Recommendation 22

In addition to increasing the overall number of workers, we recognise that productivity improvements and new working practices will be essential to meet the scale of labour demand identified in this Report. Evidence submitted on the sheer volume of work required, including retrofitting most UK homes to EPC C by 2035 and delivering 1.5 million new homes and 5 million retrofits, with at least a quarter of a million additional workers needed for new build alone, suggests that relying solely on headcount growth will be challenging. The Government’s workforce planning should therefore explicitly consider how digital skills, new technologies and modern methods of construction can help increase productivity, improve quality and reduce bottlenecks, particularly in off-site manufacture, design, surveying, grid connection and project management. Skills England and the Office for 50 Clean Energy Jobs should work with industry to ensure that occupational standards and training provision reflect these evolving practices. (Recommendation, Paragraph 94)