Hill turnover hit by planning delays

South east-based housebuilder Hill Group says it is committed to its plan to double the size of the business despite publishing results showing 2022 revenues hit by deepening planning delays.

Hill said revenue for calendar year 2022 fell 5% to £716m, down from £753m in 2021, with the firm blaming the decline on delays in planning. The firm reported stable pre-tax profit, edging up a fraction to a record £65.6m from £65.1m last year.

Despite the setback on turnover, the Essex-based housebuilder and partnerships builder said in a statement issued alongside the accounts that the “the company continues to make progress towards its vision of doubling the size of its business by 2025 while growing headline turnover to £1.25bn.”

The family-owned firm said it built 2,203 homes in the calendar year, down from 2,318 in 2021, but oversaw a big expansion in its development pipeline to 8,500 homes, up from 3,300 the year before. Its wider landbank also grew to around 12,300 homes, from 8,300 the year before.

Hill also claimed to have made rapid progress in its planned expansion into the Bristol and South west region in the year, with two live developments and several more pipeline projects.

The firm did not set out in detail the nature of the planning challenges it faced that saw turnover reduce, with a spokesperson saying simply that “our overall revenue has fallen from £753m in 2021 as a result of delays in planning”. The firm’s published accounts stated, similarly, that the firm faced “various economic and industry specific challenges”, and that the reduced revenues were “largely as a result of delays in planning.”

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However, the comments come amid increasing industry concern over the state of local authority planning, with low resourcing affecting the ability of councils to process applications, while proposed government reforms have caused a number of authorities to abandon or delay plan-making efforts.

In addition, at the start of last year Greg Hill, deputy chief executive at Hill, warned Housing Today the firm was facing difficulty getting schemes approved, and that this was likely to affect Hill’s performance. He said at the time: “We’re seeing that the simplest, policy-compliant, mid-sized schemes on allocated sites are getting challenged on the principle of development.”

He added: “In my opinion it’s the worst it has ever been. It’s seriously tough at the moment. I think it’s going to create a major delivery issue in the coming years. We – and, I think, others – are just not getting sites to start when we should.”

Andy Hill, group chief executive officer of The Hill Group, today said: “I am most grateful for the performance of my leadership team and our employees for their hard work and dedication over the past year.

“The impressive results we have achieved, coupled with significant investments and the structural improvements we have made against a backdrop of various economic and sector-specific challenges, demonstrates The Hill Group’s resilience and position for sustained long-term success.”