Looking forward into the future is a mug’s game: Peter Drucker compared it to “trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window”.

But Martyn Jones maintains that despite the challenge we need to at least make a fist of trying to answer the question: What does the future hold?

And one doesn’t need to be a renowned management guru to predict two of our shapers in 2026: The embedding of the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) in our operating system, and the greater use of AI.

The BSR first. Their mission is to bring rigour, consistency, and accountability to construction, and few would dispute the need for that.

We will increasingly come to terms with the realisation that building safety is non-negotiable, with a regulator to uphold standards, deliver safe buildings, and ensure that construction products are fit for purpose.

Then, there’s the growing acceptance that their remit extends far beyond building control to promote competence across the built environment workforce.

And recent judgements have shown the BSR to have bite too, with those who don’t play by the rules already facing real consequences. Whist those who prioritise safety and quality in 2026, work collaboratively to build a system that prioritises safety, restoring trust and driving growth, will gain competitive advantage.

The current gaping gap between regulatory intention and practical delivery at Gateway 2 will close as the inspector capacity at the BSR is increased, along with much clearer submission requirements.

And government and industry will learn to work more closely together in improving standards, pushing for cultural change, and deploying the new competency framework to define and ensure the competence, skills, and behaviours of those working in the industry.

In 2026, the Government’s new Fast Track process and planned reforms to BSR oversight are steps in the right direction in easing the tension between safety and delivery. Then there’s the proposals to establish a single construction regulator to reduce fragmentation in how we are organised and regulated, and to drive culture change.

What about AI? There will be growing appreciation of its power. Tasks that previously took us hours are already quickly completed in front of our eyes.

So far, construction has been slow to adopt AI compared with other industries but inserting AI-powered assistance directly into our processes will increasingly help users write reports, analyse data, and draft tender documentation with a few simple prompts.

It will sound much less futuristic in 2026, as its value is demonstrated in very real and tangible ways when applied to everyday work, and even better when it is paired with modern construction software.

It will become more adept at analysing thousands of variables, including site conditions, historical data, and weather patterns, to optimise project planning and model construction sequences, flag design clashes, suggest more efficient build routes, support logistics by forecasting material usage, reducing waste, and helping site managers make informed decisions in real-time.

One of AI’s big strengths is pattern recognition. Construction projects are routinely delayed, but by anticipating risks and recognising patterns AI can highlight where overruns, health and safety breaches, or delays are likely to occur.

It will improve communication of complex ideas or situations to non-technical project stakeholders and between different specialisms, translating jargon-heavy outputs into clear summaries, breaking down and presenting complex information in a way that everyone can understand.

But it comes with some real concerns that we must take seriously, including in the past our overly cautious approach to embracing new technologies.

AI can generate content, but it doesn’t yet truly understand context. That means outputs still need to be reviewed by someone who understands people and the industry.

And understandably, there’s hesitancy in feeding sensitive data into AI tools, especially when the data could be stored externally or used to train models.

No one can know for certain how AI will evolve in the future but what it can do is already clear: speed up processes, reduce mundane tasks, support better decisions, and help teams

work smarter. Alongside this we have the BSR on a trajectory to change our behaviours and culture.

• Hosting our CE Lincolnshire Conference, bringing together professionals from across the county
• Launching our monthly socials, helping members connect and share insights
• Delivering well-received site visits, which we plan to continue into 2026
• Expanding interest in CPD opportunities, with further sessions planned for the year ahead

Constructing Excellence Lincolnshire Conference 2025

Thank you to everyone who joined us at The Drill Hall, Lincoln, for this year’s CE Lincolnshire Conference. The event brought together professionals from across the region for a dynamic day of insights, discussion and collaboration.

Delegates heard from leading voices in local government, development and procurement, exploring key themes such as AI’s role in construction, regional growth opportunities, and how smarter procurement can drive better outcomes for Lincolnshire.

Alongside the speaker sessions, the conference provided valuable networking time, helping strengthen connections and spark new ideas across the local built environment community.

We look forward to carrying the momentum forward into 2026 as we continue to support excellence across the region.

Thank You to Two Fantastic Committee Members

This year, we say a warm and heartfelt thank you to Nick Pettit and Richard Whittaker, who are stepping down from the CE Lincolnshire committee.

Both have contributed enormously to our regional activity, events and member engagement. Their passion, time and leadership have left a lasting impact.

The team here at Constructing Excellence Midlands were delighted to receive the letter below this week!

Dear Andrew and the Constructing Excellence Midlands Team,

On behalf of everyone at Mindflow, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks for your outstanding support over the past year. As our very first year in operation, being named your Charity of the Year for 2025 has meant an incredible amount to us.

Your commitment has gone far beyond fundraising alone. By giving Mindflow a platform within your network, you have helped shine a much-needed spotlight on the mental health crisis facing our construction industry. The awareness you have helped us raise will have a lasting impact, reaching individuals and organisations who may otherwise never have engaged with this vital conversation.

I have personally really enjoyed working with you and greatly enjoyed speaking at your events and meeting so many passionate and influential stakeholders from across the Midlands. The openness, engagement and willingness to listen and learn has been truly encouraging, and it has reinforced just how much this industry cares about the wellbeing of its people.

Looking ahead to 2026, we are excited to be extending our reach across the
Midlands, delivering our unique onsite Match-Up football-led sessions to support workers directly where they need it most. Our partnership with you has played a significant role in helping us build meaningful contacts and gain real traction across the region during this crucial early stage of our journey.

Thank you for backing Mindflow from the very beginning. Your belief in our mission has helped lay strong foundations, and we sincerely hope to continue our working relationship as we grow. I am confident our paths will cross again next year as we continue working together to make a difference.

Thank you once again for your support of Mindflow, you have truly helped make a lasting difference.

Warm wishes,
Trevor Steven
CEO, Mindflow

Welcome to 2026 and the first newsletter for Constructing Excellence Midlands and we hope that you and your loved ones had a pleasant festive break, recharging  the internal batteries. A tradition of New Year is the writing of resolutions, which we all know get forgotten well before January ends, for CE Midlands January brings our AGM on the 22^nd at The Crowne Plaza, Birmingham. We will reflect on our achievements in 2025 and outline the exciting plans for 2026.

This year we will strengthen our relationships with both the West and East Midland Combined Authorities driving forward the agenda to build more homes across the whole of the Midlands.

On the 12^th February, alongside the West Midlands Combined Authority we will be launching the Future Homes Cluster which will bring together manufacturers, developers, funders, educators, public and industry partners to grow and amplify the region’s inherent strengths in manufacturing and innovation in construction and housing delivery.

Further ahead in 2026 we will see the conclusion of the Local Government Reforms which will see a whole tier of local authority governance removed from the East Midlands area. The implications are unclear but the promise of swifter decision making at local level will be a major benefit to our industry.

The West and East Midlands CE awards are now open for entrees with a deadline of the 30^th April 2026.  The awards recognize the remarkable contributions made by architects, engineers, contractors, developers, and other key players in the construction sector. By showcasing their expertise, dedication, and forward-thinking approaches, we aim to inspire and motivate the industry to reach new heights.

So, a 2026 New Year resolution for all of us,  that’s not too difficult to keep. Let’s be kind to each other.

Welcome to the Constructing Excellence Midlands December newsletter. As we approach the end of 2025 its time to reflect on what we have achieved in 2025 and begin to focus on the priorities of 2026, this could be both professional and personal.

CE Midlands has had a great 2025 and continues to bring together multiple construction disciplines to help influence, share knowledge, drive change and innovation within the construction industry. The themes groups and forums groups are a perfect conduit for collectively helping to drive change. As a CE Midlands member who is active on both the Clients Forum and the Building Safety Group, I was reminded of the important of Building Safety whilst recently watching the news.

The fire at the residential blocks in Hong Kong was difficult to watch as an expatriate who lived and worked in the territory for many years. It was another stark reminder of building safety importance at every stage of the buildings lifecycle, and the continued responsibility we all have as industry professionals to ensure what we design, specify and build is safe and compliant.

To end on a positive note, December is a festive month for spending time with the family and enjoying the Christmas holiday, as part of this festive fun, volunteers from CE Midlands will take to the stage on 22nd December at the Crescent Theatre for a production of Dick Whittington.

All the profits will go to Bfriends: Friends of Birmingham Children’s Trust. There are still tickets available and it would be great to see you all on 22nd Dec to support the volunteers but more importantly support Bfriends: Friends of Birmingham Children’s Trust.

Last month’s World Quality Week (WQW) was a timely reminder to put quality at the forefront our minds and actions, and for several reasons.

There’s the cost of poor quality. The Get It Right Initiative (GIRI) estimates that the total cost of avoidable errors (defects) in the UK construction industry ranges from 10% to 25% of project cost, which equates to approximately £10-25 billion per year. That’s quite a black hole.

Then there’s the Building Safety Regulator (BSR). They are changing our approach to quality by implementing a more rigorous, accountable, and transparent regulatory system that forces all industry stakeholders to prioritise safety throughout a building’s entire lifecycle. This involves a shift from a reactive to a more proactive, strategic approach to quality, especially for higher-risk buildings (HRBs).

The theme of last month’s WQW was `Quality: think differently’, inviting organisations, teams, and individuals to reflect on and reimagine how we approach quality, challenging traditional approaches to quality management, and embracing new ways of thinking.

Hosted by the Chartered Quality Institute (CQI), WQW aims to raise awareness about quality management and recognize those who champion it.  Each year has a new theme to explore different aspects of quality, such as moving beyond basic compliance to focus on performance, the ethics of quality, and the critical role quality management and culture play in fostering innovation, and creating sustainable value for customers and wider society.

Here, Martyn Jones examines some of the takeaways from this year’s WQW.

They argue that ‘think differently’ means cultivating resilient and agile quality cultures to navigate today’s complex and ever-changing business environment.

This means that quality is not just about processes and tools – it’s about creating a culture that prioritises improvement, innovation, and excellence at every level.

Organisations, teams, and individuals all play vital roles in shaping this culture, making it essential for everyone to take an active part in upholding high standards.

Quality should not exist in isolation, but used to foster a culture of improvement for success, whether within a team, a supply chain, leading an organisation or in personal development.

And embedding a quality culture provides a competitive advantage and creates lasting value.

They identify 3 essential elements: alignment, performance, and people.

Quality should be aligned with organisational goals, identifying opportunities to achieve sustainable growth and maintain stakeholder trust. Embedding quality into strategic decision-making can help ensure long-term corporate and project success, enabling organisations and project teams to stay resilient and competitive.

Performance means achieving and maintaining high-quality standards within a proactive approach to identify and mitigate risks while driving performance improvements. Organisations should foster a culture where data-driven insights inform decision-making and empower teams act to prevent issues before they arise, ensuring continuous improvement and helping deliver greater value.

By people, they mean engaging the right people in the management and improvement of quality bearing in mind that it’s everyone’s responsibility, not just that of a dedicated team. This means empowering individuals across all functions to take ownership of quality in their everyday roles. By fostering collaboration, encouraging learning, and sharing best practices, we can create a quality-driven mindset that supports long-term success.

In-house, the CE publication, `The Enlightened Clients Journey to Project Quality and Compliance’ recognises the pivotal role played by clients in achieving quality in construction projects. It encourages clients and their advisors to take a more strategic approach to achieving quality outcomes by aligning their procurement, product design, processes, and people with their quality goals. In doing so, consistently meeting and maybe exceeding the expectations of clients, project stakeholders, communities, and the wider population.

Increasingly we are expected to see quality management as a strategy rather than treating it as a non-strategic function or a compliance activity. It means integrating quality principles into core business and project planning, building a culture to gain a sustainable competitive advantage, and restoring our reputation as an industry capable of delivering excellent products and services.

The Conflict Avoidance Pledge was conceived in 2017 at a meeting jointly arranged by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Senior executives and members from RICS and the ICE, along with representatives of four other professional bodies and two major infrastructure employers attended the meeting and formed a coalition.

They had gathered at the ICE’s wonderful headquarters in central London to discuss how they could work in harmony to tackle the rising financial and resource costs of disputes in the construction industry. I was at that that first meeting of the Conflict Avoidance Coalition, and I recall there was immense enthusiasm around the room for us to do something big and ambitious that would change the industry forever.

It became clear that our immediate challenge was to harness all that enthusiasm and form it into a cohesive and effective campaign. Ideas for what we should do were floated.

I recall a motion was made along the lines of: “Let’s all write to the Construction Minister”.This was discussed at length. The rationale was that a letter signed off by the ICE, RICS, RIBA, DRBF, ICES, CIArb along with Directors from Transport for London (TfL) and Network Rail (NR), would be impactful. Much more so than if only one of the above wrote to the Minister. But what would the letter say? What would be the “call to action”?

The “letter” idea sounded good at first but the more we talked about the content and what we wanted it to achieve, the less enthusiastic we became about it. After about 20 minutes, the meeting room fell silent. Then someone proposed that we develop and promote a Pledge which would commit businesses and organisations to working proactively to avoid conflict and to facilitate early resolution of potential disputes. Eureka!

When the coalition met for the second time, the Conflict Avoidance Pledge had been drafted. It was reviewed, finessed and approved. We knew the Pledge would be a success because, only two weeks after it was unanimously signed off by the coalition, and before it was formally launched in January 2018, TfL, Network Rail and around 40 contractors had signed up to it.

At the time of writing this article, hundreds of organisations and businesses, large, medium and small have now signed the Pledge. Each signatory expresses their support for collaborative working and the use of early intervention techniques to resolve differences before they become full blown disputes. Pledge signatories explicitly state their commitment to identify, control and manage potential problems and avoid getting embroiled in adversarial procedures.

A more recent development has been the implementation of bronze, silver and gold Pledge status. A signatory to the Pledge is automatically categorised as a bronze status. Silver and Gold status demonstrate the extent to which a signatory has taken steps to give effect to the principles set out in the Pledge. Silver demonstrates consistent collaborative working in day-to-day operations and Gold shows that a business actively applies conflict avoidance measures to avoid escalation and resolve issues early.

The coalition has grown since it first came together in 2017. It is now comprised of over 100 businesses and organisations, all of whom are actively promoting and supporting the Pledge. The Pledge has also received official support from central and devolved governments across the UK, and it is embedded in the Construction Playbook.

Information about the Pledge and a directory of who has signed it can be found on the coalition’s dedicated website https://conflictavoidance.org/

Martin Burns

Head of ADR Research and Development, RICS

25/11/2025

At the start of October, Mark Worrall joined Jeff Endean of Cast Consultancy, Josef Galkowski of the West Midlands Combined Authority and Andrew Sheppard of Ibstock Futures for an engaging panel discussion at UK Construction Week, in Birmingham – Making it Here: Building a Housing Manufacturing Powerhouse in the West Midlands.

This discussion officially launched the West Midlands Future Homes Cluster – bringing together manufacturers, developers, funders, educators, public and industry partners in the West Midlands.

By providing visibility, influence, and opportunities to connect, the Cluster gives members a stronger voice, helps attract investment, and builds confidence in the industrialisation of construction across the region and beyond.

BBI Services are proud to be working with the @West Midlands Combined Authority, @Cast Consultancy and @Constructing Excellence Midlands to establish the Future Homes Cluster. Our practical experience will be utilised through supplier engagement and improvement activities.

For more information about the Cluster, follow the link: West Midlands Future Homes Cluster

This Christmas, the construction industry is swapping steel-toe boots for stage shoes in a one-night-only performance of Dick Whittington – A Festive Pantomime Adventure, taking place at 4pm on Monday 22nd December 2025 at the Crescent Theatre, Birmingham.

Seven Midlands-based construction professionals—and one courageous young person—will take to the stage to raise funds for Bfriends: Friends of Birmingham Children’s Trust. Some of the cast are seasoned amateur performers, while others are stepping into the spotlight for the very first time. Expect laughter, festive chaos, and a whole lot of heart.

But the real magic happens behind the scenes—and that’s where you come in.

🎁 Sponsorship Opportunities – Take Centre Stage!

Whether you’re a business looking to spread some festive cheer or a supporter of local causes, there’s a role for everyone in this pantomime production.

👑 Headline Sponsor – £2,000 + VAT

• 50 tickets donated to a local school of your choice
• VIP Drinks Reception for 10 guests (including show tickets)
• Pre- and post-show publicity
• Marketing collateral throughout the theatre on the day

🍷 Drinks Reception Sponsor – £1,000 + VAT

• VIP Drinks Reception for 10 guests (including show tickets)
• Branding and publicity within the drinks reception area
• Pre- and post-show recognition

🎭 Character Sponsorship – £100 + VAT

Sponsor one of the show’s beloved characters and get a mention in the programme:

• Dick Whittington
• Tommy the Cat
• Alice Fitzwarren
• Alderman Fitzwarren
• Idle Jack
• Fairy Bowbells

🎚️ Technical Sponsorships

Support the backstage magic and receive programme recognition:

• Sound – £200 + VAT
• Music – £200 + VAT
• Staging – £200 + VAT
• Wigs/Make-Up – £100 + VAT
• Programme – £200 + VAT

🌟 Already Supporting

• Costumes – Evo Energy
• Dolly Dumpling – Saible
• King Rat – Andrew Carpenter Consulting Ltd

📩 To sponsor this festive fundraiser, contact:
tom.carpenter@cemidlands.org

This is your chance to support a fantastic cause, celebrate the spirit of the season, and be part of a truly unforgettable event. After all, who wouldn’t want their name in lights (or at least in the programme)?

Oh yes you can!

🎭 Meet the Cast!

We’re thrilled to introduce the incredible team bringing Dick Whittington to life this season! From construction boardrooms to the theatre stage, our cast proves that talent knows no bounds.

Rebecca Lydon (STANTEC) – Dick Whittington
Director of Sustainability by day, stage star by night! Rebecca has nearly 20 years of experience delivering energy and climate strategies, and a long history of musical theatre—this time taking on a “good guy” role at last.

Andrew Carpenter– King Rat
CEO of CE Midlands and lifelong theatre enthusiast. Andrew has spent 50 years juggling construction projects and musicals, winning awards along the way—this pantomime villain is back to delight audiences once more.

Mark Wakeford (EvoEnergy) – Dolly Dumpling
Vice-Chair at Constructing Excellence Midlands, with decades of construction experience and only one previous pantomime under his belt! He’s bravely returning to the stage, armed with slapstick, flour, and a sense of humour.

Lee Smirthwaite (Greenwood Projects) – Idle Jack
Marketing Manager and lifelong performer. Lee sings in bands, weddings, and even in three languages! After a 15-year theatre break, he’s back, centre stage, much to the amusement of his long-suffering family.

Andrew Bannister (SCAPE) – Alderman Fitzwarren
SCAPE lead for major infrastructure projects, published sci-fi author, and lifelong performer. Dick Whittington marks Andrew’s return to the boards after a long hiatus—proof that the show must always go on!

Dr. Ann Bicknell (Arup) – Alice Fitzwarren

Rachael Hobbis (Trowers & Hamlins) – Fairy Bowbells