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London stands out as easily the strongest market in the country for contractors on the lookout for new orders in 2024.

The January 2024 issue of the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Construction Review shows that London saw a 29% increase in the value of project starts in the fourth quarter compared to the previous three months even if they have yet to match the level of a year earlier.

A series of large private apartment and Build-to-Rent projects around the city and the capital’s busy office construction and hotel & leisure sectors are buoying up private building activity.

New private housing emerges as the star performer in the capital. London accounted for over a fifth of all residential projects started in the country in the fourth quarter with work getting underway worth £2.2 billion, up 18% on a year previously.

The outlook for work on housing projects in the capital is also looking healthy. London accounted for 22% of all detailed planning approvals in the housing sector nationally in the fourth quarter, worth £4.1 billion in total.

Build-to-Rent projects drive activity

¹û¶³Ó°Ôº data highlights numerous major Build-to-Rent projects that are driving new private residential activity across the city. For example, detailed plans have been granted and work is due to start early this summer on the £180 million Stratford Centre & Yards Development involving 439 BtR flats along with hotel and office space (Project ID: 13073746).

Meanwhile, in West London, detailed plans have been granted on a £24.75 million BtR scheme at Atlas Wharf in Ealing (pictured) involving 457 flats and commercial space with work set to start later this summer (Project ID: 21393739).

The momentum behind the upturn in London office construction – both new build and renovation – is also being maintained. The ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Review shows that the value of office detailed planning approvals in the capital tripled in the fourth quarter – to £1.95 billion – compared to a year earlier and accounted for more than half of consents in the sector nationally.

Major schemes given the green light include Land Securities’ £500 million development at 55 Old Broad Street in the City where work is set to start in spring next year (Project ID: 23179273).

Promising R&D conversions

The conversion of London offices into research and development space for the life sciences sector is also a promising source of new contracts. Last month Oxford Properties Group appointed Wates as the main contractor on central London’s largest office-to-life sciences project; the conversion of the Grade-II listed Victoria House in Bloomsbury into a 300,000 sq ft, life sciences hub. Work is underway with the main phase due for completion this autumn (Project ID: 23075876).

The capital’s vibrant hotel and leisure sector – which accounted for almost a third of all planning approvals in the sector in the fourth quarter – is also set to create opportunities for contractors.

The work pipeline in the sector has received a recent boost with planning approval for the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s £200 million Wimbledon Park project where work is set to start early this year (Project ID: 18435678).

One hotel scheme in the City of London that received planning permission before Christmas is the £31 million Boundary House Hotel Development. It involves a 311-bed facility in a 14-storey building and work is set to start this spring and run for 19 months (Project ID: 21463050).

Meanwhile, the new work pipeline on hotels in the capital has been bolstered by a huge £450 million development at 380 Kensington High Street where detailed plans have been granted to extend and renovate the Hilton London Olympia. Work on the 25,632 sq m scheme is due to start in autumn this year and run for 31 months (Project ID: 23137089).

For full analysis of Q4 performance download the January 2024 ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Construction Review now.