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Are builders still busy, or is work drying up?

By The Busy Busy Index team · Published 11 Nov 2026 · Every figure links to its source

Ask a builder how work's going and you'll probably still hear "juggling jobs, busy busy". The latest surveys say that's getting less true, though not everywhere, and not for every kind of job.

The short version

Small building firms had less work and fewer enquiries in the first half of 2026 than at the end of 2025. House building is falling fastest. Builders in Scotland and Wales stayed busier than those in England, and skills shortages are still delaying jobs even as demand cools.

Enquiries have turned negative

The best direct measure for small builders is the Federation of Master Builders' State of Trade survey, run with the CIOB. Its latest edition covers January to June 2026 and got 416 responses (FMB/CIOB State of Trade H1 2026, 10 Nov 2026). All three of its activity measures turned negative:

  • Enquiries fell from +18 in the second half of 2025 to -10.
  • Workloads fell from +22 to -4.
  • Employment fell from +17 to -4.

These are net balances: the share of firms reporting a rise minus the share reporting a fall. So -10 on enquiries means more builders saw fewer people asking for quotes than saw more. Enquiries matter most, because, as FMB Cymru puts it, "today's enquiries are tomorrow's jobs" (FMB Cymru, 10 Nov 2026).

It depends where you are

The UK figure hides a big split between the nations:

  • Scotland: workloads +31 and enquiries +9, the only UK nation where enquiries rose (FMB Scotland, 10 Nov 2026).
  • Wales: workloads +14, but enquiries fell to -8, so the pipeline is shrinking (FMB Cymru, 10 Nov 2026).
  • England: workloads -9 (FMB Scotland, 10 Nov 2026).

Even Scotland isn't all good news. Surveyors there, who cover the whole construction industry rather than just small builders, reported workloads at -9 in the third quarter of 2026, down from -2 (RICS Q3 2026 (Scotland), via Scottish Construction Now, 6 Nov 2026). See our Scotland page for both figures side by side.

House building is where it's drying up fastest

The wider industry figures point the same way. The S&P Global UK Construction PMI was 43.6 in October 2026, its 22nd month below the 50 line that separates growth from decline. House building was the weakest part at 35.1 (S&P Global UK Construction PMI, 5 Nov 2026). Chartered surveyors put private housing workloads at -18 in the third quarter, down from -12 (RICS Construction Monitor, 5 Nov 2026).

Home improvement is cooling too. The Construction Products Association expects spending on private housing repair, maintenance and improvement to fall 8% in 2026 and another 2% in 2027. It says homeowners are holding off on bigger projects, while basic repairs and maintenance have held steady (CPA Autumn forecasts, 26 Oct 2026). Official figures back that up: repair and maintenance output grew 0.4% in August even as total output fell (ONS, 15 Oct 2026).

But you may still wait for a good builder

Quieter doesn't mean builders are sitting around. On TradeMatch's platform, the median wait from accepting a quote to an extension builder starting on site was 10 weeks, and the slowest 10% of jobs waited 16 weeks (TradeMatch Wait-Time Index, 21 Apr 2026). TradeMatch says extension waits got 2 to 4 weeks longer year on year. Those jobs ran from mid-2025 to early 2026, though, so they mostly come from before the slowdown showed up in the surveys. They also come from one platform, not the whole market.

Shortages haven't gone away either. In the first half of 2026, 68% of small builders said a lack of skilled tradespeople was affecting them. 47% had delayed jobs because of it, 21% had cancelled jobs and 18% said it had stopped them growing (FMB/CIOB State of Trade H1 2026, 10 Nov 2026).

Costs are squeezing builders

Three-quarters (75%) of builders saw material costs rise (FMB Scotland, 10 Nov 2026). Among firms whose costs went up, 47% reported lower-than-expected profits or losses and 48% raised their prices (FMB/CIOB State of Trade H1 2026, 10 Nov 2026). So less work doesn't automatically mean cheaper quotes.

Builders aren't all gloomy: 39% felt positive about the rest of 2026, against 23% who felt negative (FMB/CIOB State of Trade H1 2026, 10 Nov 2026).

What it means for you

  • Homeowners: builders are more likely to have room for your job than a year ago, especially in England. Good firms still book up, though, so get quotes early. Prices are being pushed up by costs, not down by quiet order books.
  • Builders: if your phone has gone quieter, you're not alone. Enquiries are the measure that turned first. Repairs and maintenance work has held up better than big projects.
  • Thinking of joining the trade? The slowdown is cyclical, but the skills shortage isn't. FMB says a new Level 2 General Builder Apprenticeship has been approved (FMB/CIOB State of Trade H1 2026, 10 Nov 2026). See our guide to becoming a builder.

What we're watching next

ONS construction output and quarterly new orders are due on 12 November 2026, and the Insolvency Service's October figures on 17 November. We'll update the demand signals as each one lands. If you're a builder, tell us how busy you are. It takes two questions and it's anonymous.

Sources

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