CIOB reacts to UK Government's construction apprenticeship announcement

The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) has today welcomed the announcement of 5,000 additional construction apprenticeship places per year. 

David Barnes, Acting Head of Policy and Public Affairs at CIOB, said: “This is a welcomed move which aligns with CIOB’s long-standing calls for the Government to help address the construction skills gap in the UK to help deliver a sustainable and resilient construction industry with an assured pipeline of future skills. 

“We hope by establishing new skills hubs across the country, the Government can provide appropriate training for essential construction trades like bricklayers, roofers, plasterers and scaffolders which will help to deliver the ambitious housing targets set by the Government. 

“While we understand addressing the skills deficit is a time-sensitive issue, the gap is about capability as much as capacity. There is a lack of teachers with current practice knowledge, which only investment in training and better remuneration will solve. 

“We hope the Government will work closely with the construction industry to develop its course content, ensuring the right training is given – particularly in the shorter time frame. This will also be vital in ensuring we have the quality of homes consumers deserve.” 

Barnes urged the Government to also consider the high dropout rates for trade apprenticeships, which could rise in a shortened and more intense programme as outlined in these new plans. 

“Ultimately, while welcomed, this is by no means a complete solution to the housing plans, and there is still a long way to go to address the predicted shortfall of more than 250,000 workers needed to deliver construction output by 2028,” he added. 

“We hope policymakers will soon also focus on increasing the number of building control professionals and local planners to ensure planning applications can be approved speedily and that the rights checks are done to make sure the homes built are high quality.”