The latest information from Builders’ Conference shows that construction activity recovered in October after the dip in September. The value of contracts rose to its highest level for more than 12 months following the award of the A66 Northern Transpennine contract. However, the number of contracts remained below the monthly average for the last year, and Build UK is calling on the Government to maintain its commitment to infrastructure investment in the Autumn Statement on 17 November to drive growth and level up the UK.

Number of Contracts Down

The number of contracts awarded in October was 369, which is 13% down on September (422) and 9% below the monthly average over the last year (404). However, it was consistent with October 2021 (362), which is encouraging in the face of rampant inflation and recent turmoil in the financial markets.

Increase in Value of Contracts

The value of contracts awarded in October rose to £6.5 billion. This is a 71% increase compared to September (£3.8 billion) and 19% above the monthly average over the last year (£5.5 billion). It is also the highest value recorded since September 2021 (£7.4 billion) when the £2.2 billion HS2 contract for the Colne Valley Viaduct was awarded.

The public sector continued to perform well, accounting for 41% of all contracts awarded by value, including 12 road projects totalling £1.8 billion, five port and river projects worth £428 million, and 31 health and welfare projects totalling £373 million. In the private sector, there were 108 housing projects worth £1.4 billion, representing 21% of the total value, and 44 office projects totalling £379 million (6%).

England dominated again accounting for 95% of the value. Yorkshire outperformed London for only the second time in four years, recording 24% of the total, compared to 23% for London, thanks to the £1.3 billion contract for improvement works on the A66 Northern Transpennine route from Penrith to the A1.

Shortage of Tender Opportunities

The number of tender opportunities available in October was 255. This is a 14% decrease compared to September (297) and 54% below the monthly average of 558 projects available for tender between October 2021 and September 2022.

At present, there are just 222 tender opportunities available until the end of January 2023, according to Builders’ Conference.

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