscovered its mojo, winning 21 individual new contract awards to claim the number three position on the league table together with the highest number of projects in the month. The most notable new contract award was in the South West of England, to extend the A417 between Swindon and Gloucester.

Completing the road overhaul of the BCLive league table’s top tier, BAM Nuttall claimed the number four position courtesy of a £200 million contract to provide a new link road between the M54, M6 and M6 toll road.

While the house-building sector recorded £1.1 billion across 91 individual projects, roads and highways notched up £2.1 billion across just 19 contracts to take the monthly sector title.

Regionally, London fell short of the £1.0 billion, delivering 71 individual contracts worth just £784 million. Scotland, meanwhile, soared to £1.5 billion to claim the regional crown.

The South West (£574 million), West Midlands (£381 million) and Yorkshire (£366 million) all enjoyed an uptick in demand in a month in which even Wales (£235 million) experienced something of a resurgence.

May 2022

The combined value of all the 432 new contract awards recorded during the month of May 2022 was £4.75 billion meaning that the £4.0 billion baseline that has held firm each month for more than three years did so once again. House-building contributed £1.24 billion to that total, retaining its position as the construction industry’s most prolific and stable sector.

London failed to hit the now familiar £1.0 billion mark, delivering a regional total of £804.5 million. London was narrowly pipped by the combined and resurgent East and West Midlands which reported £399.96 and £413.63 million respectively for a £813.59 million total. Also enjoying an upturn were Surrey, the North West, and Hertfordshire.

House-builders secured 131 new contract award during May 2022 worth £1.24 billion, while the entertainment sector delivered a further £544.29 million. Offices accounted for a further £497.85 million while roads contributed £413.78 million. Yet, education and health could muster only £552.09 million between them.

Laing O’Rourke soared to the number one position on the BCLive league table, courtesy of a single £400 million project. That project is for the extension of the Shepperton Studios in Surrey for client Pinewood Group.

Morgan Sindall reported 53 new contract awards worth a combined £328 million to claim the crown for the highest number of individual projects and second place on the league table.

Third position went to Balfour Beatty which secured two projects worth a total £312 million. The largest of these is for improvements to the M25 motorway at Junction 10 (A3) to junction 16 (M40 interchange) to provide four lanes running through junctions on the M25.

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