CONSIDERATE CONSTRUCTORS SCHEMEANNUAL SURVEY 2012

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SUMMARYThe purpose of this report is to view and understand the ongoing picture of attitudes towards the construction industry, by the general public and members of the industry itself – contractors and clients.

METHODOLOGYA survey was sent out to Building subscribers. In addition, two thousand members of the general public were contacted and asked eight questions regarding their opinion of the construction industry and the Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS).

OVERVIEW OF THE INDUSTRYThe construction industry went through a tough year in 2011. The data and analysis in this report reflects an industry struggling in the context of the wider economy.

The coalition’s Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) in October 2010 announced £83bn of public sector cuts and in March 2011 chancellor George Osborne announced in his Budget that capital funding would drop 22% over the

next three years. In January of this year the Construction Products Association revised down its predictions for public and private construction output for this year. Its forecast is now for output to fall 5.2% in 2012, remain flat in 2013 and return to growth in 2014. In November it had predicted a 3.6% fall in 2012. Output was forecast to be: ➜ £100bn in 2012 ➜ £101bn in 2013 ➜ £105bn in 2014

According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the volume of construction output fell by 1.1% (-£295m) in the third quarter of 2011 compared with the same period in 2010, reflecting not only the decline in public work but also a fall in commercial orders. New work also fell by 1.8% (-£340m) 1.

This climate is reflected in the survey results. The respondents indicate that less available work has meant firms have scaled back their operations and cut jobs. This has left the smaller number of employees who remain with a bigger workload, potentially affecting the quality of the work and the way the industry is viewed.

1 source: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/construction/output-in-the-construction-industry/october-2011/index.html

Construction sector output is set to fall 5.2% in 2012, remain flat in 2013 and return to growth in 2014

INTRODUCTION

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Clients’ reasons in the Building survey for negative views of the industry included:➜ Health and safety – this was mainly

directed at smaller sites➜ Lack of consistency. Comments

included: “a lack of consistency in procurement, delivery and quality” and “being in the industry for over 30 years […] there is little consistency in any form of audits and checking”

➜ Corruption. One respondent noted: “Cut throat industry, constant conflict. Lack of trust between main contractor and sub contractors”.

➜ Compromising quality vs cost➜ Poor quality, workmanship and lack of

planning➜ Lack of training/education➜ Cowboy builders➜ Lack of professionalism/management

skills➜ Site presentation including “poorly

controlled sites” and “access to sites” as well as “untidy sites”.

Despite the positive view of the industry, the preceding comments may explain why 50% of the Building survey respondents answered “not very confident” when asked their views on the prospects for the construction industry in 2012 (see figure 4).

VIEW OF CCS When asked how satisfied they were that the CCS contributes to a better image of construction, the average score of CCS survey respondents was 7.8 out of 10, up from 7.7 in 2010, with 73% of clients stating that they felt their contractors had improved as a result of the CCS.

RESPONDENTSThe respondents were broken down further into contractor and client company type (see figures 1-3). The majority of contractors described themselves as “general contractors”. The majority of clients responding to the survey described themselves as “other type of client”.

VIEW OF THE INDUSTRYThe view of the construction industry from the point of view of those who work within it was mainly positive – with an average score from contractors and clients of 6.7 out of 10 (where 10 is a very positive impression of the construction industry).

The main reasons for any negative view of the industry stated by contractors in the Building survey included:➜ Health and safety. One respondent

said: “Unfortunately we do still have a [bad] profile in general due to the persistent number of fatal and disabling accidents in the UK, regardless of the probably justified claims of improvement”. Others noted a “cavalier attitude to health and safety” and “no national standard on safety, either belt and braces or absolutely nothing.”

➜ Economic climate ➜ Lack of trust in the supply chain –

client/contractor and contractor/subcontractor

➜ Cost cutting and undercutting➜ Lack of progression in the industry –

lack of monitoring, investment, new products, technology.

BUILDING SURVEY

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FIGURE 1 - Respondent type

Client24%

Contractors76%

RESPONDENT SPLIT

Specialist contractor / other type of contractor

Private sector client

General construction company

Public sector client23%

19%

56%

33%

Civil engineering

Repair and maintenance company

Housebuilder

Other type of client8%

5%

9%

48%

CONTRACTOR TYPE CLIENT TYPE

FIGURES 2-3 - Company type

The view of the industry from the point of view of those who work within it was mainly positive

FIG

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13% 13%12% 50% 49%54% 31% 31%29% 6% 6%5% 1% 1%

60%

Very worried Not very confident Quietly confident Confident Very confident

40%

20%

50%

30%

10%

0%0%

Clients

Contractors

Total

How confident are you with regard to the prospects for the construction industry in 2012?

BENEFITS OF THE SCHEMEWhen asked if the industry benefits from the Considerate Constructors Scheme, contractors gave an average score of 6.3 out of 10 (Building survey) and 7.7 (CCS survey) and clients gave an average score of 6.7 (Building survey) and 7.7 (CCS survey) [see figure 5].

In terms of site management contractors and clients said that the Scheme is beneficial, scoring an average of 7.6 and 8 respectively, where 10 means “benefits greatly”. This is a score that has risen steadily since 2008, reflecting the above perceived benefit for the client [see figure 6].

When asked if they would recommend the Scheme to others only 4% of contractors and 3% of clients answered “no”, with 67% of contractors and 68% of clients ticking “strongly recommend”. This is an increase on the last four years for contractors and for clients is an increase on 2009 but the same as 2010 [see figures 7 and 8].

FIG

UR

E 5

7.2 7.5 7.2 7.2 7.3 7.3 7.7 7.7

10

2008 2009 2010 2011

6

3

4

7

8

9

5

1

2

0

ClientsContractors

To what extent do you feel the industry benefits from the Considerate Constructors Scheme? (please rate on a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is of no benefit and 10 is of considerable benefit)

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GENERALPUBLIC SURVEY

FIG

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67% 29% 68% 29%3%

59% 38%3%

68% 29%3%

80%

2008 2009 2010 2011

60%

30%

40%

70%

50%

10%

20%

0

NoPossiblyStrongly recommend

3%

FIG

UR

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57% 38% 5% 62% 34%4%

58% 38%4%

67% 29%4%

80%

2008 2009 2010 2011

60%

30%

40%

70%

50%

10%

20%

0

NoPossiblyStrongly recommend

Would you recommend registering with the Scheme to others? - Contractor responses

Would you recommend registering with the Scheme to others? - Client responses

FIG

UR

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7.0 7.4 7.4 7.6 7.4 7.8 7.6 8.0

10

2008 2009 2010 2011

6

3

4

7

8

9

5

1

2

0

ClientsContractors

To what extent does the Scheme benefit the way in which sites are managed? (please rate on a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is of no benefit and 10 is of benefits greatly)

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RespondentsThe General Public Survey is a representative view of the general public, rather than the industry-focused survey detailed separately.

Respondents to the General Public Survey were predominantly employed (63%) and ABC1 (55%). The highest number of respondents came from the North of England (25%) and 52% of respondents were women.

VIEW OF THE INDUSTRYThe general public’s view of the industry is less positive than that of those who work within the industry, with an average score of 5.3 out of 10. This is quite a dramatic drop from 2010, when the average score was 6.2, and still below the previous two years of 5.5 in 2008 and 2009.

The most negative scoring came from older respondents, with retired respondents and those over 55 scoring an average of 5 out of 10 each. The highest average score came from the 18-24 age group, however they scored less than a point higher, with 5.8.

The main reasons for this view of the industry include:➜ Too much building➜ Poor quality of new builds: “New build

houses are not built to the same standards as older homes; construction companies are cutting corners to make money.”

➜ Cowboy builders and horror stories of cowboy builders (this can also be linked to the results from the Building survey which say that bad press – and a lack of positive promotion in the press – contribute to the negative view of the construction industry). One respondent summed it up: “I have had some good experiences with builders but have read and heard of cowboys”.

➜ The economy – either land is left undeveloped or people they know in the industry are unemployed

➜ The industry/building is not sustainable➜ Lots of “don’t know” replies with low

scores. This corresponds with the Building survey results, which showed that people within the industry feel the general public has a negative view of the industry. One respondent said: “Overall there appears to be no body which standardizes plumbing, electrics and general building. As it is no one knows whether tradesmen are genuine or rogue traders.”

Positive views included:➜ Hard working➜ Honest➜ “Do a dangerous job well”

Roadworks were voted the most inconvenient form of construction, affecting 61% of respondents

deemed the most annoying aspect of the construction industry by 39% of respondents, up from 34% in 2010. Noise was the next most annoying aspect for 28% of respondents, up from 23% in 2010. Construction vehicles and cars parked around sites scored highest in 2009 with 39% but this has now dropped to just 25% for 2011 [see figure B].

Compiled by Jessica Baron

FIG

UR

E A

7.2 7.0 7.0 6.5

10

2008 2009 2010 2011

6

3

4

7

8

9

5

1

2

0

How inconvenienced, if at all, have you been by construction activity generally in the last 12 months? (please rate on a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is “I have been extremely inconvenienced” and 10 is “not inconvenienced at all:)

INCONVENIENCEFor this question, a score of 1 indicates “extremely inconvenienced” and 10 indicates “not inconvenienced at all”.

This year’s survey had the lowest average score for inconvenience caused to the general public (6.5), a score which has been on a steady decline since 2008 (7.2) [see figure A].

The area that experienced the most inconvenience was London, where the average score was 5.7 and the age range that gave the lowest scores was 18-24 (6).

Roadworks were voted the most inconvenient form of construction, affecting 61% of respondents, however this is down from 73% in 2010, 70% in 2009 and 63% in 2008. The next highest scoring inconvenience was “none of these”, which scored 25%, significantly up from 15% in 2009 and 2010 and 20% in 2008. This suggests a general impression of being inconvenienced by the construction industry, possibly caused by general noise and industry presence.

Delays caused by site traffic were

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50%

35%

20%

45%

30%

15%

40%

25%

10%5%

Delays caused by site traffic

Noise

Construction vehicles and cars

parked around sites

Mud and dust around sites

Poor pedestrian routes around sites

Lack of concern for the environment

Unsocial behaviours of builders

Unsocial work hours

Damage to property

Safety in or around the site

Site lighting

Don’t know

Other

Not applicable - nothing annoys me about the

construction industry

0%

39%

34%

37%

35%

28%

23%

30%

23%

25%

32%

39%

30%

24%

25%

30%28%

24%

25%

27%

23%

11%

12%

19%

15%

11%

7%

7%

6%

7%

7%

8%

7%

4%

6%

8%

9%

17%

17%

12%

16%

5%

4%

3%

4%

5%

1%

1%

2%

2%

2%

3%

2%

5%

4%

4%

2%

2008 20102009 2011

FIGURE B Which three, if any, of the following MOST annoy you about the construction industry?

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