The decline was largely attributed to a drop in new private housing projects and commercial work. 

The government stats also raised concerns for the mid-term health of the industry, as fresh orders dropped by 10% between April and June.

The ONS figures were the latest in a series of worrying reports released in the last few weeks. The Federation of Master Builders’ Q2 state of the industry survey illustrated a dramatic 30% fall in new business inquiries - particularly in the repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI) sector. 

FMB CEO Brain Berry appeared on The Clive Holland Show to call for a VAT holiday on home improvement work to sustain growth in the RMI market.

With a recession looming Clive Holland caught up with Craig Wilkinson, founder of Trades Freedom Club to ask what steps tradespeople need to take to prepare their business for volatile times ahead.

According to Wilkinson, there are two areas that tradespeople need to focus on - firstly they must register the business as a limited liability company, and secondly invest in marketing to build a customer pipeline.

“Being a sole trader heading into a recession is a dangerous position because if you work for one of the bigger boys, and they get squeezed… then it is at the bottom of the chain, the sole traders that feel the knock-on the most,” said Wilkinson.

“My advice to any sole trader right now is take your business and make it a limited company. As a limited company there are certain liabilities that will protect you personally, protect your assets, such as your vans, and even your home,” he added.

Wilkinson’s other advice may seem counterintuitive - invest heavily in marketing. During the last recession in 2008, Wilkinson’s own building business invested heavily in marketing, while his competitors ‘battened down the hatches”, as the recession bit. 

“When we came out of the recession, we had grown our business [and] profits were up. What we had done was put a big divide between us and our competitors. We became the ‘go to’ company,” he added.

Given the cost effectiveness of marketing options, such as Facebook Ads or Google Ads, and the growing importance of social media platforms, there is no reason why sole traders can’t “see the opportunity and strike while the iron is hot!”, said Wilkinson.

To listen to the Brain Berry interview, click below.