18th December 2025

The RIBA has published its Future Trends Survey results for November 2025.

The November RIBA Future Workload Index stands at -3. A negative balance indicates that, overall, practices expect workloads to decrease during the next three months.

Twenty-four per cent of practices anticipate an increase in workloads, while 26% expect a decline. Fifty per cent expect workloads to remain stable.

While still negative, this month sees the Index improve by six balance points when compared to last month’s -9 figure, marking the first improvement in outlook since July.

As last month, this negative outlook is due to the downbeat workload expectations among smaller practices, contrasting with greater optimism among large and medium-sized practices.

The regional picture is generally more positive this month, with practices that work in multiple regions lifting regional outlooks. Only one area has returned a negative Workload Index this month.

The outlook among all sectors remains negative, but three of the four monitored sectors have seen an improvement in outlook.

Current workloads remain lower than a year ago. The average practice workload has decreased by 12% over the past twelve months.

The outlook for both permanent and temporary staffing levels remains positive, suggesting longer-term expectations of returning workload levels.

In November, the outlook for small practices (those with 1 to 10 staff) remains firmly negative, with a Workload Index of -9. However, this is a six-point improvement on October’s -15 figure.

Twenty-one per cent of small practices anticipate an increase in workloads in the next three months, while 30% expect a decrease, and 49% anticipate no change.

The outlook for large (51+ staff) and medium-sized practices (11 -50 staff) remains optimistic and has improved. Their combined Workload Index stood at +30 in November, up from +25 last month. Forty per cent of these practices expect workload growth, 10% anticipate contraction, and 50% expect no change.

The regional outlook has improved across the board, reflecting the positive outlook of medium and large-sized practices, which frequently work across the UK.

London’s Workload Index improved marginally this month, rising one balance point to +12. The outlook in Wales and the West sees strong improvement, with an Index balance of +20 compared with +11 last month.

The South of England has seen its outlook return to positive territory this month, as its workload Index rises from -11 last month to +7 in November. Midlands and East Anglia also recovers its optimism, increasing by a more modest four balance points, from -1 in October, to +3 this month.

The North of England is alone in returning a negative outlook, although it has recovered 17 balance points, up from -18 last month to -1 this month.

Three of the four sectors have seen an improvement in outlook, although all remain negative.

Of all sectors, the outlook for the public sector has improved the most. It remains negative, but rose from -8 last month to -4 in November.

Confidence in the private housing sector has improved somewhat, but remains negative. November sees a -9 balance, compared with -12 in October.

The Sectors section of our Directory includes our Marketing to Architects feature (sponsored by Crannull),
which looks at targeting the sector, key media channels and events, and has access to our downloadable database of 1,200+ UK practices

The Workload Index for the community sector has also improved slightly, with a balance figure of -8 in November, up from -7 in September.

Confidence in future work in the commercial sector has fallen further into negative territory this month, however, with a Workload Index figure of -9, compared with -5 last month.

This month’s RIBA Future Trends findings show an overall continuing pessimism among architects’ practices. However, the month-on-month decline seen since July has paused, with the Workload Index rising slightly this month. December’s data will indicate whether this is a temporary respite and whether the budget has improved the outlook.

Again, the overall pessimism is largely attributable to the outlook among smaller practices, which remain firmly downbeat. In contrast, medium and large practices continue to expect expanding workloads.

This month’s commentary is largely negative. Practices cite economic uncertainty, cautious clients, intense fee competition, payment delays, and increasing regulatory requirements as the main contributors to a challenging business environment.

However, a small but increasing number of practices are reporting improving fortunes, including an increased numbers of enquiries and new commissions.

Project Delays

Commentary received from practice has persistently highlighted project delays due to the HRB Gateways introduced under the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA), as well as delays in the processing of planning applications by Local Authorities, and the requirements of Biodiversity Net Gain and Nutrient Neutrality.

This month’s survey asked practices whether these causes of delays had affected them over the past three months, whether any of their projects were delayed as a result, and, if so, the length of those project delays.

Delays in the processing of planning applications by Local Authorities are the most common cause of project delays with 80% having one or more projects delayed.

25% reported one or more projects being delayed by up to a month.
39% reported projects being delayed by between one and six months.
40% reported projects delayed by six months or longer.
13% reported projects abandoned due to planning delays.

Among the 69% of practices for whom Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements are relevant, 73% experienced one or more delayed projects in the last three months as a result.

24% reported project delays of up to one month.
37% reported project delays of between one and six months.
18% reported project delays of six months or more.
7% said projects were abandoned due to BNG requirements.

Fewer practices have been working on projects for which HRB Gateway 2 needs to be passed. However, among the third of practices for whom it is relevant, half have experienced project delays, with 27% reporting project delays of 6 months or more and 6% reporting one or more abandoned projects.