🏗️ Massive Regeneration Launch

Thursday 20th August 2020

Brent Cross Town Starts—A Double-Edged Sword for North London Builders

In August 2020, the Brent Cross Town development (Barnet) officially broke ground, immediately opening up 50 acres of park space. This £8 billion project is set to deliver 6,700 new homes and huge commercial space, and it has profoundly impacted North London's construction ecosystem.

On the one hand, this level of investment is fantastic for the local economy and signals long-term stability in the North West. On the other hand, a massive project like this creates an enormous magnet for resources. It immediately intensified the labour shortage (Headline 3 in our previous analysis), pulling skilled bricklayers, groundworkers, and engineers away from smaller, private residential RMI (Refurbishment, Maintenance, and Improvement) projects across areas like Hampstead, Highgate, and Muswell Hill. We’ve had to work harder and smarter to retain our trusted subcontractors against the high wages major developers can offer. It’s a stark reminder that we are all competing for the same limited pool of talent.

Robbins Construction Ltd Opinion: The sheer scale of these projects validates North London as a major growth area, but the government and local authorities must ensure that the training pipelines (apprenticeships) are fast-tracked to prevent these megaprojects from starving smaller, community-focused builders of the necessary skilled workforce.