Roger Bullivant, the Derbyshire-headquartered ground engineering specialist, has posted stronger Roger Bullivant revenue profit figures for the 2025 calendar year, with turnover climbing 6 per cent to £87.6m and pre-tax profit edging up 4 per cent to £3.8m, as the firm pursues diversification beyond its core residential housing market.
The results recover ground lost during a 2024 dip, taking turnover back above 2023 levels. The prior year had recorded £82.4m in revenue and £3.6m in pre-tax profit. Directors pointed to an ‘overhead restructure’ as a contributor to the improved bottom line, alongside what they described as ‘sustained strong levels of activity throughout the year considering the economic downturn, particularly in the company’s key market sector, residential housing’.
Non-residential markets identified as a strategic priority
Alongside its established residential piling and ground improvement work, Roger Bullivant carried out works ‘successfully’ in non-residential markets during the year, with directors describing this as ‘a key target area for future years’. The move reflects a deliberate effort to reduce dependence on housebuilding volumes at a time when the housing sector faces persistent demand uncertainty.
Part of French civils giant Soletanche Bachy, Roger Bullivant operates from six regional offices and was established in 1971. The firm was ranked seventh in the latest CN Specialists Index for ground engineering, placing it firmly among the leading ground engineering contractors active in the UK.
Roger Bullivant revenue profit supported by investment and headcount stability
The company’s average headcount nudged up from 494 to 497 over the year, while employment costs grew by 8 per cent to £28.3m, reflecting wage pressures that have been consistent across the construction supply chain. Directors stated the company ‘continues to invest in production equipment, plant and staffing resources’, signalling a commitment to maintaining operational capacity despite margin pressure.
Cash holdings strengthened over the period, rising from £5.3m at the end of 2024 to £5.7m on 31 December last year. A dividend of £2m was paid in 2025, up from £1.8m in the prior period. The aggregate emoluments of the company’s highest-paid director were £162,712 last year, compared with £154,200 in 2024.
Directors set out a clear commercial strategy for the period ahead: ‘The company continues to look at ways to increase its profitability through increased market share, access to new markets, improved site productivity and long-term relationships with key clients and partners.’ The language around long-term client relationships and site efficiency aligns with the kind of supply-chain consolidation that many larger contractors in the civils and residential sectors have been pursuing.
Cautious outlook for 2026 as housing market headwinds persist
The board is not anticipating a return to volume growth in the near term. ‘With economic uncertainty impacting the housing market, the company expects no growth in activity in 2026,’ directors stated. The firm is instead targeting performance through operational discipline rather than top-line expansion: ‘Through continued emphasis on site efficiency and cost control throughout the business, the board is confident of a solid performance in 2026.’
The target for the coming year is to sustain ‘similar turnover levels’, with profitability improvements expected to come from tighter cost management and deeper penetration of non-residential sectors rather than any recovery in housebuilding starts. Detailed financial analysis of Roger Bullivant and other leading UK contractors is available through CN Intelligence, which tracks seven years of financial data across the specialist contracting sector.
