Private new housebuilding activity fell by 5.1% in March compared with the previous month, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

However, the ONS said that the relatively smaller public housing sector witnessed growth of 8.6% over the same period.

The fall in private housebuilding new work piled on the pressure for the housebuilding sector, which fell overall by 1.8% in March, while a 4.2% dip in infrastructure and a near 3% decrease in public other new work were also factors.