The hotel and leisure sector looks set to provide a raft of opportunities for young people with construction skills.
Recent reports have confirmed that the construction industry as a whole is recovering from the protracted downturn that has gripped the UK since 2008. But it looks like the leisure industry might be providing an extra surge in development projects as hotel construction is set to become one of the fastest-growing sectors in the coming years.
Demand for hotel rooms is continuous and shows no signs of abating, as people start to return to the UK for both holidays and business transactions. Major hotel chains are keen to cater to this demand and many are starting to fast-forward their plans to deliver on new hotels. Premier Inn, for example, announced last month that it hopes to build 170 new hotels across the UK by 2018.
George Nicholas, from Jones Lang LaSalle, discussed the reasons behind the strong levels of investment with the Architects' Journal: “The upturn in UK regional hotel operating performance, coupled with the weight of capital chasing hotel investment [will result] in a significant injection of fresh capital into the nation’s lodging stock.”
Tom Crane, an economist with Glenigan, told the publication that the sector has a strong outlook: “Hotel construction will be one of the fastest-growing sectors in 2014 and construction will be boosted over the next few years, due to competition between affordable hotel chains.”
He added: “Premier Inn has plans to expand, while international chains such as MotelOne and Marriott's Moxy Brand will fight for space in the UK market.”
The boost in hotel construction comes as the UK's construction sector as a whole has shown a health level of growth. The latest figures the Office for National Statistics showed that the construction sector's output rose by 5.8 per cent year-on-year in September.