More than nine out of ten smaller housebuilders have said planning is the biggest obstacle to increasing their housing delivery, according to a survey out this week. Respondents expect planning delays to get worse in 2022 in many parts of the UK because of local elections for all the London boroughs, Scottish and Welsh authorities in May. Homebuilders Federation, HBF, executive chairman Stewart Baseley said: “SMEs are literally having to put their businesses on hold whilst local authorities delay the [...]

A technical consultation on offering all new homes access to high-speed wi-fi has been announced by the government. Currently, more than two-thirds of premises have access to gigabit-capable networks, up from one in ten back in 2019 with the government aiming for a minimum of 85 per cent. Media, data and digital infrastructure minister Julia Lopez said: “There are still a significant number of house buyers who miss out on getting the best connectivity in their new homes and therefore [...]

Developers who fail to resolve snagging problems on new homes could see themselves struck off the New Homes Quality Board, NHQB, register. The board has released a new housebuilders code banning high-pressure selling, requiring an after-sale ‘cooling off’ period and protecting the buyer for up to two years after purchase. MP and NHQB chair Natalie Elphicke said the code, which has been five years in the making, would be central to driving up new homes’ standards. “It fills the gaps [...]

Supply chain problems are expected to resurface in the New Year due to Omicron’s effect on production and operations, the Construction Leadership Council, CLC, has warned. The CLC fears SME builders working on improvements, domestic repair and maintenance where clients want price certainty will be most affected. In a joint statement Builders Merchants Federation chief executive John Newcomb and Construction Products Association chief executive Peter Caplehorn said: “It is essential to maintain open lines of communication throughout the supply chain. [...]

All new buildings must reduce their greenhouse gases by nearly a third under new building regulations which will come into force in June. Under the rules, carbon emissions from new build homes must be 30 per cent lower than current standards and other new buildings such as offices and shops must be 27 per cent lower. Housing minister Eddie Hughes said the regulations were an important step towards 2025’s future homes and building standards where all new homes must be [...]

A third of firms to join the Construction Leadership Council’s, CLC, latest round of net-zero champions are SMEs. These include Benfield Timber Buildings who supply timber frames for housebuilders, solar panel and battery supplier EvoEnergy and Zed pods which builds micro-homes above car parks. CLC co-chair Andy Mitchell said: “The power of the CLC comes from its ability to reflect and engage with the whole industry. CO2nstruct Zero has provided a standard for the whole industry to get behind.” The [...]

Major housebuilding projects in the capital are at risk if the government fails to put Transport for London, TfL, on sustainable footing within the next five days, claims Mayor Sadiq Khan. Mr Khan warned thousands of new homes might not be built if the government was unable to agree on TfL’s short-term funding deal by the end of the week. “Failing to adequately fund TfL is a dereliction of the government’s duty to our capital city, the people of London [...]

Construction firms’ activity bounced back in November thanks to the UK economy reopening and a smoother supply chain, according to Purchasing Managers’ Index, PMI. The index was up at 55.5 for the month compared with 54.6 in October pointing to the strongest point of expansion since July and the tenth consecutive month above the 50 no change level. Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply group director Duncan Brock said: "Commercial orders were the strongest, picking up the slack from the [...]

Urban extensions and more garden villages need to be granted if the government is to achieve its ambitions of building 300,000 new homes a year, according to a new report. Feeding the Pipeline looks at the practices of the nation’s ten largest housebuilders and argues 59,200 extra homes a year need to be built to hit this target by the mid-2020s. Homes Builders Federation, HBF, planning director Andrew Whitaker said: “Building enough homes to match demand requires sufficient sites to [...]

An extra £11m of public money to develop 23 brownfield sites across England is a chance for the government to support SMEs, the National Federation of Builders, NFB, has claimed. The trade body said it was important to know whether it was local authorities or Homes England delivering the latest tranche of the brownfield land release fund. NFB head of housing and policy Rico Wojtulewicz said: “If the contracts just go to the big companies, then what’s the point. The [...]

Lead times for brick supplies are forecast to increase this year with house builders advised to work closely with manufacturers to ensure delivery and mitigate delays. The Brick Development Association has said imports will help meet the current UK shortfall until new lines come on stream in 2023 and 2024. “While this may require flexibility around choice and specification, quantities should be sufficient to meet demand,” said the Association. The Construction Leadership Council’s product availability group, PAG, has flagged up [...]