Construction output in Great Britain fell by 2.0% in the three months to February 2026, with private new housing again the main drag on activity, according to the Office for National Statistics.
The latest figures show this was the fifth consecutive fall in the three-monthly series, underlining the pressure on developers as viability remains stretched and planning conditions continue to weigh on delivery.
Across the three months to February, new work fell by 3.4%, while repair and maintenance was flat at 0.0%. Six of the nine construction sectors posted declines, with private new housing down 6.5%, making it the largest single contributor to the overall drop.
On a monthly basis, however, the picture was slightly firmer. Total construction output is estimated to have risen by 1.0% in February 2026, following an upwardly revised 0.5% increase in January and a downwardly revised 1.3% fall in December 2025.
The monthly increase was driven by gains in both main categories of activity. New work rose by 1.0% in February, while repair and maintenance increased by 0.9%.
Even so, the broader trend remains one of weaker delivery, particularly in housebuilding, where developers continue to face a difficult combination of elevated costs, tighter funding conditions and uncertainty in the planning system.
Neil Leitch, managing director of development finance at Hampshire Trust Bank, says: “This drop in housebuilding reflects the reality on the ground.
“Developers are still operating with very little margin for error. The challenge is not just planning delays, but planning uncertainty, with even well-prepared, policy-compliant schemes facing less predictable outcomes. That makes it harder to commit capital with confidence.
“Viability remains finely balanced. Build costs are still high, funding conditions are tighter than many expected, and land values have not always adjusted to reflect that shift. Margins are under pressure, reducing flexibility once schemes move into delivery and limiting how many can be taken forward with confidence.
“That is shaping behaviour across the market. Developers are becoming more selective, focusing on schemes that are deliverable in current conditions and managing how and when capital is deployed to avoid overextending in a less predictable environment.
“What is often overlooked is the time lag in development. The challenge is not just what is being delivered today, but what is not coming forward tomorrow, as delays and uncertainty feed directly into weaker output in the years ahead.
“Demand for housing has not gone away, but without greater consistency and confidence in the system, any uplift in output is likely to be uneven rather than sustained.
“In a market like this, the emphasis is on structuring schemes realistically and working with funding partners who can provide consistency, flexibility and direct access to decision-makers through the life of a project.”
For property professionals, the figures are a reminder that while short-term monthly improvements may offer some encouragement, the underlying trajectory for development remains fragile. With private new housing continuing to account for much of the weakness, attention is likely to remain fixed on whether planning reform, improved certainty and more realistic land and funding assumptions can help bring stalled schemes forward.
