Insulated Laminate Dry Lining – cost per m² – UK 2026 Rate Guide

Budget rate for supply & lay · typical budget rate before your adjustments

Labour, plant, materials, outputs and waste — yours to edit, as an Excel. Three free.

Rates are UK national (non-London): central London and constrained urban sites typically run dearer — adjust the labour, plant and access lines in the build-up accordingly.

Insulated laminate lining — thermal board to masonry

per m² · supply & lay

£63 – £126 / m²

What is it

The supply and fixing of an insulated laminate (thermal-board) dry lining to a masonry background — a 62.5 mm board (50 mm rigid PIR insulation factory-bonded to a 12.5 mm tapered-edge plasterboard face) dot-and-dabbed to the wall, pinned back with secondary mechanical fixings, taped and finished with a 2–3 mm multi-finish skim — priced per m² of wall. Insulated laminate boards are the mainstream way to thermally upgrade a solid or under-performing masonry wall from the inside without building a separate frame. This rate prices the DABBED lining to a sound masonry wall — the freestanding/independent (battened or metal-framed) lining used on a damp or uneven wall is a separate build. The rate carries three operations:

Dab & fix — the insulated laminate board set out and dot-and-dabbed to the masonry in drywall adhesive.
Pin back — secondary mechanical nailable plugs drilled & driven through the board into the masonry (mandatory on adhesive-bonded thermal boards).
Tape & skim — joints scrimmed & beaded and a 2–3 mm two-pass multi-finish skim taken to a decorating finish.

Rate range

Low£63 – £81 / m²

Typical£78 – £101 / m²

High£98 – £126 / m²

Budget rate per m².

3 key cost drivers

Wall area & complexity

A large, square wall with clear access dabs fastest; many openings, reveals, returns, service chases or restricted access add cutting, dabbing and fixing time. It is a key driver of the labour per m².

Board spec & thickness

A 62.5 mm board (50 mm PIR) is the priced default. Thicker boards (72.5/92.5 mm), phenolic or EPS-backed boards for a given U-value, or a freestanding battened/framed lining on a damp wall are different builds at different material cost and output — priced separately. It is a key driver of both material cost and speed.

Location

London and the South East typically add around 20% to labour.

Estimator

Budget rate generator

£78 – £101 / m²

Covers the insulated laminate board, adhesive, mechanical fixings, skim & sundries, the drylining gang and O&P · excl. the freestanding framed lining, substrate/damp repairs, decoration, scaffold & VAT

Exclusions

Lifting & material distribution — telehandler / forklift, hoist and site-distribution labour (an attendance, in main-contractor prelims)
The freestanding / independent (battened or metal-framed) thermal lining, and substrate / damp-proofing repairs to the wall behind
Mist coat & decoration, making good to others’ work, and access / scaffold
Scaffold supply (usually in preliminaries)
Preliminaries — main-contractor site set-up, management & welfare
VAT