Reporting on the trading period from 1 February to 5 June, Bellway said it had an ‘encouraging start to the second half of the financial year’, achieving an average rate of 196 homes reserved per week, an increase of 8% on the same period last year.

The UK’s fourth largest house builder said that high levels of demand and good accessibility to mortgage finance meant it was able to increase its average selling price by 10%, from £223,821 last year.

The quarterly report said that, notwithstanding the uncertainty surrounding the impending EU referendum, the group has not experienced any noticeable effect on trading, with customer confidence continuing to be strong and the cancellation rate remaining low at just 11%, compared to a rate of 10% in 2015.

This is in contrast with recent research which found May to have been the worst month for construction in the UK for three years.

Ted Ayres, Bellway chief executive, said the ‘continued positive trading environment, the availability of good quality land opportunities and disciplined investment in an expanding divisional structure are enabling Bellway to continue delivering ongoing volume growth’.

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“This strategy for growth, together with a focus on return on capital employed, should lead to another record performance in the year ending 31 July 2016, resulting in further value creation for shareholders,” said Ayres.

The housebuilder also reported an increase in the use of the government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme in London, with reservations through the programme accounting for 14% of Bellway’s bookings in the capital, up from 4% in 2015.

Overall, the group reported strong a forward sales position keeping it on target to deliver at least a 10% growth in volume in the current financial year, ending on 31 July.