The month...

8 The ranking of the highest-placed construction firm – Mott MacDonald – in the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For big employers category. Atkins came in 13 and Mouchel 16. In the medium-sized employers list, 24 out of the 100 companies came from construction.

10 The amount, in pounds per day, subcontractor Landmark Brickwork is docking from workers’ pay for not holding CSCS cards.

76 The number of small contractors that wound up, went bankrupt or became insolvent in March, according to London Gazette, the official UK journal for corporate failures.

200 The amount, in pounds, Blackpool’s annual illuminations will cost if the council adopts plans to power them using offshore wind energy.

300 The number of sites in the refurbishment sector the HSE shut down in March because safety officials feared someone might die on one of them. See p8.

5,319 The number of people who completed apprenticeships in 2007, down from 5,454 in 2006, according to ConstructionSkills.

8,332 The number of places available on the new Construction and Built Environment (C&BE) Diploma from September 2009. This is in addition to the 4,000 places available for those starting in September this year.

1bn The cost, in pounds, of a scheme by energy giant Eon to build a new coal-fired power plant in Kent. Defra officials have urged environment secretary Hilary Benn to oppose the plan.

11bn The cost, in pounds, of the zero-carbon city about to be built in Abu Dhabi.