By Neeral Shah, founder & CEO of YardLink If you were walking through a construction site, you’d notice how much it has started to embrace digital technology. From project management software, drone surveying and autonomous machinery, the site itself is becoming smarter. However, if you look at the procurement process behind almost any construction project, you'll find something that looks remarkably unchanged. What’s holding the whole operation together isn’t any new innovative technology, but rather spreadsheets, email chains, WhatsApp messages and phone calls. You might assume that the technology hasn’t caught up in this area yet.

In the Spring Statement, the chancellor announced new plans to help young people not in employment, education or training (NEET), including new apprenticeships for the construction sector. This move would help address the widening skills gap affecting the sector, and bring in an influx of skilled young people into the workforce. For Senior Site Manager Kyle Taylor (38), construction was always solid career choice.

Families in Hammersmith and Fulham are being invited to explore the newly refurbished Monkey Puzzle Olympia nursery, following an official ribbon-cutting ceremony last month. Located at 1 Springvale Terrace, the nursery – formerly known as Monkey Puzzle West Kensington – has been part of the local area, serving families since 2012. Nursery manager, Shivani DeHaney has years of experience in early years education and is passionate about supporting local families and creating meaningful connections with the local community.

~ Geobear Ireland becomes first ground engineering firm to receive Irish building regulation compliance ~ Non-invasive ground engineering company Geobear has become the first and only resin injection company to achieve verified compliance with the Irish Building Regulation through its British Board of Agrément (BBA) certification. A benchmark for product quality and fitness-for-purpose, Geobear UK has held the BBA certification since 2021 and remains the only geopolymer injection company in the world to have earned the achievement. The milestone follows the BBA’s recent launch of an Irish building regulations compliance add-on for its Agrément certification holders, enabling Geobear to extend its existing certification to cover its Irish operations.

Independent housebuilder Dandara has secured reserved matters planning permission to build 252 new homes in Fishponds, representing a significant milestone for Bristol’s regeneration plans. The new neighbourhood will form part of Bristol City Council’s Atlas Place Masterplan for the Central Fishponds area and will deliver a mix of one, two, three and four bedroom houses and apartments. The former industrial site, previously occupied by Graphic Packaging International before its relocation in 2023 after more than 100 years in Fishponds, will be transformed into a vibrant new residential neighbourhood. At the heart of the development will be landscaped green public open spaces and play areas.

Caddick Construction has been appointed to deliver Torus Homes’ new Blowick Moss Lane extra care development, adding to the contractor’s portfolio of high-quality, community-focused housing across the North West. The scheme will provide modern extra care accommodation designed to support independent living for older residents, alongside high-quality communal spaces and amenities that encourage wellbeing and social connection. Building work at the new build extra care development will see Caddick deliver 141 properties at Blowick Moss Lane in Southport, as part of a £50m development supported by more than £11m grant funding from Homes England.

McLaren Construction (Midlands and North) has completed the flagship industrial and logistics facility at Panattoni Park Swindon, delivering the major scheme and marking a significant milestone in the regeneration of the site. The 545,000 sq. ft. speculative development has been delivered within a 39-week construction schedule, forming part of the wider regeneration of the former Honda manufacturing site, transforming a historic brownfield location into a high-quality logistics and employment hub for the South West. The project was designed around a structured and collaborative delivery strategy to meet timescales, with early supply chain engagement across key packages including steel frame and cladding, to ensure all partners were aligned to the programme from inception.

McLaren Construction Midlands and North has made significant progress at the £160m Upper Brook Street student accommodation development in Manchester. Since McLaren’s appointment late last year, work has advanced with both tower cranes now fully operational and concrete cores for both buildings reaching full height. The 23-storey UBS tower has progressed to level five floor slabs, and the nine-storey K block has reached level four. The project team has also completed the installation of the attenuation tank and established exemplary site accommodation nearby. Current works are focused on progressing the concrete frame with floor slab construction ongoing across both buildings, and this phase will continue over the coming months with façade installation expected to commence in the summer.

Holcim UK has played an integral part in a significant £10 million redevelopment project at Heysham Port in Lancashire, delivering high-performance concrete solutions to enhance capacity, durability, and operational efficiency at one of the North West’s most vital transport hubs. Heysham Port is owned and operated by Peel Ports Group, and provides critical freight and passenger links between mainland UK, the Isle of Man, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. To futureproof operations and support increased traffic volumes, a comprehensive upgrade project was carried out by Kiernan Construction. The redevelopment included a revamped trailer park, upgraded entrance, and a new multi smart gate operating system.

Five-star housebuilder Cruden Homes has secured a coveted NHBC Pride in the Job Award for its Longthorn Gardens development at Shawfair, recognising the exceptional standards of site management and build quality being delivered. Widely regarded as one of the housebuilding industry's most respected accolades, NHBC Pride in the Job Awards celebrate outstanding site managers and their commitment to quality, leadership and customer satisfaction. Winners are selected following a rigorous judging process, with awards recognising the very best-performing sites across the UK. The award for Longthorn Gardens reflects the dedication and expertise of the site team responsible for delivering the development, which forms part of the wider Shawfair community.

NBS-BDP collaboration developed 1,300+ pre-calculated generic assemblies central to NBS’ new life-cycle carbon assessment platform NBS (part of Hubexo), the platform for connected construction information, announces a long-term strategic partnership with BDP, a major global multidisciplinary practice of architects, designers, engineers and urbanists. The partnership recognises BDP's integral role in the development of NBS LCA, a new life-cycle carbon assessment platform providing professionals with high-quality, reliable and easy-to-use carbon data to ensure accurate tracking as construction projects evolve. BDP's primary contribution to NBS LCA has been the development of more than 1,300 pre-calculated generic assemblies, covering the most commonly used building fabric elements alongside key concrete and steel structural elements.

Work has started on the regeneration of a historic hat factory in Atherstone in North Warwickshire, following a land sale and development deal brokered by London multidisciplinary real estate group GLPG. Demolition is underway on the historic Britannia Mill overlooking Coventry Canal, which has stood vacant for more than 20 years and had fallen into significant disrepair. Not-for-profit Extra Care and Retirement Living Provider Housing 21 are working in partnership with contractor Deeley Construction to deliver 70 affordable extra care properties on the site, with work expected to be complete in Spring 2028.

Bancon Group has won two national awards at last night's (18 June) Scottish Home Awards and cHeRries Awards, in recognition of excellence across its affordable housing and people development across the group. At the cHeRries Awards, held last night (18 June) at P&J Live in Aberdeen, Bancon Group won the Culture Transformation Project of the Year category, recognising an 18-month programme to strengthen workforce engagement across its construction, timber frame and housebuilding operations. At the Scottish Home Awards, held the same evening at the DoubleTree by Hilton, Glasgow Central, Bancon Construction won the Social Housing Development of the Year (over 100 units) category for the Cloverhill development in Aberdeen, a 536-home affordable housing scheme.

A new state-of-the-art facility for outpatients has opened at Leighton Hospital in Crewe, delivered by main contractor Robertson Construction North West for Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Located near to the hospital’s Main Entrance, the two-storey modular building, which has an internal floor space of just over 1,000m2, is the new home to Audiology and Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) services. The facility features three audiology testing booths, nine consulting rooms, an ENT treatment room, and an ENT minor operations room. The creation of this new facility comes because of the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) planks within the old roof of the old outpatients department.

More than 1,000 Vitality employees are relocating to the company’s new office at 3 Stockport Exchange. Designed and delivered by workplace specialists Peldon Rose in partnership with Vitality, the bespoke 46,000 sq ft workspace has been created to promote employee health, wellbeing and support productivity. The opening completes the modernisation of Vitality’s UK workplace portfolio following new office openings in Bournemouth and London. Designed by Peldon Rose, in partnership with Vitality, all three locations have the shared ambition: to make healthier habits part of everyday working life, while establishing a consistent design language across its three UK locations.

Midlands contractor, G F Tomlinson, has successfully completed construction of the University of Nottingham’s new Hybrid Propulsion Systems Building at Jubilee Campus, marking the delivery of a landmark facility that will support the development and testing of next-generation clean propulsion technologies. Completed this spring, the facility has been designed to enable research and safe high-power testing of propulsion systems for transport and power generation, helping to advance the UK’s transition towards cleaner energy solutions. The specialist laboratory features cryogenic capabilities and environmental chambers suitable for altitude testing, enabling the safe high-power testing of propulsion systems using gaseous hybrid, ammonia and other green fuels.

Glenigan has released the July 2026 edition of its Construction Index. The Index focuses on the three months to the end of June 2026, covering all underlying projects, with a total value of £100 million or less (unless otherwise indicated), with all figures seasonally adjusted. It’s a report which provides a detailed and comprehensive analysis of year-on-year construction data, giving built environment professionals a unique insight into sector performance over the last 12 months. The July Index depicts a sector that remains stuck amid weak economic growth and geopolitical uncertainty; as one pressure releases another bears down upon it, stifling a return to growth.

Anchorage Gateway is a 29-storey landmark tower positioned at the main entrance to Greater Manchester’s MediaCityUK. Offering 290 residential apartments and 6,000 sq ft of commercial space, the project occupies a remarkably tight footprint in an already densely built environment. With limited access routes, high public footfall and a demanding programme, Domis Construction required a mortar supply system capable of supporting a rapid build pace within minimal ground-level space. Project at a glance Location: Anchorage Gateway, Salford Quays, Greater Manchester, M50 2QH Sector: Residential housing Client: Domis Construction, Kinlan Brickwork…