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Recently, Chancellor Rachel Reeves re-affirmed Labour’s pledge to build 1.5 million houses within five years and further committed to their target of 330,000 homes per year. Reeves also touched on Labour’s plan to end the ban on the construction of more off-shore windfarms in England. In her address, she also explained some specifics of Labour’s […]

The day after Keir Starmer’s election win, Britain’s domestic stocks logged their highest-performing in over five months. Part of investors’ optimism came from renewed hope for the construction industry. A key element of Labour’s manifesto was a pledge to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years. In keeping with this, Labour also […]

The UK has big plans to build new infrastructure. From wind farms to data centres to new homes, there’s big demand for the construction sector. That means a big demand for construction workers, too, especially senior managers with the right skills and experience. However, while this demand is going up, the pool of skilled professionals […]

Manchester’s planned £365mn Co-op Live arena suffered three failed launches before finally opening in June. The problem, according to the American investment firm behind the project, the Oak View Group, was a lack of skilled construction workers that caused the project to stall. The Co-op Live arena isn’t the only project that’s struggling amidst this […]

It’s well known that the UK construction sector faces a skill shortage. Since 2008, the construction sector’s labour force has decreased from 2.6 million to 2.1 million. Among executive positions that require more experience and training, this shortage is even worse. At a wider level, this is having knock-on effects on the industry’s ability to […]

According to economists at Refinitiv, a global economy research firm, the UK economy grew 0.1% in February. Furthermore, much of that growth is thanks to the construction sector rebound. At first glance, this seems unusual. The construction industry isn’t in the best shape it’s ever been, and overall production is down. However, the industry isn’t […]

The UK construction sector had a rough financial year last year, but things are already starting to look up. Inflation is falling, productivity is normalising, and the industry as a whole is stabilising. Many organisations are in the process of budgeting, or perhaps they’ve already budgeted. Break periods like this are great for companies to […]

Last year wasn’t great for the UK construction sector. On one hand, the industry avoided a recession, but on the other, productivity was the lowest in several years. Amidst this economic uncertainty, skilled construction workers were prone to avoid switching jobs. The general impression was that the market was poor, so there must not be […]

Throughout the UK’s construction industry, one problem persists: the skills gap. Studies from September 2023 show that 38,000+ vacancies remain unfilled due to a lack of skilled workers. The skills gap is only amplified in the civil construction sector, where, according to a study by the Civil Engineering Contractors Association, 75% of contractors said they […]

2023 was a tough year for many industries, but construction was hit especially hard. Productivity fell by almost 6.8% throughout the year. Hyperinflation, recession, and scarce resources all contributed to the bleak outlook for construction workers. It’s not all doom and gloom, though. In fact, already there are some significant signs of recovery. Potential Recovery? […]