A shortage of quantity surveyors threatens the pace of recovery in the housing construction industry, according to the latest three-month survey.

The recovery in east London and elsewhere is being hampered by a third of the companies surveyed by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors believing there are not enough surveyors to meet demand in the private and commercial sectors.

“The industry must make sure it can capitalise on opportunities now it is experiencing an upturn in work,” the Royal Institute’s Built Environment director Alan Muse urged. “What we are seeing is the impact of skills shortages where companies failed to invest in new talent or training employees at the height of the economic downturn.”

But confidence is returning to the market, revealed by the fastest growth in new contracts in London since the construction market survey began 10 years ago.

The recovery will see 62,000 new jobs over the next 12 months in the industry, the survey forecasts—but the benefits will be felt across Britain, it suggests, rather than exclusively in the hotspots in London and the South East.