- Have any questions?
- +44 (0) 330 133 0019
- info@constructuk.com
RIBA Future Trends Survey: Confidence Improves to a Certain Extent Across Practices of all Sizes
The RIBA has published its Future Trends Survey results for June 2026.
Architects’ outlook for future work weakened further in May, as the RIBA Workload Index fell for a third consecutive month. The fall is largely due to a decrease in the proportion of practices expecting workloads to grow, rather than a large increase in the proportion expecting workloads to contract.
This month, the RIBA workload Index stands at -9, a six-point decline from April’s -3 figure, and a 14-point decline from this year’s high of +5, in February. A negative balance figure indicates that, on balance, practices expect workloads to decrease over the next three months.
Eighteen per cent of practices anticipate an increase in workloads (against 24% last month), while 28% expect a decline. The remaining 54% expect workloads to hold steady.
Confidence has again weakened across practices of all sizes. Smaller practices have seen their outlook slip further into negative territory. Large and medium-sized practices remain optimistic about future workloads, but their outlook has again weakened.
The regional picture reflects the overall weak workload expectations, although some regions have returned to a positive outlook.
The sectoral outlook is similarly subdued, with three of the four monitored sectors expected to see declining future workloads. The commercial sector has turned negative this month, while the private housing sector has fallen further. The public sector has recovered somewhat.
May sees practices report workloads nine per cent lower than a year ago, on average.
The outlook for permanent staffing has weakened slightly as the RIBA Staffing Index posts a zero figure, suggesting that steady staff levels are expected overall.
The outlook for temporary staffing remains marginally negative.
Workload expectations by practice size
The Workload Index for small practices (those with 1 to 10 staff) fell a further three points in May, from -10 in April to -13 this month. Seventeen per cent of small practices anticipate increasing workloads in the next three months, while 28% expect workloads to contract, and 54% anticipate no change.
The outlook for large (51+ staff) and mediumsized practices (11 -50 staff) remains optimistic but has again weakened. Their combined Workload Index stands at +14 in May, down from +25 last month. Among these practices, 29% expect workloads to grow, 14% anticipate contraction, and 57% expect no change.
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 regional outlook
The regional picture is mixed this month, with some areas reporting a further decline in future workload expectations, while others see a return of confidence.
London sees its workload expectations return to positive territory, with an index of +4, up from zero last month. Wales and the West has also posted a positive balance figure this month, having recovered strongly, up from 0 in April to +18 in May.
While still negative overall, the South of England’s outlook has improved, with its balance rising to -4, up from -9 last month.
On the downside, the North of England has seen confidence deteriorate, with a workload Index falling from -4 in April to -10 in May. The Midlands and East Anglia also sees confidence down, from -1 to -21.
Workload expectations by sector
Private housing is again the weakest performing sector this month, with its outlook declining from -9 in April to -11 this month. Smaller practices remain the most pessimistic about housing, and the sector outlook is subdued across all regions.
The commercial sector has dipped into negative territory this month, with a -1 balance, compared with +2 last month. While medium and large-sized practices remain optimistic about expected workloads in the sector, smaller practices are pessimistic.
The outlook for the public sector has improved somewhat this month, up from a -4 balance in April to zero in May, suggesting steady sector workloads to come.
The outlook for the community sector remains negative and has deteriorated. This month, the sector’s Index fell by six points, down from -2 in April to -8 in May.
Commentary
The profession’s assessment of future work remains subdued, as confidence in future workload continues to wane, especially among smaller practices.
On the plus side, the outlook among medium and larger practices remains positive, and the outlook for London, the largest architectural market, has improved.
Overall, however, the construction market remains challenging and faces a succession of headwinds. Concerns around inflation, interest rates, public finances and the broader economic outlook all continue to weigh on future workloads. 2026 has been a difficult year so far, with weak overall confidence, rising energy prices, increased cost pressures, and challenging credit conditions, all coming together to constrict activity. The ONS have reported a fall in new orders of over 10% in the first quarter of 2026, when compared with Q4 2025.
This month’s commentary describes these challenging conditions. Some practices report workloads and confidence being at long-term lows, with a quiet spring bringing few new enquiries. Practices also describe projects being paused or delayed as political and economic uncertainty persists and global instability fails to retreat. May sees a market characterised as highly competitive, with intense fee pressure, rising costs, a high regulatory burden, and squeezed margins.
While commentary this month is overall negative, some practices report an improved public sector and continued demand in specialist sectors, including hospitality, and in wealthier regions. Practices also describe the importance of international markets to them.
The RIBA Workload Index has returned a negative balance for the third month in a row, as architects continue to expect workloads to decline. However, the outlook has improved somewhat.
June’s RIBA Workload Index stands at -1, an eight-point improvement from May’s -9 figure.
A negative balance figure indicates that, on balance, practices expect workloads to decrease over the next three months. Twentyfour per cent of practices anticipate an increase in workloads, while 25% expect a decline. The remaining fifty-one per cent expect workloads to remain stable.
Confidence has improved across practices of all sizes. Smaller practices remain firmly pessimistic, however. Large and medium-sized practices are increasingly optimistic about future workloads.
The regional picture remains mixed, although generally improving. Most regions have seen an improvement in outlook although London has seen a marked decline.
Three of the four monitored workload sectors have seen an improvement in confidence. The Commercial sector has returned to positive territory. The Private Housing sector continues to decline, however, posting its worst index score for over two years.
June sees practices reporting workloads eleven per cent lower than a year ago, on average.
The outlook for permanent staffing has deteriorated as the RIBA Staffing Index falls into negative territory, posting a -3 balance figure. Staffing levels are expected to fall, on balance, over the next three months.
The outlook for temporary staffing has also worsened, falling further into negative territory.
Workload Index
Workload expectations by practice size
The Workload Index for small practices (those with 1 to 10 staff) recovered somewhat this month. Small practices recorded a -10 balance figure this month, up three points from last month’s -13. Nineteen per cent of small practices anticipate increasing workloads in the next three months, while 29% expect workloads to contract, and 52% anticipate no change.
The outlook for large (51+ staff) and mediumsized practices (11 -50 staff) remains optimistic and has improved strongly. Their combined Workload Index stands at +44 in June, up from +14 last month. Among these practices, 50% expect workloads to grow, 6% anticipate contraction, and 44% expect no change.
The regional outlook
The regional picture is broadly improved this month, with most areas reporting a somewhat strengthened outlook, although the capital has seen a sharp fall into pessimism.
The South of England’s outlook returns to positive territory this month, with its balance rising to +12, up from -4 last month.
The North of England, while remaining pessimistic about future workloads, also sees an improved outlook, posting a Workload Index of -5 in June, up from -10 in May. The Midlands and East Anglia is also negative but improving, with a -6 balance figure, compared with -21 last month.
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
Wales and the West’s outlook has deteriorated from +18 in May to a zero balance figure this month, suggesting steady workloads to come.
London also sees a fall in confidence this month, dropping 17 balance points, from +4 in May to -13 this month.
Workload expectations by sector
Private housing is again the weakest performing sector, falling further from -11 in May to -16 in June, the lowest balance score since the end of 2023. Pessimism is most pronounced among smaller practices.
After dipping into negative territory last month, the commercial sector has turned positive, posting a +6 balance score this month, up from -1 last month. All regions are positive about the sector except London and the South of England.
The outlook for the public sector has held steady with a zero score in June, the same as May, suggesting consistent workload levels ahead.
The outlook for the community sector remains negative but has improved. This month, the sector’s index fell by seven points, up from -8 in May to -1 in June.
Commentary
With a -1 Workload Index, architects remain pessimistic about future workload for a third consecutive month. Smaller practices continue to have a much more pessimistic view of future work than large and medium-sized practices.
However, the month-on-month fall seen between March and May has been halted. The outlook for future work has shown early signs of improvement.
The sustained fall in confidence in the Private Housing sector is a particular concern for smaller practices, for whom the sector is the by far the most important source of commissions.
Looking more broadly, the outlook for the profession is consistent with the wider construction sector and UK economy.
The initial market turmoil brought about by the conflict in the Middle East has settled somewhat, but the prospects for growth and inflation remain fragile and uncertain. Overall, output and future expectations remain subdued, but there are some early indications of improvement. Much depends on the resolution of the currently ongoing conflict.
Commentary this month is in line with that subdued outlook. Practices describe weak levels of new enquiries and consumer confidence, delayed project progress, and some projects being put on hold.
Progression through the planning process continues to hold back practice work. Some practices report that even once planning is granted, increasing costs are threatening project viability.
The weak staffing sentiment is mirrored by commentary from practices, drawing attention to rising employment costs and the difficulty some early-career professionals now face in finding roles.
On the upside, practices draw attention to the pipelines of work from international markets and commissions from repeat clients.
