The UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in its quarterly national accounts published on 30 September that real GDP increased 0.5% in April to June 2026. The estimate was revised up by 0.1 percentage points from the first estimate; first-quarter growth was unchanged at 0.6%. Output increased in 13 of the 20 GDP subsectors in the latest quarter. Services grew 0.6%, revised up from the initial 0.5%, and construction expanded 0.8%. Production fell 0.1%, revised down from no change in the first estimate. The headline therefore reflects uneven growth across sectors rather than a uniform rise in activity.

Within services, business-facing activity grew 0.7% and consumer-facing activity 0.4%. Professional, scientific and technical activities rose 2.3%, while information and communication increased 2.5%, making them among the leading positive contributions. Education output fell 0.4%; the ONS linked this to school closures during hot weather in June, which reduced the non-market education component. Real GDP per head rose 0.5% over the quarter and 1.2% from a year earlier. The per-head measure divides total output by population. The ONS describes it as a proxy for the volume of goods and services available to an average person, not a direct measure of welfare.

The revisions reflected updated business survey returns, the first inclusion of VAT turnover data for the first quarter of 2026, a review of seasonal-adjustment models and updated industry weights. Nominal GDP increased 0.8%, while the implied GDP deflator rose 2.4% from a year earlier. That deflator covers broad domestic price movements across goods and services, not only consumer spending, and also reflects relative export and import prices. The figures are consistent with the Blue Book 2026 national-account revisions. The ONS cautioned that component estimates from 2025 onwards can remain uncertain until they are confronted through the supply-and-use tables framework. The reported rate is an official estimate and may be revised as more information becomes available.