Roofing Sector Voices Shape Key Small Business Reform Recommendations

NFRC Welcomes Small Business Strategy Report and Recognition of Roofing Sector Evidence 

The National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC) welcomes the publication of the Business and Trade Committee’s Small Business Strategy report and strongly supports many of its recommendations to strengthen the UK’s small business environment. 

The report reflects several key issues raised directly to the cross-party committee by NFRC and its Members, particularly around fair payment, procurement reform, skills, and administrative burden. It is encouraging to see construction SMEs, including roofing contractors, considered within the Committee’s findings and recommendations. 

NFRC now urges Government to act on the report’s strongest recommendations and translate them into practical reforms that support the firms on the ground who are essential to tackling the UK’s housing, retrofit, and growth crises. 

Acknowledgement of Payment Issues 

NFRC strongly supports the Committee’s recommendation that, until new legislation is introduced, the Fair Payment Code should become the minimum expectation for all firms with more than 250 employees, rather than remaining voluntary. 

This recommendation was informed in part by evidence from NFRC Member Paul Brain, Managing Director of Ashcroft Services and chair of NFRC’s South West committee, who explained that voluntary payment codes have had a very limited impact in construction because too few large contractors sign up. Paul gave evidence to the committee in July 2025. 

The Committee also recommended that Government accelerate late payment legislation and mandate 30-day payment terms by the end of this Parliament, a position NFRC has consistently championed on behalf of Members one which Members also made clear to Department for Business and Trade officials during last year's consultation on late payment. 

Paul told the committee that payment periods of 90 days after invoice submission remain common in construction, which appears to have influenced the Committee’s support for stronger use of Project Bank Accounts, as already provided for in the Construction Playbook and Procurement Act 2023. 

It is also welcome to see retention payments, a long-standing NFRC concern, clearly recognised in the report, with Paul’s evidence helping to underline the scale of the problem for specialist contractors. However, it was disappointing that the committee did not make any stronger recommendations on abolishing retentions, NFRC’s official position, though this could be because retentions are construction specific, and the report was focused on the wider economy.  

Cutting Administrative Burden on Small Firms 

NFRC is pleased that the Committee acknowledged evidence from our submission highlighting that some small construction firms are now spending more time on paperwork than on their trade. 

The report calls on Government to reduce the administrative burden of the tax system and to carry out a baseline assessment of SME tax compliance costs. This is a significant and practical step that could lead to meaningful simplification for small contractors, allowing them to crack on with their trade. 

Strengthening Careers Engagement and Skills Pathways 

The report also reflects NFRC Member evidence on how construction careers are presented to young people. 

Josh Clarke, Director and Contracts Manager at Clarke Roofing Southern Ltd and a Member of NFRC’s London and Southern Counties Committee, told the Committee in September 2025 that roofing often sits “down low” in the hierarchy of jobs promoted in schools. His experience, including mentoring sessions where pupils were selected because they were considered “not great academically”, helped inform the Committee’s recommendations on careers advice reform. 

NFRC strongly welcomes the Committee’s recommendations that: 

• Careers services in primary and secondary schools should be embedded within Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs), and 

• The local skills system must properly connect with the advice young people receive at school. 

Programmes across the UK led by NFRC Members already demonstrate the value of early engagement. NFRC Members across the UK who engage with schools consistently share inspiring success stories and see a direct impact in their communities. This must be scaled up. With CITB continuing to highlight high attrition rates in construction training routes, early engagement is more important than ever. 

Josh also shocked the committee by sharing that his apprentices were having to travel from Eastbourne to Leytonstone to complete their training. Since then, his business Clarke Roofing has led work to improve training provision in the South East, with East Sussex College set to begin offering a roofing apprenticeship in slating and tiling later in 2026. 

Better SME Skills Data and SME Engagement 

NFRC also welcomes the recommendation that Skills England’s business plan should include specific metrics for engaging SMEs and produce detailed regional skills shortage forecasts by industry and area, backed by clear commissioning plans.  

Trade associations such as NFRC provide a proven route for Government and delivery bodies like Skills England to engage SMEs at both national scale and local level. Our Membership networks and regional structures allow for direct, practical engagement with the firms delivering work on the ground. 

Influencing Upcoming Government Reforms 

NFRC hopes the Committee’s recommendations will shape the Government’s approach in upcoming reforms and consultations they are yet to publish the results from, including: 

• Further public procurement reform 

• New legislation to tackle late payment practices 

Aligning these reforms with the Committee’s findings would deliver immediate and practical benefits for construction SMEs at a pivotal time for the UK construction industry and wider economy.  

Construction-Specific Cautions 

While NFRC welcomes most of the report’s recommendations, we also encourage Government to consider construction-specific impacts if implementing some of the recommended reforms. 

In particular: 

• Any VAT reform must fully consider construction supply chains, reverse charge VAT, and cashflow impacts — not only consumer service sectors. 

• Procurement reform must focus on how SMEs are treated in delivery across supply chains, not only whether they appear in headline spend statistics. 

• Retention reform should go further — NFRC continues to call for the abolition of retention clauses. 

NFRC: Continuing to Champion Roofing SMEs 

NFRC is proud that Member evidence and sector insight helped shape this report. It represents a positive step forward in recognising both the pressures facing small construction firms and the practical reforms needed to support them. 

We will continue working with Government, Parliament, and industry partners to ensure roofing contractors are better supported to grow, invest, and deliver for the UK. 

If you have wish to have further involvement in ongoing work towards the abolition of retention clauses or the advancement of roofing careers advice into schools, please email Gray Gibson, Policy Officer.