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House building 'crucial to supporting and creating jobs'

Published on 14th July 2015

The importance of house building to the economy has been emphasised by a new study, which showed that the sector supported more than 60,000 jobs just in north-west England last year.

Research undertaken for the Home Builders Federation (HBF) found that 14,130 new homes were started by private builders, councils and housing associations in the north-west during 2014.That activity supported 60,579 jobs, resulted in 565 new graduate and apprentice positions, and created an extra £18.1 million in council tax revenue and £141.3 million in other tax contributions. 

As part of the projects, builders also invested £13.2 million in new sports facilities and community spaces across the region.

Despite those wider economic and social benefits of building residential property, the target number of home starts for the north-west was missed by more than 4,300.

The HBF estimated that if the target level of house building activity had been met a further 18,685 jobs would have been supported, and the organisation’s executive chairman Stewart Baseley said it was crucial that the rate of home starts increases.
“As well as delivering desperately needed new homes, increasing housing supply would provide significant additional benefits for everyone living in the region through additional jobs, investment in infrastructure and facilities for communities,” he explained.

“People often don’t realise that the new community centre, school or sports facilities have been funded directly as a result of housing developments.

“Ultimately, providing new homes for people also means better facilities for the wider community. These are the very things that turn a collection of houses into communities; brand new places where people want to live.”

There are some signs that the situation is improving, as the latest statistics from the Department for Communities and Local Government showed that during the 12 months to March, planning permission was granted for 261,000 new homes in England - the highest total for eight years.

The Markit/CIPS UK Construction PMI for June was also positive, with 62% of construction companies forecasting a rise in output over the next 12 months, thanks to a combination of “robust demand for new residential projects” and increased investment spending.

However, the report warned that skills shortages were still having a detrimental effect on the industry, with demand for skilled trades and engineers continuing to outstrip availability of workers.

Kalcrest Site Services can help you to overcome the problem of finding skilled workers by supplying experienced, reference-checked staff for short or long-term contracts. Call us on 01709 720348 or contact us via the website for more details about our services and to discuss your recruitment needs.

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