Home Extension and Renovation News: June 2026

The middle of June brought more of the same hard news for the construction trade, with the latest survey confirming the deepest slump in six years, but it also surfaced two useful warnings for homeowners and a couple of brighter signals on approvals and funding. Here is what happened between roughly 4 and 18 June, and what each story means if you are planning an extension or renovation.

Nine in ten people will not call a builder when DIY goes wrong

New research from the Federation of Master Builders found that almost nine in ten people would not call a professional builder even after a DIY job has gone wrong, which the FMB warns can stack up higher costs and safety risks as problems get papered over rather than fixed. The cheap fix often is not: a botched waste pipe or a wall opening done without a beam can cost far more to put right than to do properly first time, and it can sink a future sale during survey. If your project touches structure, drainage or electrics, that is the point to bring in a tradesperson and a building control sign-off rather than press on. Our guide to building control sign-off on an extension explains what gets inspected and when. Source: FMB.

Construction downturn hits a six-year low and the FMB confirms a shrinking forecast

The S&P Global UK Construction PMI published on 4 June showed activity contracting for the seventeenth month running at the fastest pace in six years, with residential building the weakest category of all. The FMB has since said small builders’ fears are confirmed, pointing to a forecast that the sector will shrink around 2.5% this year as costs stay high. For a homeowner this is the same double-edged story as last month: builders short of work will quote keenly and start sooner, so it is a buyer’s market for booking a job, but hold the materials line in writing because input prices have not eased. Our extension cost calculator is a sensible first pass before you commit. Source: Construction News.

Building safety Gateway 2 approvals are finally speeding up

The Building Safety Regulator reported that it made 358 Gateway 2 decisions in the 12 weeks to 30 May with a 75% approval rate, and that newer applications are now clearing faster than the backlog of older 2024 cases. This matters mostly for flats and higher-risk buildings rather than a typical house extension, but if you own a leasehold flat in a taller block and are waiting on remediation or alteration work, the logjam that has stalled projects for two years is starting to loosen. It does not change building control for ordinary domestic work, which still runs through your local authority or an approved inspector. Source: Building.

London opens a £1.5bn fund and a new development arm for housing

The Mayor of London launched a development arm and a £1.5bn City Hall Developer Investment Fund, offering very-low-interest loans to housing associations and setting out plans for more than 36,000 homes around the Royal Docks. This is large-scale housebuilding rather than home improvement, so it will not touch your extension directly, but a steadier pipeline of work helps keep regional trades busy and supply chains moving, which over time feeds into builder availability and pricing for smaller jobs. Source: Construction News.

Rogue-builder losses keep the licensing debate alive

Fresh FMB research put the cost of poor-quality or abandoned building work in the South West alone at almost £500m over five years, with roughly one in twelve households affected, as the trade body renewed its call for mandatory licensing of building firms. Until any scheme exists, the protection is the homeowner’s own due diligence: see a finished job in person, speak to a past client, confirm insurance, and sign a written contract with staged payments tied to milestones rather than handing over a large deposit. If you are unsure which approvals your job needs, our explainer on building regulations versus planning permission is a good starting point. Source: Build News.