Barratt to open half of sites from May 11

The UK’s largest housebuilder Barratt is to begin the re-opening of half of its construction sites from May 11, the firm said today.

The announcement follows similar statements in recent days by rivals such as Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, and Bellway.

However, the date set by Barratt for return is later than its rivals, with Vistry having already re-opened sites this week, and Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon and Bellway all scheduled to start re-opening construction sites on Monday.

Barratt shut all its construction sites by March 27 following the announcement by prime minister Boris Johnson of the coronavirus lockdown on March 23.

The firm today said it had spent the interim period developing a detailed set of working practices and protocols so its construction sites can operate safely and in line with the latest government guidance.

In common with other builders also returning to sites, Barratt said it will initially prioritise the completion of homes already sold, in order that they can be handed over to customers.

David Thomas, Barratt chief executive (pictured, below, right), said the firm’s first priority was the health and safety of its employees, sub-contractors and customers.

He said: “We have created a detailed set of working practices and protocols for employees and sub-contractors to ensure that we can reopen our construction sites safely, in a phased and measured way, which minimises risk.

“In line with our commitment to put our customers first, we will be prioritising the completion of those homes that our customers have already exchanged or reserved.”

Barratt is the only housebuilder so far to have put a limit – equivalent to around 180 sites – on the number of sites it is looking to re-open in the near future. The business, which on April 16 said it had furloughed 85% of its staff, said the re-opening of sites meant a “significant proportion” of its workforce will be able to return to work during May.

The statement that it is only looking to open half of its sites in the “first phase” of its re-start programme will likely add to fears that housebuilders are unlikely to return to anywhere near full production capacity until the goverment relaxes lockdown restrictions on the house buying and selling market. Housebuilders are understood to be in talks with the government over easing housing market restrictions as soon as practical.

Barratt added that, in accordance with social distancing guidelines, it will not be re-opening sales offices or showhomes, but had done the work to ensure they could be opened safely when lockdown measures are eased. It added: “We expect reservations to continue at low levels until our sales centres and show homes reopen.”

Up until April 26, it said, it had completed sales of 11,776 homes since the start of its financial year last year, compared to 11,723 in the same period the year before.