Interim Results

Bellway PLC
4 April 2001

NATIONAL HOUSEBUILDER BELLWAY p.l.c. TODAY (WEDNESDAY 4 APRIL 2001) ANNOUNCE
THEIR INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE HALF YEAR ENDED 31 JANUARY 2001

THE CHAIRMAN SAID ' ....... TRADING RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS TO 31 JANUARY
2001 ARE AT RECORD LEVELS ...... MARKET CONDITIONS ARE GOOD AND THERE IS A
HIGH LEVEL OF INTEREST FROM HOMEBUYERS'

HIGHLIGHTS
                                             Half Year       Half Year
                                              Ended 31        Ended 31
                                               January         January
                                                  2001            2000
Turnover                                        £278 m           £249m    +12%
Homes sold                                       2,269           2,197     +3%
Average selling price                         £117,900        £106,000    +11%
Operating profit                               £37.5 m          £32.9m    +14%
Operating margin                                 13.5%           13.2%     +2%
Profit before tax                               £35.1m          £30.4m    +15%
Dividend per ordinary share                       4.1p            3.6p    +14%
Ordinary dividend cover                           5.3x            5.2x     +2%
Basic earnings per ordinary share                21.8p           18.8p    +16%
Net borrowings                                  £86.1m          £17.5m
Shareholders' funds                            £355.7m         £305.4m    +16%
Net asset value per ordinary share                307p            262p    +17%

                                BELLWAY p.l.c.

                             CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

Interim Results & Dividend

I am delighted to report that the trading results for the six months to 31
January 2001 are at record levels. We sold 2,269 homes at an average price of
£117,900 as against 2,197 homes at an average price of £106,000 in the
previous comparable period. Turnover rose by 12% to £278 million and operating
profit of £37.5 million increased by 14% which was assisted by an improved
operating margin of 13.5%. Profit before tax for the half year rose by 15% to
£35.1 million, a new high.

Basic earnings per ordinary share rose 16% to 21.8p and the directors are
pleased to declare an interim dividend of 4.1p per ordinary share, an increase
of 14% over last year's interim dividend reflecting the directors' confidence
in the future prospects of the Group. This dividend will be paid on Monday 2
July 2001 to all ordinary shareholders who are on the Register of Members on
Friday 8 June 2001.

Trading & Outlook

Market conditions are good and there is a high level of interest from
homebuyers. However, your Group's rate of progress is being tempered by a lack
of availability of homes to sell. This is due to delays in the anticipated
start dates of new developments caused by the protracted planning system and
further exacerbated by the weather. Consequently the number of homes sold this
year is expected to be at a similar level to last year's record performance
but with higher selling prices.

Given the strength of the market and our attention to satisfying the needs of
the customer, we are confident for the future. It is particularly encouraging
that the gentle upward trend in margins in recent years is continuing which
should result in another excellent year with record profits at least in line
with market expectations.

The recent consolidation in the industry is generating opportunities to
acquire both land and additional skilled staff. This should enable us to
continue our policy of steady organic growth. We are in a very strong position
both structurally and financially to take advantage of any opportunities as
they arise. Expansion is key to Bellway's philosophy and we are determined to
continue to focus on maximising the return on capital employed and operating
margin, both of which are amongst the highest in the industry.

We continue to examine technological advances both on site and in the office.
In our perpetual quest to reduce costs, we are reviewing our methods of
construction and we are also part of a joint initiative with suppliers and
other housebuilders to progress development of B2B E-commerce in the
housebuilding industry. This initiative should enable us to exchange orders
and invoices electronically throughout the supply chain, thus improving
efficiency.

Land with Planning Permission

Your Board plans to expand and strengthen the landbank even further in order
to continue our enviable growth record. Our land buying policy continues to be
focused on mixed use developments in urban areas and we are confident that our
shareholders will continue to reap the benefits of this strategy in the
future.

At 31 January 2001 our land portfolio with planning permission had increased
to 16,500 residential plots from 15,500 at 1 August 2000. This was achieved
despite the difficult planning climate and contributed to borrowings
increasing to £86.1 million from £17.5 million.

In addition, at 31 January 2001 we had 3,900 plots owned or contracted where
planning permission should be forthcoming in the short term. This figure
excludes our substantial land holdings at Barking and our long term strategic
land where we continue to increase the number of plots allocated in emerging
local plans.

Due to our increased focus on mixed use developments, we are involved in more
commercial development which will be a growing source of revenue for us in the
future.

Customers & Employees

We operate in a people business and customer satisfaction is our goal. Our
recently expanded and improved Customer Care and Financial Services functions
are further advances in this area. We continue to invest in training and this
long term process will deliver rewards for all.

As ever, we could not have achieved these excellent results without the
loyalty, dedication and hard work of all our employees and I sincerely thank
them on behalf of the Board and shareholders for their efforts.



                                                                      H C Dawe
                                                                      Chairman

3 April 2001



FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT JOHN WATSON, GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE OR
ALAN ROBSON, GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR

WEDNESDAY 4 APRIL AT ING BARINGS, 60 LONDON WALL, LONDON EC2M 5TQ - TEL: 020
7767 1000 OR 0831 331191 (J WATSON - MOBILE) & 07775 732493 (A ROBSON -
MOBILE)

THURSDAY 5 APRIL 0831 331191 & 07775 732493

THEREAFTER 0191 217 0717

                                 BELLWAY p.l.c.
                         GROUP PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT
                                                 Half year  Half year      Year
                                                        to         to     ended
                                                31 January 31 January   31 July
                                                      2001       2000      2000
                                                        £m         £m        £m
Turnover                                             277.8      249.4     634.3
                                                      ====       ====      ====
Operating profit                                      37.5       32.9      95.6
Net interest payable (including associated             2.4        2.5       6.5
undertakings)
                                                     _____      _____     _____
Profit on ordinary activities before taxation         35.1       30.4      89.1
Taxation                                              10.5        9.1      27.2
                                                     _____      _____     _____
Profit on ordinary activities after taxation          24.6       21.3      61.9
Dividends on equity and non-equity shares              5.5        4.9      15.4
                                                     _____      _____     _____
Retained profit                                       19.1       16.4      46.5
                                                      ====       ====      ====
Dividend per preference share                        4.75p      4.75p     4.75p
Dividend per ordinary share                           4.1p       3.6p     12.4p
Earnings per ordinary share - basic                  21.8p      18.8p     55.4p
Earnings per ordinary share - diluted                21.7p      18.7p     55.3p


                                BELLWAY p.l.c.
                             GROUP BALANCE SHEET
                                                At             At          At
                                                31             31          31
                                           January        January        July
                                              2001           2000        2000
                                      £m        £m   £m        £m   £m     £m
Fixed assets
Tangible assets                               13.9           14.0        14.8
Investments                                    2.1            2.0         2.2
                                             _____          _____       _____
                                              16.0           16.0        17.0
Current assets
Stocks                              599.4           544.1           508.5
Debtors                              18.8            24.5            14.2
Cash at bank and in hand                -               -            37.5
                                    _____           _____           _____
                                    618.2           568.6           560.2
                                    _____           _____           _____
Creditors due within one year
Bank borrowings                      31.1            39.0               -
Other creditors                     179.8           157.7           167.7
                                    _____           _____           _____
Net current assets                           407.3          371.9       392.5
                                             _____          _____       _____
Total assets less current                    423.3          387.9       409.5
liabilities
Creditors due after more than one
year
Bank borrowings                      55.0            55.0            55.0
Other creditors                      12.6            27.5            18.6
                                    _____           _____           _____
                                              67.6           82.5        73.6
                                             _____          _____       _____
NET ASSETS                                   355.7          305.4       335.9
                                              ====           ====        ====
Capital and reserves
Called up share capital                       33.7           33.6        33.6
Reserves and share premium                   322.0          271.8       302.3
                                             _____          _____       _____
SHAREHOLDERS' FUNDS                          355.7          305.4       335.9
                                              ====           ====        ====

The interim accounts were approved by the Board of Drectors on 3 April 2001.

The interim accounts have been prepared on the basis of the accounting
policies adopted for the year ended 31 July 2000 in all material respects.
These policies are detailed in the company's Annual Report and Accounts for
that year.

The taxation charge is calculated by applying the directors' best estimate of
the annual effective tax rate to the profit for the period.

The financial information for the two half year periods is unaudited and does
not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of the Companies Act
1985. The figures relating to the year ended 31 July 2000 are an extract from
statutory accounts within the meaning of section 240 of the Companies Act
1985 which have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and on which the
auditors gave an unqualified audit report.




                                BELLWAY p.l.c.
                          GROUP CASH FLOW STATEMENT

                                           Half Year     Half Year        Year
                                            Ended 31      Ended 31    ended 31
                                             January       January        July
                                                2001          2000        2000
                                            £m    £m     £m     £m    £m    £m
Cash (outflow) / inflow from operating         (46.2)        (28.7)        75.6
activities
Net cash (outflow) / inflow from returns
on investments
and servicing of finance
Interest paid                            (2.7)        (2.8)        (7.2)
Interest received                          0.7          0.4          0.8
Dividends paid - non-equity              (0.9)        (0.9)        (1.9)
                                         ______       _______        _______
                                               (2.9)         (3.3)       (8.3)
Taxation                                       (9.9)         (5.8)       (22.7)
Net cash (outflow) / inflow from capital
expenditure
and financial investment
Purchase of tangible fixed assets        (1.0)        (2.8)        (5.8)
Sale of tangible fixed assets              0.2          0.5          1.1
                                         ______       _______        _______
                                               (0.8)         (2.3)       (4.7)
Equity dividends paid                          (9.4)         (8.7)       (12.6)
                                               ______        _______    _______
Net cash (outflow) / inflow before             (69.2)        (48.8)        27.3
financing
Net cash inflow from financing
Issue of ordinary share capital on
exercise
of share options                                 0.6           0.1         0.6
                                               ______        _______    _______
(Decrease) / Increase in cash in period        (68.6)        (48.7)        27.9
                                               =====         =====       =====