Barratt Developments will scrap its interim dividend as it commits to further asset writedowns and focuses on reducing debt.

The house builder also announced that Mark Pain, finance director, will step down in June.

Barratt did not say by how much it would write down its assets but it has only written down £225m, or about 5% of gross asset value, so far and some analysts suggested it could be forced to take additional provisions of £1.2bn over the next three years.

Barratt’s focus on improving cash flow has also led it to caution that margins will be squeezed in the coming year by between 2 and 3 percentage points.

Financial Times, The Times, Daily Telegraph