At a glance
⚙️ Balfour Beatty reports major progress on HS2, Hinkley Point C and Net Zero Teesside, alongside a ~£3bn Sizewell C win and new grid frameworks.
💰 UK construction PMI has fallen to 39.4, a five-year low, with housing starts at post-crisis lows even as public infrastructure pipelines stay active.
🚆🏛️ The Department for Education is launching a new £15.4bn+ construction framework to upgrade the national education estate from 2025 to 2031.
🏛️ Government housing policy remains focused on NPPF reforms and “build-out transparency”, but Section 106 and planning delays still threaten 1.5m homes targets.
🏗️ Homes England has approved a £23m infrastructure grant to unlock up to 30,000 homes and two new communities in London.
Today’s update: the near-term construction downturn is deepening, led by housing, even as big-ticket energy, rail and education programmes continue to mobilise capital and capability. Policy activity is clustering around frameworks, skills and planning reform in an effort to bridge that gap. Here’s what you need to know to stay ahead today.
Ongoing Stories
Returning to the skills and capacity theme highlighted in recent coverage of the £530bn national pipeline, new government commitments of £600m for training 60,000 workers and a focus on green skills underline that labour supply remains a central constraint on delivery. (Source: HBF)
Following earlier reporting on planning and infrastructure reform, updated housing policy moves – including NPPF changes and “build-out transparency” – continue to target stalled schemes, but Section 106 and consent delays are still flagged as key blockers to the 1.5m homes ambition. (Source: HBF)
Building on the previously trailed DLR Thamesmead-led housing push, Homes England’s latest £23m transport infrastructure grant in London again links transport investment directly to enabling 25,000–30,000 homes and two new communities. (Source: GOV.UK)
Extending the industrial strategy and infrastructure risk debate we covered this week, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy 2025 is being positioned as a 10‑year framework to stabilise investment conditions for long-term construction and infrastructure pipelines. (Source: GOV.UK)
Top 5 headlines
⚙️ Balfour Beatty banks Sizewell C win amid major project momentum
Balfour Beatty has confirmed completion of the 3.5‑mile Bromford Tunnel on HS2 Area North, key progress at Hinkley Point C with the installation of a critical underground formwork structure, and the start of earthworks at the Net Zero Teesside carbon capture project. The contractor has also secured an estimated £3bn contract for Sizewell C and places on National Grid’s HVDC civil and underground cabling framework plus Scottish Power Energy Networks’ overhead line framework. This concentration of nuclear, CCS and grid work signals where UK civils capacity and supply chain attention will be focused as public and regulated infrastructure dominates order books. (Source: Balfour Beatty)
💰 Construction output hits five-year low as housing slumps
UK construction PMI dropped to 39.4 in November, its weakest reading in five years and firmly in contraction territory. New housing starts have fallen to their lowest levels since the financial crisis, casting further doubt on government housebuilding targets, although pipelines in rail, road, energy, education and healthcare remain buoyed by public investment. The split underscores a two‑speed market, with resi-dependent players under acute pressure while infrastructure-focused contractors benefit from countercyclical spend. (Source: Bloomberg, Property Industry Eye)
🏛️ £15.4bn Department for Education framework to reshape schools pipeline
The Department for Education is procuring a new national Construction Framework to replace CF21 from December 2025, valued at around £15.4bn excluding VAT (£18.48bn including VAT) over six years plus extensions. The framework is intended to support sustained investment across the education estate, with explicit encouragement for SME participation. For contractors and consultants, it sets up a long-duration, high-value workstream in a relatively defensive sector at a time when private demand is weakening. (Source: GOV.UK Find a Tender)
🏛️ Returning today: housing policy reforms clash with delivery realities
Building on earlier policy signals this week, government continues to promote NPPF changes and “build-out transparency” to accelerate housing delivery, alongside a target of 1.5m homes this Parliament. A new Home Builders Federation report, however, highlights planning delays and Section 106 backlogs as critical obstacles, even as ministers allocate £600m to train 60,000 construction workers with an emphasis on green skills. The tension between policy ambition and system capacity will shape land strategies, programme phasing and resourcing decisions for developers and housebuilders. (Source: HBF)
🚆 Homes England funds infrastructure for up to 30,000 London homes
Homes England has approved a £23m infrastructure grant to improve transport links in London, intended to unlock between 25,000 and 30,000 new homes and create two new communities. The funding targets enabling works rather than vertical build, aligning with the agency’s focus on de-risking complex sites. For local authorities and developers, it reinforces the importance of credible transport and infrastructure strategies in securing central support for large-scale housing schemes. (Source: GOV.UK Homes England)
Also in the news
🚆🌱 South East Water is progressing proposals for a new pipeline to Ardingly Reservoir to address severe shortages affecting over 228,000 residents in the South East, highlighting rising investment needs in water resilience. (Source: Meyka)
🏛️ Returning to this week’s focus on long-term infrastructure planning, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy 2025 is being promoted as a 10‑year framework to improve investment conditions and certainty for construction and infrastructure. (Source: GOV.UK)
🏗️ The HBF report reiterates that despite new skills funding, planning delays and Section 106 bottlenecks remain the primary drag on build-out rates and threaten government housing targets. (Source: HBF)
🌱 Progress at Hinkley Point C and the award of a major Sizewell C package to Balfour Beatty underline the continued centrality of nuclear new build to the UK’s net zero and baseload power strategy. (Source: Balfour Beatty)
🚆 The start of earthworks at the Net Zero Teesside carbon capture project confirms that large-scale industrial decarbonisation schemes are moving from concept to delivery, with significant opportunities for civils and energy contractors. (Source: Balfour Beatty)
The Daily Build is written for people shaping the UK’s construction and infrastructure pipeline, from boardrooms to site offices. If this briefing is useful, consider forwarding it to your team so everyone is working from the same picture.