Published Monday 3 August 2026 · By the JustEng team
A busy end to July has left the UK market with a much clearer picture heading into August. HS2 has reset its two largest civils contracts, industry confidence has climbed to its highest level this year, and eleven new hospital builds have been signed off — even as another mid-sized contractor has failed. Here is what happened, and what it means for engineering recruitment and vacancies across the UK.
HS2 contract reset points to steadier civil engineering vacancies
HS2 Ltd has signed new commercial contracts with EKFB and Align, the joint ventures responsible for more than 100km of route between London and the West Midlands. The revised payment structure is designed to reward efficient delivery and cost control, and HS2 says it gives greater confidence that the remaining programme can be delivered in line with the £93.2bn cost ambition set out by government in May. Negotiations with Balfour Beatty VINCI and Skanska Costain STRABAG are still ongoing. Construction Enquirer
Hiring angle: Commercial certainty on a programme of this scale usually unlocks headcount plans that have been on hold, and we expect renewed candidate demand for temporary works, permanent way and geotechnical specialists as EKFB and Align firm up their delivery schedules. Civil engineering vacancies tied to major infrastructure tend to follow commercial close by a quarter or two, so this is the moment to move on scarce section engineers and project managers.
Torsion Construction administration puts 115 people back on the market
Torsion Construction Limited, a £165m-turnover contractor, was placed into administration in the last week of July with Interpath appointed as administrators. Most of its 115 staff have been made redundant, and the business was working on 12 live sites at the point of failure. The group has confirmed the process relates solely to the construction arm, with Torsion Care, Projects, Homes and Developments continuing to trade. Construction Enquirer
Hiring angle: An insolvency of this size releases experienced site managers, quantity surveyors and design managers at very short notice, and employers who move within days rather than weeks tend to secure the strongest of them. Our team is actively re-placing displaced technical staff across the North and Midlands — see current engineering jobs.
Construction confidence hits a 2026 high as two thirds plan to hire
The Lloyds Business Barometer for July put construction sector confidence at 56%, up ten points on June and well clear of the twelve-month average of 47%. The labour market read-across is striking: 65% of construction firms said they planned to take on more staff, up from 55% in June. Lloyds head of construction Max Jones said the rise suggests firms are becoming more willing to plan beyond the next project. Construction Enquirer
Hiring angle: A ten-point jump in confidence alongside a ten-point rise in hiring intentions is the clearest signal this year that engineering jobs UK volumes are turning, and rising demand of that kind usually feeds through into salaries in the scarcest disciplines within two or three quarters. Employers setting 2027 budgets should assume more competition for the same candidate pool — our structural engineer salary guide is a useful benchmark.
Eleven NHS hospital deals signed under Hospital 2.0
NHS trusts signed eleven contracts with contractors at the end of July to deliver new hospitals in England under the New Hospital Programme standardised Hospital 2.0 approach. Awards went to GRAHAM (Airedale), Willmott Dixon (Royal Cornwall), Sacyr UK (Frimley Health), Kier (Hinchingbrooke), Laing O’Rourke (Hillingdon), Skanska (James Paget and Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn), Integrated Health Projects (Leighton), Morgan Sindall (Milton Keynes), Bovis (Manchester) and DRAGADOS (West Suffolk). Construction Enquirer
Hiring angle: Standardised, repeatable healthcare design creates sustained multi-year demand for MEP, structural engineer jobs and fire engineering roles where candidates can work to a national template rather than reinventing details scheme by scheme. Expect a wave of engineering vacancies across those eleven trusts and their consultant supply chains through the autumn.
US private equity buys utilities contractor Avove
H.I.G. Capital has acquired Chorley-based utilities contractor Avove, which employs more than 800 people and was carved out of Amey Utilities in 2022. Avove reported revenue of £227m for the year to 31 December 2025, with pre-tax profit up 29% to £17m. Chief executive Mark Perkins and the management team are reinvesting and remain in place, with H.I.G. planning growth through further acquisitions. Construction Enquirer
Hiring angle: Private equity ownership almost always brings a hiring push in commercial, design and delivery leadership, so we expect Avove to be in the market for senior water and power engineering talent as it builds an acquisition platform. Buy-and-build strategies are also reliable generators of headhunting mandates at director level.
Gateway 3 delays keep fire and facade engineer vacancies tight
Building Safety Regulator data covering April to June 2026 shows a median Gateway 3 decision time of 16 weeks — double the statutory target. The fourth edition of the Technology and Construction Court Guide, published on 1 July, also introduces dedicated sections on Building Safety Act 2022 proceedings, an indication of how much of the sector workload is now shaped by the regime. Mayer Brown
Hiring angle: Every week of gateway delay increases the value of engineers who can get an application right first time, which is why facade engineer jobs and fire engineer vacancies remain among the hardest roles to fill anywhere in the UK. The talent shortage here is structural, not cyclical.
JustEng is a specialist engineering recruitment agency headhunting hard-to-find engineers across civil, structural, fire and facade disciplines. If you are an engineer weighing up your next move, submit your CV. If you are hiring, register your vacancy and we will start the search today.