Michael Anderson’s End of Year Message

“As the year draws to a close, it’s a great time to reflect back on the challenges overcome, opportunities ahead and everything we have accomplished over 2025.

The industry has been characterised by a cautious return to growth over the last year, despite persistent challenges still impacting viability and decision making. But with these green shoots and growing optimism, it’s hard not to see the brighter sunrise on the horizon.

As part of the June 2025 Spending Review, the Government announced £39bn in funding for the next Affordable Homes Programme which will be spread across ten years. Spending will reach £4bn per year in 2029-30 and will then rise in line with inflation. With further guidance released in November 25 and the programme launch in February 2026, this represents one of the most significant investments in housing over the next decade.

The challenging market conditions have not impacted our culture of continuous improvement, and we continue to foster the professional growth and support personal development across all the parts of our Practice. Of course that’s easy for us to say, but this is also reinforced and recognised by our long-term commitment to Investors in People, our assessment in May and retaining our Gold status in June.

Our people (too many to mention individually here), have achieved incredible qualifications and professional charterships across all levels, disciplines, in technical and operational teams, and we are incredibly proud of all of them. In the early part of the year, we developed a bespoke Leadership and Management programme aimed to inspire professional growth. Our programme includes Female specific Leadership modules, partnering with external experts to create a safe and supportive space for our colleagues to share personal experiences. This was launched in September with over 30 people taking part.

Also, in September our Apprenticeship programme has seen us welcome a new cohort of very talented and enthusiastic individuals. I was delighted to join them during part of a special induction day and witness such enthusiasm at the early stage of their professional journeys… (and reflect on my own!).

We have continued to grow and develop our services and dedicating time to providing insight and support across the industry in 2025. Our Fire Safety services expanded to include Fire Engineering expertise back in 2024
and the team has continued to grow through 2025, increasing offerings and supporting the needs of clients and the industry.

2026 will be a milestone year for calfordseaden, we approach our 85th birthday as a business and it also marks the start of a new three-year strategic business plan and we look forward to sharing more details around this in the new year.

On behalf of everyone at calfordseaden, I extend our sincere gratitude to our people, clients, and partners. Wishing you a peaceful, joyous holiday season and a healthy, successful 2026.”

Michael Anderson