The 2016-17 Welsh Government budget has been announced and there is a big role for construction and a priority for low carbon – but what does it mean in practice?

The budget highlights are – 

• Health and social care: With the extra £260m for NHS, the overall departmental budget is rising from £6.486bn to £6.731bn
• Local government: including inspection bodies and fire services, will fall from £3.432bln to £3.344bn.
• Communities and Tackling Poverty: Fall from £336m to £333m
• Economy, Science and Transport: Fall from £612m to £587m
• Education and skills: Slight rise of £1.578bln to £1.580bln
• Natural Resources: Fall from £294m to £277m (revenue)
• Central services and administration Rising from £292m to £300m - a rise of £7m. 

Some of the detail: 

• Natural resources budget with capital and revenue added together to fall from £357m to £366m, a cut of £21m.
• Climate change programmes have been deemed a priority - the budget will rise from £48m to £73m
• Additional (traditional capital) of £5m to Nest
• Additional (traditional capital of £5m to Green Growth Wales (to support an initiative which aims to increase and accelerate projects to deliver green investment in Wales. It focuses in infrastructure projects which will reduce carbon emissions, including renewable energy generation, resource efficiency, and energy from waste projects
• Local government improvement funding cut by £31m to just £3m.
• The higher education budget is falling from £129m to £87m, a cut by £41m.

 Full detail available here

Full narrative here

CEW will be responding with some more details and debate about what the budget plans mean for Welsh construction and the part that CEW stakeholders can play in delivering upon Government targets.

The answer might be no, but now is the time to prepare with new award categories and open days and workshops to help you promote your winning scheme or project.

Are you thinking about your entry into the 2016 CEW Awards? You should be preparing now as the awards went live this week on Monday. If you’re not thinking about becoming a winner and showcasing what your team is doing and the great projects you’re involved with then, start next week. All entries must be completed by the 29th February 2016. 

But if you are considering showcasing your team, your projects, one of the SMEs you work with or sharing success with a client or partner organisation then why not think about entering our new award category for 2016 – BIM project of the year. 

BIM is now an accepted method of delivering projects of all sizes and an excellent way to work collaboratively and drive best practice and with more and more examples of its use in Wales it deserves its own award category at the CEW Awards. Judges will be looking for projects embracing BIM that point to benefits to end users, suppliers and project teams perhaps with examples of working around tight site situations and assisting with time and cost savings as well as enabling structural innovation. The use of all the elements of BIM and the integration between the client and other team members early in a scheme will be important factors in a winning entry. 

But to steer you in the direction of a winning entry and to learn more about the new BIM category you should save the date for our CEW Awards open days  21st January Swansea and 27th January in Llandudno. You can also find out how to enter the new look project of year now we have split civils and buildings into different categories.

For more details and how to reserve your place call the team on 02920 493322 or email

Visit our awards page.

Sir Robert McAlpine has the £150m contract for the biggest project at Cardiff’s Central Square redevelopment.

Sir Robert McAlpine will deliver the massive interchange scheme to build a transport hub for the city along within a major commercial building. Work could start next spring, subject to planners approving the scheme which is due to be submitted shortly. A Foster + Partners designed project, the 450,000 sq. ft. building complex will incorporate a new city bus station, linking it to the railway station. At its highest point, it will offer 11 storeys for private residential apartments and a hotel and will then descend down to seven storeys as it moves closer to the grade listed train station.  

New look Cardiff bus interchange     

Architect Powell Dobson’s design for the Cardiff Central rail station revamp next to Foster’s new bus station

The contract award follows a separate deal with ISG last month to deliver a new headquarters for BBC Wales at the Cardiff Central scheme under an £80m contract. Before that Willmott Dixon secured the first office building at the site which is close to completion. Cardiff Central is being developed by local firm Rightacre in partnership with Legal & General which recently committed to investing £400m in the ambitious plan.

Save the date - Are your designs going with the flow? – Welsh Government’s new SUDs Guidance and case studies seminar with flooding once again tragically causing havoc for many communities across the UK, it’s time to rethink how we manage rainfall and drainage infrastructure within our natural environment and maximise the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems.

Following consultation earlier this year, Welsh Government are publishing their new non-statutory guidance for Sustainable Urban Drainage schemes in Wales. This breakfast seminar, presented by the Welsh Government, will highlight the opportunity the new guidance provides for the industry to integrate further sustainable urban drainage within both infrastructure and built environment projects. There will also be case study presentations and an opportunity for discussions and networking.

The workshops will be held  23rd February 2016 – South West Wales 25th February 2016 – North Wales 29th February 2016 – South East Wales

Please register your interest and stating preferred location by emailing our events team

Construction Youth Trust Cymru works with young people aged 14 to 30 to help them access opportunities within the construction industry. They have two overarching programmes firstly Budding Builders where we help young people access opportunities in the construction industry trades.  Secondly Budding Brunels where we help young people access opportunities within the construction professions.  The one thing all our young people have in common is the barriers they face these can include gender, ethnicity, low self esteem or the impact that past mistakes have on their lives.  The £330 raised by G4C Wales, (Constructing Excellence in Wales young professionals group) at their charity quiz held on the 3rd December will help them buy materials for their Budding Builders project. 

Their Budding Builders students really value giving back to their local community as well as learning practical construction skills.  The money raised by G4C Wales will help them buy wood so their students can build planters that can be donated to a local community centre, care home or local school.  The team at Construction Youth Trust would like to say thank you so much to G4C Wales for their kind donation they would be unable to support so many young people without the generous support of the construction industry in Wales.