Latest Future Trends Survey reinforce slow road to recovery

February's results of the RIBA's Future Trends Survey present a variable picture compared to January's, with visible improvements in workload and predictions across work sectors, but poor progress in terms of staffing levels and levels of underemployment.

The RIBA Future Trends Survey provides a monthly yardstick of workload expectations and employment prospects among architects, based on the responses of a cross section of small, medium and large practices.

The number of practices expecting their workload to increase over the past two months went up by 10 per cent, from 28 per cent in January to 38 per cent in February. Likewise, there was a modest increase in the number of practices expecting a rise in staffing levels (from 5 per cent in January to 7 per cent in February). Disappointingly, this was offset slightly by a 2 per cent month-on-month increase in the number of respondents claiming to be personally underemployed, from 26 to 28 per cent.

The survey revealed improvements in forecasted workload predictions across the private housing and public sectors; 31 per cent of practices expected private housing work to increase in February, compared to just 24 per cent in January, and fewer practices expected workload to decrease (from 18 per cent down to 14 per cent). Public sector workload predictions were also boosted, with 15 per cent of practices forecasting an increase in February, compared with 11 per cent in January, and just 21 per cent predicting a decrease, compared with 24 per cent the previous month.

The commercial sector reported consistent results, with 21 per cent of practices predicting an increase in workload in both January and February – up from 16 per cent in December 2009. That said, 17 per cent expected a drop in workload across the same period, compared with 15 per cent in December 2009.

Adrian Dobson, RIBA Director of Practice says, "The second Future Trends Survey of 2010 continues to paint a mixed picture, with clear improvements in some areas of the profession, and less optimism in others. Large practices are the least confident about future workloads, perhaps reflecting increasing concern over the likely impact of future public spending cuts on government capital programmes, but small and medium size practices remain cautiously optimistic. Practices based in Northern Ireland are more pessimistic about future workload levels than those in Scotland, England and Wales."

"Anecdotal commentary submitted this month supports the findings that housing work for individual clients with their own capital remains quite buoyant. Other specialist sectors, including conservation work, seem to be holding up well and the experiences of individual practices vary greatly depending on location and sectors of activity. Many practices report intense pressure on fee levels, and the overall situation seems to remain somewhat fragile and unpredictable. Many of our practices reported that the imminent election is having a 'wait and see' effect on both clients and architects."

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