'Building' a future

We hear a lot in the media, on and off, about skills shortages in the UK. But what does it mean?

Well one of the sectors that has a considerable skills shortage, particularly with the government committing to build 300,000 new homes per year until the mid 2020’s, is construction.

The FMB (Federation of Master Builders), in its quarterly report on the state of the industry, found that companies are particularly struggling to recruit bricklayers and carpenters. Demand for skilled plumbers, electricians and plasterers are also outstripping supply.

“Skills shortages are skyrocketing, and it begs the question: who will build the new homes and infrastructure projects the Government is crying out for?” said Brian Berry, chief executive of the FMB. (The Telegraph)

To try and support this shortage the UK government has put £22 million into a Construction Skills Fund to bring training to construction sites (www.gov.uk).

On top of the Apprenticeship Levy, it is a big push to bring more skilled trade people to the industry.

It seems strange when I have been reading the different stories in the media that all of the emphasis is put on apprenticeships. There doesn’t seem to be mush recognition for the FE courses that are available.

On the flip side of this, when I have been in different secondary schools, I have seen that some offer some great courses in construction, where as others are quite minimal and virtually non-existent. Could making trade and manual courses compulsory at school be a way of helping the skills gap?

Although it is reported that most of the shortages are in bricklaying, carpenters, plumbers, electricians and plasterers (trades people), another part that isn’t recognised are the vast amount of other jobs that are in construction that are not trade. Architect, quantity surveyor, building surveyor, planning engineer, plant operative, technical inspector, and landscaper are some of the jobs that are rarely mentioned.

Therefore, would training young people in secondary school open them up to all of the job roles that are out there in the construction sector? Alternatively, should more emphasis be put on educating young people more efficiently in the variety of construction skills in secondary school and Further Education?

Clearly more needs to be done in the attempt to try and close this gap, but what will it be? Will the gap ever be closed, or will there be a severe backlog as the workers aren’t there to do it