Awards values were down 35% in November following a 36% fall in October – continuing a trend set since the election with contract awards down 29% between Q3 and Q4.

The drop included a 36% fall in residential projects to £1.6bn while infrastructure awards increased in November despite sitting 64% down from the 2024 average and being the the second worst monthly tally since April 2023.

Barbour ABI head of business and client analytics, Ed Griffiths said: “It has been another disappointing month for contract awards. The significant dip in residential awards does little to inspire confidence in the government’s drive to get Britain building.

“Infrastructure saw a small increase, but it is still struggling. We can only hope the Government’s recent waving through of 150 major infrastructure projects will finally light a fire under the sector.”

New planning applications were up across all sectors suggesting companies are still looking to fill out their pipelines in 2025 – as is usually the case at this time of year.

Griffiths added: “There is more positivity in the pipeline coming from applications, but with approvals down 26% as well, it is yet to be seen how many of these will make it through the planning process.

“Hopefully, with the government’s recent and renewed push on local councils and planning reforms we will start to see more projects come through the pipeline.

“Industry watchers should also keep an eye on Data Centre projects. There are a large number of projects in planning phase, and with the government designating them critical infrastructure this could become a huge driver for activity in 2025.”