Source · Select Committees · Energy Security and Net Zero Committee
Recommendation 22
22
Accepted
Incorporate digital skills and modern construction methods into workforce planning for productivity.
Recommendation
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)
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the recommendation, committing to review the system of standards, oversight, and protections for energy efficiency installations, consult on simplifying the system, and review PAS standards to broaden the definition of competence to ensure installations are completed correctly and reflect evolving practices.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The government agrees with this recommendation. In January 2025, as part of the Warm Homes Plan, the government announced it would review the system of standards, oversight and protections for energy efficiency and microgeneration installations (such as heat pumps, solar panels and batteries). The National Audit Office’s (NAO) Review into energy efficiency installations under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) found that the system created by government to oversee ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme installations was overly complex, with unclear and fragmented roles, responsibilities and accountabilities. The NAO recommended that the consumer protection and quality assurance system should be reformed to empower consumers, clarify roles and responsibilities across the system. And improve government oversight and accountability. The government is working to address these recommendations. Our approach to system reforms was outlined in the Warm Homes Plan. Our first priority is to deliver a system of consumer protections that is simple for consumers and installers to navigate. The fragmented landscape makes it hard for consumers to understand, and places significant burdens on installers. It requires certification and registration with a range of quality assurance bodies, increasing administrative burden and cost, without always delivering the oversight and support to ensure installations are completed right first time. As set out in the Warm Homes Plan, we will consult on options to simplify the system for consumers and installers, working with the government’s Retrofit System Reform Advisory Panel, to test and develop proposals. Furthermore, the government recognises the importance of competence and its link to skills. As outlined in the Warm Homes Plan, the government, in its review of the PAS standard, will consider how the definition of competence for PAS roles could be broadened beyond qualifications, without compromising on safety and quality. The government aims to better align to the dutyholder and competency regime set out under the Building Safety Act 2022 and the construction industry’s wider position on competence where skills, knowledge, experience and behaviour are holistically assessed. This approach will create clearer competence frameworks for retrofit roles and support the skills system in developing more robust training standards and pathways.