The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has offered a mixed but cautiously optimistic snapshot of the nation’s construction sector in its Q2 2025 UK Construction Monitor: while overall workloads remain broadly flat, twelve-month expectations point to modest growth ahead, particularly in infrastructure.
The headline net balance for total construction workloads edged down slightly to -3%, from -1% in Q1. Infrastructure continues to outperform other areas, with a robust net balance of +11%. Within infrastructure, energy and water/sewage projects lead with +34% and +27%, respectively.
Repair and maintenance remains a relative bright spot at +5%, while new work saw a slight dip to -5%.
Forward-looking sentiment is positive, with +17% of respondents expecting higher workloads over the next year. Private residential and non-residential work are expected to see moderate gains, with net balances of +15% and +9%, respectively.
Whilst the outlook seems brighter than the present, respondents noted several key factors stifling momentum. Planning and regulatory delays were cited as the top reasons holding back construction activity with 61% of respondents listing it as a key issue. Furthermore, labour shortages persist for 39% of respondents, whilst some respondents note planning delays caused by confusion surrounding the Building Safety Act and called for clearer processes and better resourcing of the Building Safety Regulator.
RICS recently gave evidence in a UK Parliament Select Committee and highlighted concerns about the BSR in the current regulatory environment.
RICS Head of Professional Practice, Gary Strong FRICS, said: “The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) must work with industry to provide clearer guidance and consistent decision-making. RICS members have highlighted inconsistencies across the regions in how the rules are interpreted by the BSR, which is undermining confidence in the regulatory system and causing delays.
“There are not enough building control professionals in place, which is causing a growing backlog of applications. The BSR must be adequately resourced to meet the demands of the new regulatory environment, and a swift programme of upskilling professionals enacted.
“We welcome that the UK Government identifies this as a primary bottleneck for construction projects, and a new fast track process is being put in place. Failing to tackle this will significantly hinder the Government’s ambitious housebuilding targets alongside the necessary new infrastructure needed to support them.”
RICS Chief Economist, Simon Rubinsohn, said: “The underlying tone in the construction sector remains subdued according to the latest feedback from RICS members. There is a little more positivity looking forward but the indicators, at this point, are consistent with a modest rather than material uplift in development.
“Given that planning continues to be viewed as the major factor hindering the industry from upscaling its building programme, it is quite conceivable that the passing of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will in due course see industry expectations move onto a firmer footing. That said, the need to ensure the building safety regime works more smoothly is also highlighted quite widely in the survey as a factor that would likely impact the pace of development.
“The other big challenge remains around skills. While typically much of the conversation is focused of shortages of trades such as bricklayers and plumbers, the RICS survey highlights recruitment issues amongst professionals involved in the construction industry with building control surveyors and quantity surveyors in short supply.”
