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Housing completions fell by nearly a fitfh to 14,000 in the year to June with Barratt warning that this year’s level of completions will be even lower at 13,000 to 13,500.

Along with a 4% fall in sale prices revenue fell 22% to £4.2bn.

During the year, Barratt adjusted site-based construction activity to lower reservations, with an average of 257 equivalent homes constructed each week, 20% below the 322 average weekly equivalent in the prior year.

Headcount at the business has fallen by 12% since the recruitment freeze introduced in September 2022.

The expected cost of delivering essential building safety work on finished developments also rose again as the firm continued to take stock of its assets.

Around half of Barratt’s portfolio under review has been assessed under the Fire Risk Assessment of External Walls with 26 more buildings found to need remedial works.

Barratt said it was pressing ahead with remedial work as quickly as possible. Of the 262 buildings now under review at year end, 137 were in progress at tender, site mobilisation or remediation stage.

The additional works raised provisions for fire safety and external wall systems by £126m to a total £628m.

Separate problems with concrete frame design at a further two developments in addition to its large Citiscape flats scheme also increased provisions for reinforced concrete frames by £56m to £102m.

David Thomas, chief executive of Barratt, said: “Building safety considerations are paramount in prioritising and scheduling remediation works. Our dedicated Building Safety Unit manages our ongoing building safety remediation programme, which we expect to deliver over the next five years.”

On the wider group performance over the year, he said: “We are pleased to have delivered total home completions at the upper end of our expectations for the year, despite the challenging backdrop.

“Although the macro backdrop remains challenging, particularly demand sensitivity to current mortgage pricing and a lack of higher loan to value mortgage availability we have a strong balance sheet with significant net cash and a solid forward sales position, which allows us to enter FY25 with confidence.”

“Given the subdued but more stable market backdrop and the growing number of land opportunities available we expect to increase our land approvals significantly in FY25 whilst maintaining our rigorous land investment requirements.”

The proposals will deliver 350 new homes across four blocks built on the former car park of the north London station.

Transport for London is required to seek the consent of the Secretary of State for the disposal of land used for its operational purposes. TfL first requested permission in 2021 to sell the land currently used for car parking by the station, but this was denied by the then Secretary of State.

Work will now progress to ensure that the development can begin in the coming years, including updating the designs in response to the latest fire safety requirements and liaising with the local council planning authority on any changes needed.

Places for London, TfL’s property company, is working on multiple projects across London and the proposals at Cockfosters will contribute towards its target of starting construction of 20,000 homes, including 50 per cent affordable housing, by 2031.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said: “After the previous government refused to approve the plans, I’m delighted that the new government has given us the green light to progress exciting plans for new homes at Cockfosters station.

“Building homes right next to public transport connections is a key part of our plans to deliver the high-quality homes Londoners need.”

Graeme Craig, Director and Chief Executive of Places for London, said: “We are delighted that we are now able to make progress with our plans at Cockfosters now that we have the green light to release the land. We look forward to working across the capital with the Government and the Mayor as we progress the plans to deliver the homes that London urgently needs.”

The 1,360-home Millwall outer dock waterfront plan will see the comprehensive redevelopment of the 6.15 hectare brownfield site, formerly occupied by his Northern & Shell publishing company’s Westferry Printworks.

Latest plans for the mixed-development have been scaled down slightly while around a third of the homes will now be affordable.

Thirteen buildings ranging from 4 to 31 storeys will be constructed in four phases over a total eight-year building programme.

The scheme also includes a 1,200-place secondary school, a rejuvenated dock front, over 2 hectares of public open space together with ground-floor shops, restaurants, community centre and workspaces.

The approval comes nine years after the controversial redevelopment was first submitted for planning to the Borough of Tower Hamlets.

The council previously turned down two planning applications for the site, with the latter submission called in by Government.

Then former housing secretary Robert Jenrick decided to give consent, overruling the Government’s own planning inspector’s decision to reject the scheme.

It was later revealed that Northern & Shell had donated £12,000 to the Tory Party two weeks after Jenrick gave the plans the green light.

The Conservative government later quashed this decision, stating that the plans would have caused harm to the surrounding area.

The professional team includes Mace as development manager, designs by architect PLP and MEP engineer Aecom with WSP acting as civil and structural engineer.

The 180-acre Brent Cross Town site is an £8bn mixed-use development in north London being delivered by Related Argent and Barnet Council which, when complete, will comprise 6,700 new homes, workspace for 25,000 people, schools, a high street, leisure spaces and over 50 acres of parks and playing fields.

The £275m student accommodation scheme will deliver 650 student beds with a planning application set to be submitted by the end of this year.

It will include expansive study areas, a digital competitive gaming zone where residents can play virtual sports including football, padel and tennis, as well as a health kitchen that includes a zero-waste shop, private dining, a yoga studio, a herb garden and relaxation pods.

It will be the seventh development on which Fusion and Cheyne have partnered and their second in Brent Cross Town.

Julian Evans, Land and Planning Director at Fusion Group, said: “Brent Cross Town is London’s most exciting new neighbourhood.

“As we continue our community engagement to ensure we can best contribute to the vibrancy of this neighbourhood, we’ll bring our decades of experience of developing residential assets in urban regenerations across the country to deliver another best-in-class student scheme as part of the town.”

Hamish Gordon of Cheyne Real Estate, added: “The student housing market continues to be driven by considerable demand, with a growing need for high-quality and well-located developments across the UK and particularly in London.”

Confirmation of Fusion’s second development continues the significant progress being made at Brent Cross Town, where seven buildings are under construction with the first residents moving into the town later this year.

The first office building, 3 Copper Square, is underway and will be completed in 2026. In total, over 930 homes, including affordable, market sale, and rental homes are on-site, alongside the first 662 student rooms in partnership with Fusion and Cheyne.

The first permanent public park, Claremont Park, opened in June 2022 and Brent Cross West mainline station, which opened in December 2023, connects with St Pancras International in as little as 12 minutes.

Brent Cross Town already boasts a selection of local retail and leisure offerings, and Sheffield Hallam University will open its first campus outside Sheffield at Brent Cross Town.

Both sides have been in discussions since May with an opening £650m offer rejected by Crest Nicholson.

But Crest Nicholson directors indicated last month they “were minded to recommend”an improved £720m offer.

But Bellway suddenly announced on Tuesday that “it does not intend to make a firm offer for Crest Nicholson.”

The brief Stock Exchange announcement added: “As noted in its trading update released on 9 August 2024, Bellway remains confident that its robust balance sheet and operational strength, combined with the depth and quality of its land bank, will enable Bellway to deliver volume growth in the years ahead and support ongoing value creation for shareholders.”

Crest Nicholson said: “The Board of Crest Nicholson had engaged with Bellway in relation to a possible all-share offer for Crest Nicholson in response to a series of unsolicited proposals from Bellway.

“As outlined in its half year results on 13 June 2024 for the period ended 30 April 2024, Crest Nicholson remains confident in its standalone prospects, in particular given conclusion of the review of provisions for completed development sites supported by external consultants, its highly attractive land portfolio and the new leadership of Martyn Clark.”

The London Borough of Bromley agreed the plan, which will see a 24 storey tower built containing build to rent homes for local people.

It is the first time that the John Lewis Partnership department store company has gone into residential housing development, as it seeks to diversify away from its traditional shops and retail business.

Plans also feature new public green spaces, a cafe and amenity spaces for local community groups.

The site sits next to Bromley South Rail Station in the town centre and at the intersection of major roads.

Investment firm abrdn is working with John Lewis in a £500m joint venture to deliver around 1,000 new homes across three local communities, including the Bromley project.

James Dunne, head of operational real estate at investor abrdn, said: “Well designed and professionally managed rental homes are a vital component in helping to solve the UK’s housing needs.

“Build-to-rent on brownfield sites such as this can also act as an anchor for town centre regeneration and wider community investment. We look forward to continuing working closely with JLP to move forward with our strategy.”

The move swells Unite Students’ London development pipeline which now totals 3,200 beds for delivery over the next five years at a cost of over £800m.

Unite said it would start demolition shortly to advance the latest Borough High Street scheme in Southwark, known as King’s Place.

Thye site was formerly owned by Southwark Homes which brought in Sellar as development manager a year ago to advance a student accommodation project replacing earlier plans for a hotel and flats at the Harper Road and Borough High Street site.

Architect Morris and Co has designed the replacement scheme, which will be spread over an H-shaped footprint building rising from 5 to 11 storeys.

The project will include 308 studio flats and 136 en-suite rooms in cluster flats for students, eight key worker residential apartments and a further 18,000 sq ft of workspace accommodation.

Building will rise to 11 storeys

Under the fast-track development plan the project will be ready for occupation in the 2027/28 academic year.

Tom Brewerton, Group Development Director at Unite Students, said: “We are delighted with the acquisition of Kings Place; a high-quality development in a central London location close to a range of London’s leading universities and Borough Underground Station.

“Unite Students is leading the purpose-built student accommodation sector and this new acquisition is an exciting development. The site benefits from full planning permission so allows us to start demolition soon.”

The project will be located on a one-acre site fronting Newington Causeway and Borough High Street.

Building work now is expected to begin at the end of this year to welcome the first students at the start of the academic year 2027/28.

Regal’s in-house construction arm Regal Construction will manage the  programme to construct two buildings rising to 20 and 22 storeys on railway land parallel to Wembley High Road.

The Wembley Greenaway student scheme is being backed by Cheyne Capital and has been designed by architect JTP, with Wallace Whittle providing M&E design.

The two buildings will be linked by a single storey podium

The project will be targeting BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and an EPC rating of A and will seek to be among the first purpose-built student accommodation projects in the UK to be WELL Platinum Certified.

Hamish Gordon of Cheyne Real Estate said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Regal again for one of the largest PBSA developments in London.

“The development will provide an elevated living experience to students within a short distance of London’s leading universities.”

Marc Eden of Regal added: “We pride ourselves on our long-term partnerships, and to be working with Cheyne on our sixth collaboration is a fantastic milestone.”

Its landmark New Belvedere scheme has been designed by architect PRP and will create a new community in the London Borough of Bexley.

The New Belvedere project will feature a variety of housing types across a cluster of around 20 blocks ranging from 2-8 storeys.

The scheme includes a mix of affordable and family-sized homes, with private amenities for each residence and secure communal gardens.

New Belvedere will kick start the regeneration of an under-utilised industrial site to deliver new homes and a new community hub for Bexley

Additionally, the development will deliver over one hectare of new green open space, a public square with over 500 sq m for commercial or community use, and upgraded pedestrian links to Belvedere Station and throughout the neighbourhood.

Laurence Quail, managing director at Aitch Group said: “We are delighted to have secured outline planning consent for the New Belvedere project, which underscores our commitment to delivering transformative developments that resonate with the needs and aspirations of local communities.

“This project represents a significant opportunity to revitalise the area, providing much-needed housing, community facilities, and economic stimulus.”

The extra costs include £130m for further work to “developments previously identified as potentially requiring remediation work, which have been previously disclosed. ”

Barratt conducted a review of completed reinforced concrete frame buildings after design defects were discovered at its Citiscape project in Croydon, south London.

It said the work “relates to the remediation of two developments in London.”

A further £62m was also set aside for extra fire safety work in relation to the Government’s Building Safety Fund.

The latest provisions were revealed in a trading update for the year ended 30 June 2024.

Barratt is currently waiting approval from the CMA for its merger with Redrow which has cost £23m to organise.

Total housing completions during the year dipped to 14,004 from 17,206.

Build cost inflation was running at 5% during the year but Barratt expects that to drop with costs flat this year.

David Thomas, Chief Executive, said: “During another year of economic and political uncertainty, we have delivered a strong operational performance, reflecting the exceptional work of our employees, subcontractors and suppliers, and their commitment to delivering high quality homes that people want to live in.

“Whilst we continue to navigate a challenging macroeconomic backdrop, we are delivering industry leading build quality, sustainability and customer service. Combined with the strength of our balance sheet, this has ensured we remain resilient and responsive through the cycle.

“Looking ahead, we are pleased that the proposed combination with Redrow was strongly supported by both sets of shareholders in the Spring and, subject to the CMA’s approval, we look forward to bringing together two businesses to create an exceptional UK housebuilder ensuring we are well-positioned for the future.”