In a trading update issued yesterday, the Elgin-headquartered group said it had been encouraged by the early indications of a return in homebuyer confidence north of the Border, with inflation easing back and the Bank of England holding interest rates for two consecutive months.

Springfield also revealed it is on track to meet its target of reducing net bank debt to around £55 million by the end of May. As of November 30 2023, the firm had net bank debt totalling £94m, up from £61.8m on May 31 this year.

Despite the sentiment, the group said demand in the private housing market continued to be impacted by high interest rates, mortgage affordability and reduced homebuyer confidence during its half-year to November 30. This led to lower completions and reservations than in H1 2023.

It hailed a revival of affordable housing contracts on “more secure terms”, while demand in private housing remained “stable but subdued”, it added.

Further down the line, it expects to benefit from increased demand for new homes in the Highlands to support Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport.

It also highlighted chronic housing shortages and the declaration of housing emergencies in other parts of Scotland as another likely driver of future growth.

“We expect demand to grow, given the mounting political and media focus on undersupply across all tenures, with three local authorities declaring housing emergencies,” the housebuilder said.

Springfield told investors: “The fundamentals of the business and of the housing market in Scotland remain strong. There is an undersupply of housing across all tenures, which is becoming more acute - as evidenced by three local authorities, including Edinburgh and Glasgow councils, recently declaring housing emergencies.

“The group offers high quality, energy efficient homes in popular locations across the country and it has an excellent track record of delivering developments exclusively dedicated to affordable housing.

“This is further supported by the group having one of the largest land banks in Scotland, with circa 6,500 owned plots and strategic options over a further 3,255 acres, equating to circa 33,000 plots as at November 30.”