Taylor Wimpey employees all back from furlough

All of Taylor Wimpey’s employees have now returned from furlough, albeit many are continuing to work from home. In its latest market update, the housebuilder said the majority of its show homes and sales centres in England were also now open on an appointment-only basis, with a high level of demand. It is hoping to reopen its sales centres in Scotland and Wales in early July. Total group completions in the 22 weeks to 31 May hit 2,455, compared to 4,052 for the same period last year, reflecting the impact of site closures, Taylor Wimpey reported. However, its UK order book has increased and at the end of May stood at £2.78bn, compared to £2.5bn in 2019. This equates to 11,228 homes, excluding legal completions to date, of which 7,788 (69%) are exchanged. In the nine weeks since the start of lockdown the business also recorded 306 cancellations, representing 5% of its private order book. Taylor Wimpey also reported that construction had restarted on the majority of its sites in England and Wales and that it was on track to reach a meaningful production capacity from the end of June. To send feedback, e-mail louise.dransfield@egi.co.uk or tweet @DransfieldL or @estatesgazette