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Best of 2025: Our biggest stories about construction projects, people and issues
Here is a reminder of some of the features that stood out for our readers
What the latest documents tell us about the government’s progress on building safety
A flurry of progress reports, consultation documents, reviews and statements were put out by the government last week. Building unpacks what has been achieved in responding to the Grenfell Inquiry’s recommendations and what is to come
Will there be an exodus from the ARB register next month after Chris Williamson’s decision not to renew?
The RIBA president’s decision to abandon his architect title in a statement against the ‘absurdity’ of the registration system has heightened debate around what the term really means, and how regulatory oversight of the architectural profession can be reformed
Could York Central be the model that solves the housing viability problem?
Work has started preparing ground for York Central, a 45-hectare development next to York station that will deliver up to 3,000 homes and 1.4m sq ft of commercial space through a public-private partnership
Top 150 Contractors & Housebuilders 2025: Delving into the detail
Beneath the headline rankings of the top 150 contracting and housebuilding firms in the sector, there are more complex stories to tell based on turnover, profit and margins. Here Carl Brown unpacks the figures in more detail
Top 50 Housebuilders: searching for signs of hope
With hopes of a rapid return to growth dashed, which firms have managed to navigate choppy waters successfully? And do the seas look calmer ahead?
Top 150 Contractors & Housebuilders 2025: Can we please get on and build?
Jobs are still being stalled by planning red tape, legislation and funding issues. A ho-hum Budget hasn’t helped contractors’ mood either but at least some are trying to look on the bright side, writes Dave Rogers, ahead of Building’s Top 150 Contractors & Housebuilders list released tomorrow.
Frank Gehry: from LA experimentalist to the architect of the Bilbao effect
Ben Flatman examines how Gehry’s work evolved from local, materially driven invention into one of the most recognisable architectural vocabularies of his generation
Sustainability: Decarbonising schools across the four UK nations
Governments are targeting individual sustainability and decarbonisation goals for schools across the UK, driving innovative approaches to building and retrofitting
Dulwich College by alma-nac: a new lower school library and the refurbishment of its emblematic Charles Barry block
Designed to LETI Net Zero Carbon standards, the Raymond Chandler Library is refining its energy performance after a year in use, while the team also restores the school’s central Charles Barry building, Sarah Simpkin reports
‘They’re a demanding group of people’… Keeping the scientists happy at the University of Cambridge’s new Ray Dolby Centre
Architects Jestico + Whiles were challenged to make the Cavendish Laboratory’s science accessible to the public while meeting the demands of its top researchers. Daniel Gayne visited to see how they did it
Oxford opens its doors… The Stephen A Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, by Hopkins Architects
Ben Flatman explores how Hopkins Architects’ Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities embodies a shift in Oxford’s academic culture
Backstage at The Old Vic: New extension offers contemporary counterpoint to a Georgian icon
Within a slender 10m slot on Waterloo Road, Haworth Tompkins has delivered a £13.7m extension that redefines The Old Vic theatre’s relationship with its city, Josh Fenton writes
Is the Building Safety Regulator’s plan to tackle the backlog likely to succeed?
With construction of tens of thousands of homes held up waiting for approval by the new regulator for high rise homes, Joey Gardiner assesses whether the plan by its new management will turn things around
Open Doors: Construction students visit Willmott Dixon’s canalside university development
Building was invited to attend Build UK’s Open Doors Preview event aimed at inspiring younger generations to pursue a career in construction by showcasing the progress being made at Queen Mary University of London’s East End campus
‘We’ll get our fair share…’ The Wates pair hatching a plan to create a £250m fit-out business
Lee Phillips and Steff Battle on picking up the pieces after ISG’s fall and why the new business can disrupt the industry in the right way. They speak to Dave Rogers
Designed to change the world: Inside Oxford University’s new £200m Life and Mind Building
This research facility brings together experimental psychology and biology departments to address challenges including climate change, mental health, food security and AI. Thomas Lane reports
Come with me to Clamart: a postcard from a Parisian regenerative development that really works
British regeneration schemes could learn a lot from the Clamart Panorama brownfield development near Paris, says Nicholas Boys Smith – above all the humility to ask people what they really like
Productivity: How digital tools are making construction projects better
As change accelerates, advancements in digital tools happen in months not years – bringing a greater need for accessible and actionable data to navigate the market. Turner & Townsend Alinea, Digital Trees, Mace and Visibuild explore the impact of digital tools on construction projects
Infrastructure update: Strategies to boost resilience in face of climate change
Keeping systems up and running will become more important as the world becomes a riskier place. What strategies are UK infrastructure owners adopting? Simon Rawlinson of Arcadis takes a look
Chris Williamson: ‘Architects are burying their heads in the sand on AI’
RIBA’s president on the threat AI poses to the architecture profession, his plans for increasing architects’ pay and his award-winning stage play
Will the expected London housebuilding package rescue the stalled development industry?
With one in six housing schemes in the capital on hold and demand at rock bottom, Joey Gardiner asks whether simply reducing expectations for affordable housing will be enough to get construction going again
‘I’ll miss it but it’s time for someone else to have a go.’ Andrew Davies gets ready to leave Kier
The FTSE 250 contractor’s chief executive on fixing the firm, stepping down and why everyone, even bosses, appreciate a thank you. He talks to Dave Rogers
‘We’ve really scaled this business to being number one in our market’: T&T’s Patricia Moore on competing at the top
Six years after her last Building interview, UK managing director talks about Turner & Townsend’s remarkable growth, its game-changing partnership with CBRE and what the future holds
Why they won: A closer look at all the Architect of the Year Awards 2025 winning entries
The winners of the Architect of the Year Awards were announced at a ceremony last night. Here is more detail about all the winning entries
There’s a major blockage in the housing pipeline – and it looks likely to get much worse
A growing number of water companies are objecting to planning applications on the basis that there is not enough local sewage treatment capacity to cope with the new homes required, Joey Gardiner reports
Too good to waste: How to recycle an old building for use on a brand new one
30 Duke Street on Piccadilly features reclaimed steel, recycled glass, aluminium window frames and Portland stone from the building there before. Thomas Lane went along to have a look
Is the construction industry’s growing reliance on agency labour becoming a problem?
Recent controversies have highlighted concerns about construction’s increasing dependence on agency workers, raising questions about skills development, compliance and the sector’s fragmented labour model
Market forecast: Construction sector hangs in the balance
Global events and inflationary turmoil have heightened sensitivity to risk and created nervousness ahead of the Budget, affecting private sector decision-making. Project viability remains tight
Key takeaways from the Building the Future Conference 2025
Building’s flagship conference returned this year, bigger and better than ever, covering all things housing, infrastructure and development. From three keynotes and 10 panels, here are the main issues noted by our reporters
Making sports meanwhile uses viable: the project manager taking on the planning system to get the nation moving
Building talks to former Aecom director Andrew Link about his initiative to make it easier and more affordable for sports clubs to access vacant development sites
Labour conference 2025: Housing secretary puts style over substance while Starmer takes aim at Reform
The government’s announcement about new towns and the housing secretary’s Trump-esque stylings put housing at the heart of the agenda at Labour’s conference in Liverpool. But there was little in the way of detail to back Steve Reed’s ‘build, baby, build’ slogan
Sir Terry Farrell: the restless maverick who reshaped British urbanism
From the Comyn Ching Triangle to the MI6 building at Vauxhall Cross, Sir Terry Farrell’s projects reshaped how architects thought about the city. Ben Flatman reflects on his legacy
How the UK’s largest listed private landlord Grainger is preparing to ride the build-to-rent wave
Grainger has spent the past few years pivoting towards build-to-rent to take advantage of the burgeoning living markets sector. As the firm registers as a REIT in order to attract investment, chief executive Helen Gordon explains her strategy
40 Under 40 2025: Meet the brightest and best of construction’s next generation
Building is spotlighting 40 people under the age of 40 who seem set to change the future of construction
Procurement update: The importance of navigating frameworks
To deliver the projects funded by the spending review, supply chains and clients will have to raise their game – using frameworks to drive productivity and innovation
Could the shadow of Grenfell trigger more Ardmore-style collapses?
The 50-year-old contractor’s legacy housing business went into administration last month due to the weight of building safety issues on its books. Joey Gardiner asks whether we are likely to see other companies suffer the same fate
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5 minutes with … Andrew Kitley at Kitall
The firm’s co-founder and director on public perceptions of our industry, the importance of adaptability, his admiration for the Candy brothers and his love of martial arts
5 minutes with … Alex Macaulay at Kinland
The firm’s founder and managing director on the challenges that followed the acquisition of their first site, why it is important to keep moving and why you need to network even when you don’t want to
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