Small building firms have been kept busy with ’private’ jobs such as installing new bathrooms at homes in the island, it has been claimed.

Residents, stuck in the island because of border restrictions, have decided it was time for jobs to be done around their homes, such as extensions.

At the same time there are vacancies for various skills such as joiners, engineers and labourers.

Corelli Bentham, chief executive of the Construction Isle of Man, reported ’cautious optimism’ for the industry.

Mrs Bentham said firms employing fewer than five people appeared to have enjoyed busy order books caused in part by island folk not spending on holidays because of the restrictions caused by the pandemic.

She told Business News it seemed people were calling on small business builders for jobs such as having work done on their kitchens or fitting new bathrooms.

But she warned that there is still some uncertainty about what lies ahead next year.

Construction Isle of Man is a public-private partnership formed earlier this year carried out a survey between October 22 and October 30 based on responses from 120 construction related businesses.

The survey found that:

l22% of the respondents reported an increase in turnover in comparison to October 2019

whilst 31% of respondents reported no difference in their turnover.

l31% of business employing 31 plus people anticipate a decrease in turnover in the next six months. 41% employing five or fewer also anticipate a decrease in turnover over the same period. Indicating a consensus between the larger businesses and smaller businesses.

l40% of businesses were able to keep their current staffing levels for the next six to 12 months.

l34% of respondents had vacancies available in their business.

Mrs Bentham said: ’The latest survey appears to indicate a broad consensus that there is cautious optimism moving forward into 2021 with the caveat that the Isle of Man remains Covid free.

’The industry was initially busy following the reopening (after the lockdown) with private work, the following six months will see a return to normal construction output or a slight increase.

’It should be noted however, although the majority are currently busy, horizons are relatively short with only 40% of businesses stating that they could maintain staffing levels beyond six months at present.’

A quarter of those responded specifically mentioned difficulties with sourcing materials within their supply chain currently and moving forward into 2021, consequently this may have an impact on construction costs.

The common theme of skills shortages was also evident in the responses with vacancies for ground workers, joiners, engineers and labourers.

Skills gaps mentioned on the technical side included qualified engineers.

Consultants and larger contractors expressed concerns over delays to government capital projects with larger contractors anticipating a decrease in workload. Only 5% of respondents did not work on government contracts.

Some 84% of businesses said they had not suffered any issues with bringing key personnel to the island.

Mrs Bentham is a chartered quantity surveyor with more than 30 years’ experience working in the construction sector in the Isle of Man, UK, Hong Kong and China and was previously head of construction at University College Isle of Man (UCM).

When she was recently appointed to the role she said: ’I am thrilled to be joining Construction Isle of Man.

’Construction has always been at my heart and I am passionate about developing professionalism within the sector.

’This is a challenging new role; my emphasis will be on improving the image of construction and developing strong communication with government to make informed decisions.

’The formation of Construction Isle of Man will benefit both the industry and the general public by raising quality assurance and health and safety standards.

’All key construction trades and professions are represented on the board and we will work collaboratively for the benefit of the whole industry to give the construction industry the positive exposure it deserves.’