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In Gleeds’ 2026 survey, 81% of employees said they feel they are offered the training and development they need to progress, up from 76% on last year’s results. The consultancy also continues to outperform the industry on Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) results, achieving an 85% pass rate – 30% above the sector average.
Construction companies also featured in The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2026, published last week. The nationwide survey celebrates 567 organisations across the UK considered to be leading the way in employee engagement, workplace culture and employee experience.
Among the employers making the list were Gilbert-Ash, construction consultancy Daniel Connal Partnership, and Kori Construction.
Wellbeing and job satisfaction
Gilbert-Ash was recognised as one of the UK’s leading employers after scoring strongly in the medium organisation category, highlighting employee engagement, wellbeing and job satisfaction. Additionally, the contractor received a special highly commended recognition in the Employees Aged 55+ category.
The company is currently rolling out its Make Your Mark campaign, which aims to attract the best people in the industry to work there. The campaign shines a light on the calibre of projects Gilbert-Ash works on across several different sectors and celebrates the outstanding achievements of its people.
Daniel Connal Partnership, which has offices in London, Colchester and Norwich, was recognised in the small business sector. The company achieved an overall employee engagement score of 87%, 13% above the average for the construction and building materials sector. The firm also recorded zero employees at high risk of poor wellbeing or intending to leave the business within the next nine months.
Kori Construction’s employee turnover rate of 12.6% – low for the industry – was noted, as well as its wellbeing focus. Of its 58 staff, more than a quarter are mental health first-aiders, while an employee assistance programme provides access to a virtual GP and mental health support. The firm also arranges employee awards, annual bonuses for achievements and team-building events.
Trust and development deliver performance
New research from Great Place To Work UK suggests that employee development is becoming a key competitive advantage for businesses as organisations face growing skills shortages, productivity pressures and the rapid impact of AI. The company’s Learning and Development Report 2026 found that employees in high-development workplaces are twice as likely to look for “faster and smarter ways” to deliver quality work, 2.5 times more likely to report meaningful opportunities to innovate, and twice as likely to want to stay with their employer long term.
The report argues that trust is the critical factor underpinning successful development cultures, with high-trust organisations creating environments where employees feel confident experimenting, learning new skills and adapting to change.
According to the report, organisations that embed development into everyday leadership behaviours – including coaching, empowerment, recognition and fair access to opportunities – are better placed to adapt to AI and other workplace changes. Great Place To Work said companies featured on its UK Best Workplaces lists, where trust and development are embedded into workplace culture, outperform the wider market by more than four times and generate 6.25 times greater revenue per employee.
