JCT 2024: What Practitioners Need to Know

7 June 2026 · 5 min read · Contract Update

The JCT 2024 suite represents the most significant overhaul of the UK's most widely used construction contract family since the 2016 edition. With Lupton's practice guides now available for the principal forms and the 2016 edition increasingly difficult to rely on for new procurements, the transition window is narrowing.

What's Changed?

The 2024 suite retains the familiar nine-family structure — from Minor Works through to the Design and Build Contract — but introduces substantive changes that reflect a decade of regulatory and commercial shift:

• Building safety provisions — new clauses align the contracts with the Building Safety Act 2022, including references to higher-risk building controls and gateway requirements during construction.
• Electronic communications and digital signing — the suite formally recognises electronic signatures and digital document management, removing the ambiguity that required side letters under the 2016 edition.
• Collaborative working clauses — enhanced provisions encouraging early contractor involvement, information sharing, and joint problem-solving rather than the traditional adversarial posture.
• Sustainability references — new wording on environmental performance, waste management, and low-carbon material options, reflecting industry net-zero commitments.
• Insolvency reforms — updated termination provisions reflecting changes to insolvency law, particularly around the treatment of sub-contractor insolvency and assignment of performance bonds.
• New target cost contract option — a pain/gain sharing mechanism within the Constructing Excellence family, offering a genuine alternative to fixed-price approaches for complex or uncertain scope.

The JCT 2024 suite isn't a rewrite of individual clauses in isolation — it's a coordinated response to a profession that has moved on. Building safety, digital delivery, and collaborative procurement are now mainstream expectations, not bolt-ons.

Lupton Practice Guides

Lupton published updated practice guides in November 2025 covering the Minor Works (MW), Design and Build (DB), and Intermediate Building Contract (IBC) 2024 forms. These remain the definitive companion references for day-to-day contract administration — covering amendment interpretation, completion requirements, loss and expense provisions, and dispute resolution procedures.

Retentions: Watch This Space

The 2024 suite retains the existing retention framework, but JCT has signalled that retentions reform is under active review. The Construction Act amendments and ongoing BEIS consultation on retention protection schemes may trigger supplementary amendments. For now, our advice is to continue using the current retention clauses but flag potential change in subcontract negotiation strategy.

When to Adopt

There's no statutory deadline for migrating to the 2024 suite, but there are clear triggers:

• New projects — adopt 2024 as default. The building safety clauses alone justify the switch on residential schemes over 18m.
• Existing framework agreements — review whether they reference 2016 edition amendments that need updating before the next call-off.
• Pipeline procurements — any tender issued from now should specify the 2024 suite to avoid re-issuing documents mid-process.

Practical Steps Now

1. Review current contracts — identify live projects on 2016 edition forms and assess whether any variation or extension presents an opportunity to transition to the 2024 suite.
2. Update precedent libraries — amend standard tender documents, subcontract templates, and contract appendix schedules to reference the 2024 suite. Don't forget about subcontractor collateral warranties.
3. Train your team — brief project managers, quantity surveyors, and contract administrators on the key clause changes. The electronic signing provisions and building safety clauses have the most immediate day-to-day impact.
4. Check subcontracts — ensure your preferred subcontract templates are back-to-back with the 2024 main contract amendments, particularly on insolvency, termination, and dispute resolution.
5. Transition new projects systematically — adopt the 2024 suite for all new procurements. For schemes already in tender, assess whether re-issuing on the 2024 suite outweighs the delay cost.

Sources: JCT 2024 suite (Joint Contracts Tribunal); Lupton Practice Guides for JCT 2024 MW, DB and IBC (2025); Clarion Solicitors JCT 2024 analysis (2025); LexisNexis contract commentary (2025); Construction News JCT 2024 coverage (2025). This article is for general guidance only and does not constitute legal advice.