Total construction output is estimated to have grown by 0.6% in the three months to July 2025, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.
On a sector level private housing work saw a slight increase from £3.36bn for June to £3.39bn for July. And total housing work (including public housing) saw a moderate increase from £3.77bn to £3.81bn
Four out of the nine sectors grew in the three months to July 2025; the main contributors to the increase were private housing repair and maintenance, and infrastructure new work, which grew by 3.8% and 2.1%, respectively.
Commenting on the latest numbers Hampshire Trust Bank managing director of development finance Neil Leitch said: “These figures point to growth in new private housing, but they come against eight straight months of slowdown reported by S&P Global.”
“The government’s pledge to deliver more than a million homes this Parliament already looks out of reach. Developers want to build, and lenders are ready to support them, but the delivery chain is simply not strong enough to turn ambition into delivery.
“Approvals and starts do not guarantee completions, and unless projects can move through that delivery window, the shortfall will only grow.”
Leitch stressed that the answer was not just planning reform. “Planning teams need proper resourcing, SME builders need the confidence to commit capital, and we must bring new people into the industry before the skills gap becomes irreversible. Without those foundations in place, targets will remain headlines rather than homes.”
McBains managing director of property and construction Clive Docwra said:
“After June’s figures showed a fall in new orders, the sector will welcome that July saw an increase in new work, albeit moderate.
“The industry will be encouraged that the three months to July showed an increase in terms of infrastructure new work, but a concern is that housebuilding remains sluggish, which puts the government’s target of building 1.5 million homes under threat.
“There is still underlying confidence within the industry that the medium-term outlook for growth remains encouraging, but many firms will still have to navigate the headwinds of uncertainty over the next few months.”
