Commenting on this morning’s ONS construction output data, Fraser Johns, finance director at Beard, said: “If you’d said to me a year ago that construction output had grown by 3%, we’d have considered that a decent rate of growth.
“However in the context of the previous increases of around 17% for July and 23% for June, some might say it feels like we’re coming to a grinding halt. But I don’t think that’s necessarily the case.
“This is the level of growth that you might expect in normal conditions and in fact the ONS data shows the three-month period to August was a record high at 18.5%, albeit from a low base. So this tells me the construction sector is learning to live with coronavirus and is getting on with the job.
“This sector, more than many, had to adapt fast to the changing conditions in order to keep our sites open and projects on the move, and the fact that its outperformed overall GDP growth at 2.1% is testament to that.
“So while there’s no doubt that as a country we’re heading into a difficult winter, with the ongoing impact of coronavirus coupled with the inevitable uncertainties of Brexit, we can’t underestimate the scale of recovery that is underway due to the resilience of those working in the construction sector.”