Construction output in Great Britain fell 0.2% in August 2026, its fourth consecutive monthly decline, as private housebuilding weakened, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported on October 15. Output fell 1.0% in the three months to August, the second consecutive decrease in the three-month series.

The August decline came entirely from new work, which fell 0.7%, while repair and maintenance grew 0.4%, the ONS said. Private new housing was the main contributor to the drop in new work, falling 1.9% in the month.

The three-month picture

Over the three months to August, new work fell 1.4% and repair and maintenance fell 0.3%. Five of the nine construction sectors the ONS tracks declined, with private new housing the main negative contributor after a 3.2% fall.

In its monthly GDP estimate, published the same day, the ONS said non-housing repair and maintenance was the largest negative contributor within repair and maintenance, falling 1.9% over the three months. Compared with the same three months a year earlier, construction output was 1.6% lower.

Earlier months revised down

The release also revised recent months lower. July 2026 is now estimated as a 0.5% decrease, revised from a first estimate of 0.1% growth, and June 2026 is now a 0.3% decrease, revised from a 0.1% decrease. The ONS said the July revision was the result of new returns from several construction firms replacing previously imputed values.

All periods were revised in this release. The ONS updated the base year to 2024, re-estimated seasonal adjustment factors as part of its annual review and took in revised nominal data, including survey data, and revised inputs to its output price indices. Revisions up to June 2026 are consistent with the quarterly national accounts for April to June published on September 30.

The ONS also corrected an error in public new housing data dating from January 2022, which it said arose from incorrect data used while processing improvements for Blue Book 2025. “We apologise for this data error,” the agency wrote, adding that it has introduced further quality assurance to prevent a repeat.

Construction against the wider economy

Construction lagged the wider economy. UK monthly GDP grew 0.1% in August, following unrevised growth of 0.4% in July, with production up 0.8% and services showing no growth, according to the ONS. Over the three months to August, real GDP grew 0.7%, services output 0.9%, and production fell 0.2%, while construction fell 1.0% after a 0.2% decline in the three months to July.

On a year-over-year basis, GDP grew 1.8% in the three months to August compared with the same period a year earlier, with services up 2.2% and production up 0.8%, against construction’s 1.6% decline.

Why it matters

The figures point to new private housing as the main source of weakness in British construction. It was the largest negative contributor in both the monthly and three-month series, and the downward revisions to June and July mean the monthly series has now fallen four times in a row rather than showing the small July gain first reported.

For contractors, materials suppliers and housebuilders, the breakdown matters as much as the total. Repair and maintenance work grew in August even as new work fell, while over three months both categories contracted, with non-housing repair and maintenance down 1.9%.

The caveats

The estimates are early and subject to revision, as the changes to June and July show. The survey turnover response rate for the first August estimate was 85.4%, up from first-estimate rates of 80.0% for July and 75.7% for June, and the ONS said rates have improved compared with recent years since the pandemic. The agency has not applied a bias adjustment for survey response since May 2020 while it reviews that approach.

The ONS also notes that construction output measures the volume of work done, while GDP measures gross value added, so volume estimates in the two releases differ for 1997 to 2020; they align on a growth basis from January 2021 onward. Construction output figures cover Great Britain, while GDP figures cover the UK.

What to watch

The next construction output release, covering September, is scheduled for November 12, 2026. The ONS is also reviewing release times for market-sensitive statistics, including construction output, through a consultation that closes on October 30, 2026.