The North West was named the second most active area for construction projects in the first quarter of this year…
Research has revealed the North West saw the most amount of construction activity during Q1, beaten only by London and the South East.
The data, which was collated by the JLL and Glenigan UK Commercial Construction Activity Index, found that during the 12 months to the end of the first quarter some £2.2bn of non-residential construction schemes were started in the region. Comparatively, the West Midlands saw only £1.8bn and Yorkshire £1.4bn.
Figures also revealed a 9.6 per cent drop in the value of new project starts recorded to the end of Q4 2015. This matched a national trend, which saw the value of new construction projects drop by 7.2 per cent from the previous quarter, reaching £23bn.
However, despite a drop in output, the two organisations said there were signs developers were committed to construction in retail, industrial, and office building, which accounted for more than half of commercial construction starts.
Peter Lees, head of building consultancy at JLL in Manchester, said: “In spite of a drop off in construction starts nationally in Q1, the north west continues to outperform other regions and the market remains resilient, with a continued focus on the office and industrial sectors and, although not included in the data, residential markets.
“What’s more, there is appetite for commercial projects in alternative markets such as education, which saw a rise of 5.1 per cent.
“In all, although the data is volatile, we’re optimistic the levels of growth in non-residential developments will be boosted by the growing demand for commercial floor space in major cities such as Manchester and Liverpool.”