Construction industry of the United Kingdom

The construction industry is one of the major industry sectors in the economy of the United Kingdom, contributing about 6% of UK gross value added (GVA) in 2019.[1] In 2018, it was the sixth biggest construction sector in the world by GVA.[2]

## Scale and composition

[edit]

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the value of construction new work peaked at £119,087 million in 2019, dropping to £99,651 million in 2020.[3] Of this total, new housing comprised £37,755 million of new work, infrastructure £22,517 million, and private commercial building £24,614 million.[3]

Public sector work (housing, infrastructure, other) accounted for 26% by value of new work in 2020.[3] A survey undertaken in 2016 found that 72% or public sector organisations who responded used framework agreements to appoint construction contractors and service providers (such as architects and engineers).[4]

The construction sector employed around 2.1 million workers (1.4 million employed in just over 342,000 VAT/PAYE-registered businesses, plus 727,000 self-employed) in Great Britain in 2020,[3] with a high proportion of small businesses:[1] just over one million small/medium-sized businesses (SMEs), mainly self-employed individuals, worked in the sector in 2019, comprising about 18% of all UK businesses.[1] Tier 1 suppliers in 2013 estimated that 50% by value of their government construction work and supply was delivered by SME sub-contractors and suppliers.[5] Over a third of construction businesses in 2020 were located in London and south east England.[3] Women comprised 12.5% of the UK construction workforce in 2019.[6]

## Industry strategy

[edit]

HS2 construction near Leamington Spa in August 2021

Productivity in construction remains below the UK average and has changed little in the past 50 years.[7] As a result, the UK government has repeatedly tried to improve the sector's efficiency, publishing (among others) the Latham Report in 1994, the Egan Report in 1998 and the Farmer Review in 2016; in 2013 it launched the Construction 2025 industrial strategy,[8] which has since been updated through the 2018 industrial strategy, the 2019 Construction Sector Deal, the 2020 Construction Playbook, and the 2021 Transforming Infrastructure Performance: Roadmap to 2030.

As of 2022[update], the largest construction project in the UK is construction of the High Speed 2 rail line between London and the West Midlands. Prior to completion of construction, Crossrail was Europe's biggest construction project.[9][10]

The industry was pushed into a period of turmoil following the Brexit vote in June 2016. Fears of post-Brexit EU labour shortages were cited as a key reason for the uncertainty.[11][12][13] Further disruption followed during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 onwards, and there were inflationary pressures as a consequence of rising fuel prices following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In 2023, the construction industry accounted for 11% of UK company insolvencies as businesses were affected by rising inflation and interest rates.[14]

## Health and safety

[edit]

Construction accounted for 39 of the 142 work fatalities reported in 2021-22,[15] with half of deaths over a five-year period attributed to falls from height.[16] Construction's fatal injury rate (1.62 per 100,000 workers) is around four times higher than the all industry rate.[16] Around 1.8% of construction workers reported musculoskeletal disorders - a higher rate than for workers across all industries (1.1%).[16]

## See also

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* Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom#Construction and property

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Rhodes, Chris (16 December 2019). Briefing Paper: Construction industry: statistics and policy. London: House of Commons Library.
2. ^ Source: National Accounts Estimates of Main Aggregates | United Nations Statistics Division. Gross Value Added by Kind of Economic Activity at current prices - US dollars. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
3. ^ a b c d e "Construction statistics, Great Britain: 2020". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
4. ^ SCAPE Group, Sustainability in the supply chain, published in 2016, accessed on 26 June 2025
5. ^ This article incorporates text published under the British Open Government Licence: Cabinet Office, Making Government business more accessible to SMEs: Two Years On, page 6, published on 8 August 2013, accessed on 25 September 2024
6. ^ "Construction industry just 12.5% women and 5.4% BAME". GMB Union. 24 October 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
7. ^ "Productivity in the construction industry, UK: 2021". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
8. ^ "Construction 2025" (PDF). HM Government. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
9. ^ "Crossrail's giant tunnelling machines unveiled". BBC News. 2 January 2012.
10. ^ Leftly, Mark (29 August 2010). "Crossrail delayed to save £1bn". The Independent on Sunday. London.
11. ^ Inman, Phillip (4 July 2016). "Construction becomes first casualty of Brexit as housebuilders get jitters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
12. ^ "Brexit vote sparks biggest plunge in construction since the financial crisis". The Independent. 2 August 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
13. ^ ""Brexit could worsen construction skills crisis"". ITV News. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
14. ^ "Construction industry accounted for 11% of UK administrations in 2023, analysis reveals". Building, Design & Construction. 4 August 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
15. ^ "Work-related fatal injuries in Great Britain". HSE. Health & Safety Executive. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
16. ^ a b c "Construction statistics in Great Britain, 2021" (PDF). HSE. Health & Safety Executive. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2022.

* v
* t
* e

Construction industry of the United Kingdom

* Construction
* Economy of the United Kingdom

Companies|

| Consultancies
and support
services|

* AKT II
* Amey
* Arcadis
* Architecture firms
* Arup
* Atkins
* Faithful+Gould
* Bierrum
* Buro Happold
* Capita
* COWI
* Cundall
* Egis
* Elliott Wood
* ERM
* GHD
* Hoare Lea
* Jacobs
* Mace
* Mitie
* Pell Frischmann
* Pick Everard
* Mott MacDonald
* Ramboll
* RPS Group
* Stantec
* Sweco
* Systra
* Tetra Tech
* Turner & Townsend
* Wood Group
* WSP

|

House
builders|

| Current|

* Barratt Redrow
* Bellway
* Berkeley
* Bloor
* Bovis
* Boot
* Cala Homes
* Crest Nicholson
* Gleeson
* Keepmoat
* McCarthy & Stone
* Miller
* Muir
* Persimmon (Charles Church)
* Retirement Villages
* Taylor Wimpey
* George Wimpey
* Taylor Woodrow
* Telford
* United House
* Untypical
* Vistry (Countryside)

|

Defunct|

* Ashtons
* Beazer
* Broseley
* Bryant Homes
* Comben Homes
* Crosby Homes
* Ideal Homes
* Ilke Homes
* Lendlease
* McLean Homes
* Stewart Milne Group
* Westbury
* William Leech
* Wilson Bowden

Integrated
construction|

| Current|

* Balfour Beatty
* BAM Construct (BAM Nuttall)
* Bovis
* Costain
* Galliford Try (Morrison Construction)
* Interserve
* ISG
* Keller
* Kier
* Laing O'Rourke
* Mace
* McLaughlin & Harvey
* Morgan Sindall
* J Murphy & Sons
* Sir Robert McAlpine
* Skanska (Cementation)
* Speller Metcalfe
* Robertson
* Taylor Woodrow Construction
* Tilbury Douglas
* Vinci SA (FM Conway)
* VolkerFitzpatrick
* Wates
* Willmott Dixon

|

Defunct|

* Alfred McAlpine
* Birse
* Buckingham
* Carillion
* Cleveland Bridge & Engineering
* Clugston
* Connaught plc
* Dawnus
* Dorman Long
* HBG (and Higgs & Hill)
* Holland, Hannen & Cubitts
* Jarvis
* John Aird & Co.
* John Brogden and Sons
* Lendlease
* Leonard Fairclough & Son
* Linford
* Melville Dundas
* Mowlem
* Pauling & Co.
* Rok
* Shand
* Sir Lindsay Parkinson & Company
* Sir William Arrol & Co.
* Trollope & Colls

Suppliers|

| Current|

* Aggregate Industries
* Artex
* Ashtead
* Breedon
* Brogan
* Buildbase
* Cemex
* Ferguson Enterprises
* Forterra
* Heidelberg Materials UK
* Hope Cement
* HSS Hire
* Ibstock
* Jewson
* Kingspan
* Kingspan Off-Site
* London Brick
* Mero-Schmidlin
* Painter Brothers
* Pilkington
* RMD Kwikform
* Saint-Gobain
* Shepherd
* SIG
* Speedy Hire
* Tarmac
* Tarmac Building Products
* Tata Steel Europe
* Travis Perkins
* Wolseley

|

Defunct|

* Blue Circle Industries
* Redland
* RMC
* Tarmac

Government and
regulatory bodies|

* Chief Construction Adviser to UK Government
* Department for Business and Trade
* Health & Safety Executive
* Infrastructure and Projects Authority
* Local planning authority
* Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
* National Infrastructure Commission
* Planning Inspectorate

Industry
bodies|

* Actuate UK
* British Constructional Steelwork Association
* BSRIA
* Build UK
* Building Engineering Services Association
* Building Research Establishment
* Chartered Institute of Building
* Centre for Digital Built Britain
* Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors
* Civil Engineering Contractors Association
* Construction Clients' Group
* Construction Industry Council
* CITB
* Construction Products Association
* Constructing Excellence
* Electrical Contractors' Association
* Electrical Contractors' Association of Scotland
* Electrical Safety Council
* Federation of Master Builders
* Home Builders Federation
* Institution of Civil Engineers
* Institution of Structural Engineers
* National Access and Scaffolding Confederation
* National Federation of Builders
* National Federation of Demolition Contractors
* National House Building Council
* Refined Bitumen Association
* Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
* Scottish Building Federation
* Society of Construction Arbitrators
* Strategic Forum for Construction

Sustainability|

* Association for Environment Conscious Building
* BREEAM
* Code for Sustainable Homes
* EcoHomes
* Energy efficiency in British housing
* Good Homes Alliance
* UK Green Building Council

Other|

* British Construction Industry Awards
* Building
* Building control
* Building regulations in the United Kingdom
* Building regulations approval
* Construction News
* Development control in the United Kingdom
* Modern methods of construction
* New Civil Engineer
* Planning permission
* Retentions
* Town and country planning in the United Kingdom

Category

* v
* t
* e

Construction industry by country

* India
* Iran
* Japan
* Romania
* Taiwan
* United Kingdom
* United States

* v
* t
* e

Economy of the United Kingdom

Companies|

* Co-operatives
* Employee-owned companies
* FTSE 100 Index
* FTSE 250 Index
* FTSE Fledgling Index
* FTSE SmallCap Index
* Government-owned companies

Currency,
governance,
regulation|

* Bank of England
* Governor of the Bank of England
* Monetary Policy Committee
* Budget
* Company law
* Competition and Markets Authority
* Department for Business and Trade
* Financial Conduct Authority
* Gilts
* HM Revenue & Customs
* HM Treasury
* Chancellor of the Exchequer
* Debt Management Office
* Office for Budget Responsibility
* Pound sterling
* Banknotes
* Coinage
* Taxation
* UK Statistics Authority
* UK Trade & Investment

History|

| Chronological|

* 1659–1849 Navigation Acts
* Agricultural Revolution
* Industrial Revolution
* Financial Revolution
* Panic of 1796–97
* 1815–46 Corn Laws
* New Imperialism 1830s–1945
* Second Industrial Revolution 1860s–1914
* 1873–79 Long Depression
* 1926 general strike
* 1929–39 Great Depression
* 1948–52 Marshall Plan
* 1974 Three-Day Week
* 1979 Winter of Discontent
* 1986 Big Bang
* 1992 Black Wednesday
* Late-2000s recession
* 2008 bank rescue package
* 2009 bank rescue package
* 2020 Withdrawal from the European Union (Growth deal)
* COVID-19 pandemic
* Impact
* Cost-of-living crisis

|

Recurrent|

* Economic geography
* Free trade
* Gold standard
* Recessions and recoveries
* National champions policy
* Economic liberalism
* Privatisation
* Nationalisation

Nations,
regions,
cities|

| England|

* Atlantic Gateway
* Birmingham
* Big City Plan
* Bristol
* Cornwall
* Croydon
* Devon
* Dorset
* Expansion plans for Milton Keynes
* Fishing
* Leeds
* List of counties by GDP
* List of counties by GVA
* Liverpool
* London
* East London Tech City
* London Plan
* M4 corridor
* M11 Corridor
* Manchester
* Reading
* Sheffield
* Silicon Fen
* Somerset
* Thames Gateway
* Tourism
* Transport
* Wiltshire

|

Northern
Ireland|

* Belfast
* Transport

Scotland|

* Aberdeen
* Agriculture
* Edinburgh
* Industrialisation
* Fishing
* History
* Oil and gas
* Renewable energy
* Silicon Glen
* Tourism
* Transport
* Whisky

Wales|

* Agriculture
* Cardiff (Cardiff Bay)
* Fishing
* History
* Industrialisation
* Renewable energy
* Swansea
* Tourism
* Transport

People
and labour|

* Billionaires
* Businesspeople
* Demography
* Income
* Poverty
* Labour law
* Equal opportunities
* Minimum wage
* Working Time Directive
* Pensions
* Trades unions
* Trades Union Congress
* Unemployment

Sectors|

| Resource and
production|

* Energy/Renewable energy
* Biodiesel
* Coal
* Geothermal
* Fracking
* Hydroelectricity
* Marine
* North Sea oil
* Solar
* Wind
* Food
* Agriculture
* Cider
* Dairy
* Wine
* Beer
* Fishing
* English
* Scottish
* Welsh
* Materials
* Forestry
* Mining
* Steel

|

Financial
services|

* Baltic Exchange
* Banking
* History
* List of banks
* List of UK building societies
* Canary Wharf
* The City
* Euronext.liffe
* Glasgow International Financial Services District
* Insurance
* Lloyd's of London
* LCH
* London Interbank Offered Rate
* London Metal Exchange
* London Platinum and Palladium Market
* London Stock Exchange
* Alternative Investment Market

Other|

* Education
* International students
* Entertainment & Media
* Cinema
* Gambling
* Newspapers
* Radio
* Television
* Theatre
* Healthcare
* Legal services
* Manufacturing
* Aerospace
* Automotive
* Pharmaceuticals
* Exports
* Property
* Architecture
* Construction
* Housing
* Real estate
* Science and technology
* Internet
* Telecommunications
* Supermarkets
* Tourism
* Transport
* Aviation
* Rail
* Inter-city
* High-speed

Trade and
business
organisations|

* Business organisations
* British Bankers' Association
* British Chambers of Commerce
* Confederation of British Industry
* Co-operatives UK
* Federation of Small Businesses
* Industry trade groups
* Institute of Directors
* Make UK
* UK Payments Administration

* Category
* Commons

* v
* t
* e

Construction

Types|

* Home construction
* Offshore construction
* Underground construction
* Tunnel construction

History|

* Architecture
* Construction
* Industrialization
* Infrastructure
* Structural engineering
* Timeline of architecture
* Water supply and sanitation
* World's tallest buildings

Professions|

* Architect
* Building engineer
* Building estimator
* Building officials
* Chartered Building Surveyor
* Civil engineer
* Civil estimator
* Clerk of works
* Project manager
* Quantity surveyor
* Site manager
* Structural engineer
* Superintendent

Trades workers
(List)|

* Banksman
* Boilermaker
* Bricklayer
* Carpenter
* Concrete finisher
* Construction foreman
* Construction worker
* Electrician
* Glazier
* Ironworker
* Millwright
* Plasterer
* Plumber
* Roofer
* Steel fixer
* Welder

Organizations|

* American Institute of Constructors (AIC)
* American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
* Asbestos Testing and Consultancy Association (ATAC)
* Associated General Contractors of America (AGC)
* Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors (APHC)
* Build UK
* Construction History Society
* Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CICES)
* Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE)
* Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA)
* The Concrete Society
* Construction Management Association of America (CMAA)
* Construction Specifications Institute (CSI)
* FIDIC
* Home Builders Federation (HBF)
* Lighting Association
* National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)
* National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC)
* National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
* National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA)
* National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC)
* National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA)
* Railway Tie Association (RTA)
* Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
* Scottish Building Federation (SBF)
* Society of Construction Arbitrators

By country|

* India
* Iran
* Japan
* Romania
* Taiwan
* Turkey
* United Kingdom
* United States

Regulation|

* Building code
* Construction law
* Site safety
* Zoning

Architecture|

* Style
* List
* Industrial architecture
* British
* Indigenous architecture
* Interior architecture
* Landscape architecture
* Vernacular architecture

Engineering|

* Architectural engineering
* Building services engineering
* Civil engineering
* Coastal engineering
* Construction engineering
* Structural engineering
* Earthquake engineering
* Environmental engineering
* Geotechnical engineering

Methods|

* List
* Earthbag construction
* Modern methods of construction
* Monocrete construction
* Slip forming

Other topics|

* Building material
* List of building materials
* Millwork
* Builder's signature
* Builders' rites
* Construction bidding
* Construction delay
* Construction equipment theft
* Cornerstone
* Floor loan
* Construction management
* Construction waste
* Demolition
* Design–build
* Design–bid–build
* DFMA
* Heavy equipment
* Interior design
* Illegal construction
* Lists of buildings and structures
* Megaproject
* Megastructure
* Plasterwork
* Damp
* Proofing
* Parge coat
* Roughcast
* Harling
* Real estate development
* Real-estate bubble
* Stonemasonry
* Sustainability
* Topping out
* Unfinished building
* Urban design
* Urban planning

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