A trading statement by Barratt Developments revealed total completions of 7,324 during the second half of 2017 compared to 7,180 the previous year.

Chief executive David Thomas said: “As the UK’s largest housebuilder we remain firmly committed to helping address the housing shortage whilst delivering excellent operational and financial performance.”

In November the firm returned £348m in dividends to shareholders – up from £248m the previous year.

Barratt added: “The group continues to focus on driving operational improvements throughout the business, with a particular focus on margin improvement over the medium term.

“Given good demand and our healthy forward order book we continue to expect to deliver modest growth in wholly owned completions in FY18.”