97% of all construction sites across England and Wales are now open, Build UK contractor members have reported, as output slowly rises
Build UK contractor members have reported that almost all of their construction sites in England and Wales are now open, up from 93% a fortnight ago.
Output has also continued to rise slowly, with infrastructure sites achieving 89% – up from 85% – and construction sites improving from 74% to 78%.
Members that include housing in their portfolios have confirmed that 93% of housebuilding sites in England and Wales are now open, up from 68% a month ago, as output rises from 53% to 78% during that period.
Sites in Scotland
The situation in Scotland remains very different – just 21% of projects are running and output stands at 27%. The Scottish Government is currently implementing Phase 1 of its Covid-19 route map through and out of the crisis, which aligns to Phases 0 and 1 of the Construction Re-Start Plan developed to get the industry back to work safely.
Phase 2 is known as the ‘soft start’, which will see work that can be carried out within physical distancing parameters resumed.
However, the industry in Scotland has been told that it can only move to this phase a minimum of two weeks after publication of the updated guidance for the sector on 28 May, which means that today (11 June) is the earliest that there could be an update on when construction sites might be able to open.
Move out of lockdown
As the country continues to move out of lockdown with more businesses re-opening offices and other premises, the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) has produced guidance which includes information for building owners, landlords and tenants on reactivating buildings to get them safely back online.
The Environment Agency (EA) has published a Regulatory Position Statement allowing operators who hold environmental permits to temporarily store more waste than their permit allows, provided that they can demonstrate a need due to Covid-19 restrictions and that the wastes being stored are authorised under the permit.
Construction workers requiring accommodation whilst working away from home can also find over 37,000 beds across the UK and Ireland via Build UK’s repurposed Open Doors website.
