Zoopla says flat sales are taking longer, with around four in five flats not selling within six months, reflecting weaker demand and greater uncertainty in the sector. The article links this to leasehold complexity, service charges, ground rents, building safety concerns and lender caution, with the flat-house price gap now at a three-decade high.
Thorp Precast reported modest growth in turnover and pre-tax profit, supported by stronger demand for building envelopes, masonry buildings and precast cladding. The company said its forward order book is strong, with residential work still accounting for about half of turnover and regulatory delays on high-risk buildings beginning to ease.
Awaab’s Law is set to expand from 30 November, extending existing response timeframes beyond damp and mould to a wider range of hazards in social housing, including excess cold and heat, falls, structural collapse, fire and explosion, electrical hazards, and domestic hygiene. The article also highlights that the new guidance places strong emphasis on the landlord’s initial triage judgment and on addressing root causes rather than temporary fixes.
The guidance explains how planning enforcement applies where a developer is subject to the Responsible Actors Scheme (RAS) prohibitions under the Building Safety (Responsible Actors Scheme and Prohibitions) Regulations 2023. It confirms that prohibited developers may still obtain planning permission, but cannot carry out prohibited major development unless an exception applies, and local planning authorities are expected to check the published prohibited-developers list.
Bentry Capital is aiming to begin construction on the first phase of its revived Abbey Row scheme in Liverpool in Q4 2026, subject to final Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator. The project, previously stalled under earlier ownership, has been redesigned and reduced from 419 to 367 apartments, with the first phase set to deliver 241 homes.
Lindner Prater and St James have been convicted of health and safety breaches following the death of a man struck by a falling window from the Corniche residential tower in London. Wintech and Foster + Partners were cleared, and sentencing for the convicted parties is due at Inner London Crown Court in September 2026.
A domestic building firm has been fined £60,000 after a worker suffered serious injuries in a fall through an unprotected roof light during roof refurbishment in Fulham. The Health and Safety Executive found that suitable fall protection measures were not in place and that the company breached Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
Manchester City Council has approved revised plans for a build-to-rent residential scheme off Cross Quays Street, increasing the scheme from 99 homes to 104. The project, led by CERT Property and backed by Oliver Cookson, is expected to move toward a Gateway 2 submission in the coming months.
Salford City Council is proposing a citywide licensing scheme for certain Section 257 HMOs following inspections that found widespread non-compliance with expected standards. The council says the measure would improve oversight and drive compliance with building safety requirements, while landlord consultation responses were largely opposed.
The University of East Anglia has started procurement for a contractor to deliver a £76m refurbishment of the Grade II*-listed Sainsbury Centre museum in Norwich. The project, expected to run from May 2027 to May 2029, will replace the external envelope and carry out extensive MEP works to address condition issues, improve energy efficiency and reduce future maintenance liabilities.
RICS reports that UK construction workloads improved slightly in Q2 2026, but overall activity remained negative for a fifth consecutive quarter. Infrastructure was the strongest area, while private housing remained the weakest, with respondents still citing regulatory barriers, Building Safety Regulator issues, labour shortages and material cost pressures.
Torus has applied to Liverpool City Council to amend the permitted opening hours for six vacant commercial units at its Hartley Docks scheme in Liverpool. The change is intended to make the space more attractive to prospective tenants, with supporting acoustic testing indicating the longer hours should not cause material harm to nearby residential amenity.
