More than 12,000 new homes were registered to be built in the UK in February according to the National House-Building Council’s (NHBC) latest registration statistics.

February’s total of 12,181 (9,632 private sector; 2,549 public sector) represented a 4% increase on February 2015 (11,674 overall - 9,129 private sector; 2,545 public sector). Growth came entirely from the private sector, which saw an increase of 6% compared to the same period last year.

There were 33,251 new home registrations in the rolling quarter (December 2015 – February 2016). This represented a fall of 8% on the same period 12 months ago, signalling a slow start to the year.

By contrast, the number of completions continues to rise, up 6% on the same period 12 months ago.

Commenting on the latest figures, NHBC chief executive Mike Quinton, said: “February’s new home registration figures demonstrate steady levels of house-building activity. Despite a slow overall start to the year, industry confidence remains high and house builders are progressing well with their plans for growth in 2016, as seen by the increase in the number of new home completions.

“As last week’s Budget showed, house building is still a top priority for the government and NHBC is committed to supporting the industry to provide the high-quality new homes people so desperately need.”