Source · Select Committees · Environmental Audit Committee
Recommendation 64
64
Accepted
Government has not adequately demonstrated future construction workforce skills for housing and environment targets
Conclusion
However, we are yet to be convinced that this alone will be enough. As the Government itself has acknowledged, the construction sector will be instrumental in meeting wider Government commitments. Recruiting new talent is essential but training takes time and, in the interim, the existing workforce is already overstretched but expected to increase output. We are concerned as to whether the Government has adequately demonstrated that the existing and future construction workforce will have the full range of skills needed to meet housing and environment targets. These skills include the ability to work with new materials, install a range of technologies, maximise the productivity of brownfield sites, use the latest digital tools, and have the knowledge and skills to interact with planning professionals and ecologists. (Conclusion, Paragraph 217)
Government Response Summary
The government describes existing actions to address skills gaps in the construction sector, including skills assessments, a Construction Jobs Plan, funding for skills, and investment in home upgrades, in response to concerns about the workforce's ability to meet housing and environmental targets.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
116. Skills England regularly publishes assessments of priority skills needed across the economy to 2030, across 10 critical sectors including construction and housebuilding. The most recent assessment of labour demand, published in August 2025, sets out the additional construction workforce needed to deliver 1.5m homes over the Parliament. These reports focus on additional labour demand. Natural workforce growth or wastage in the construction sector have been assessed separately in the industry training boards review published in January 2025. The Government is also developing a Construction Jobs Plan that will set out actions and commitments to address sector shortages. 117. The Government is working closely with industry to provide high-quality training opportunities and build a competent, diverse workforce that is fit for the future. The June 2025 Spending Review provided an additional £1.2 billion for the overall skills system per year by 2028–29, supporting 65,000 additional learners per year by 2028–29, including in construction. At Spring Statement 2025 the Government also committed £625 million for construction skills to recruit an additional 60,000 construction workers by 2028–29 and establish 10 new Technical Excellence Colleges. 118. The Government’s investment in growing and upskilling the construction workforce will help ensure the sector has the skills needed to operate safely, competently and more efficiently, including on brownfield sites and working with sustainable and lower carbon building materials. The Government’s construction product reforms will further support competence and complement wider government and industry initiatives. 119. A robust, competent supply chain for installing fabric and clean heat measures is essential for retrofitting existing housing stock and supporting new housing delivery and infrastructure. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero published a Warm Homes Plan in January 2026 setting out its plans to invest £15bn in home upgrades and estimating the number of jobs that will be created and supported across the heat and buildings sector. Building on this, and alongside the Clean Energy Jobs Plan published in September 2025, the Government has made a series of policy commitments to address both existing and emerging skills gaps in the sector, with implementation scheduled for this Parliament. 120. In 2025, MHCLG commissioned a nationwide pulse survey on skills and resources in authorities with planning responsibilities. The survey was designed to refresh our evidence base and provide updated figures on key workforce metrics. It also enables comparison with the baseline established through the 2023 survey. The findings are being used to shape future priorities and guide the strategic direction of the Planning Capacity and Capability Programme, ensuring our interventions address the most critical skills and resource gaps.