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Calls to ‘surge’ government funds for social landlords to tackle construction skills crisis
The government should “surge” grant funding for social landlords during downturns in private housebuilding in order to smooth demand and alleviate the construction skills crisis, a new report has argued.
Calls to ‘surge’ government funds for social landlords to tackle construction skills crisis #UKhousingThe report, published by Labour-linked thinktank the Fabian Society, also called on the government to introduce minimum training requirements under the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP).
It warned that a construction skills crisis risks derailing government ambitions to build 1.5 million homes.
There are 37,000 vacancies across the sector that are unfilled due to a lack of skilled workers, the report said, with the number of such “skills shortage vacancies” increasing fivefold since 2011.
Along with calling for measures to attract and retain more workers, the Fabian Society also called for reform of the sector to “address the root causes of the crisis”.
This included moving to a “counter-cyclical model for delivering social housing”, given that the sector currently suffers from “excessive cyclicality” due to the volatility of the housebuilding market.
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“Periodic sharp downturns lead to many workers leaving the sector, and unpredictable demand makes it difficult for businesses to make long-term investments in skills,” the Fabian Society said.
The report added: “During downturns in private housebuilding and the wider construction sector, the Social and Affordable Homes Programme should surge investment through local authorities and housing associations, in partnership with the private sector, enabling them to bring forward developments with a high proportion of social housing.”
It pointed out that while the SAHP sets requirements relating to tenure, quality and design, it does not set out any expectations for the provision of training as part of developments funded using grant.
The report said: “This is a missed opportunity. The government should introduce minimum training requirements for developments funded through the Social and Affordable Homes Programme.
“These should set out the minimum expected level of social value related to employment and training, including a reasonable minimum number of apprenticeship weeks per £1m of grant.”
The Fabian Society warned that the construction skills crisis is set to escalate, with more than one in three workers aged over 50, meaning 700,000 are due to retire by the early 2040s.
Tighter migration rules implemented under the current government will also hit the sector hard, the report said.
It called for a cross-government strategy to tackle the crisis, including action to support small and medium-sized developers to train more workers via a new grant, to support out-of-work skilled workers back into the industry, and to improve the use of Section 106 to drive investment in apprenticeships.
Joe Dromey, general secretary of the Fabian Society, said: “The shortage of skilled workers may soon become the major factor limiting our ability to deliver on the government’s ambitions [for] housebuilding and clean energy commitments.
“The construction skills package announced last year was a welcome step forward. However, the sheer scale of the crisis demands bolder action.
“We need to boost apprenticeships, to retain workers in the sector, and to address the structural drivers of the construction skills crisis. Only then will we ensure we have the skilled workforce required to build the homes and infrastructure we desperately need.”
David Campbell, chief operating officer at the National House Building Council (NHBC), said the report is “a wake-up call”.
He added: “We simply do not have the workforce to build the homes this country needs, putting housing targets at real risk. The sector needs an additional 239,300 people by 2029 just to keep up.
“Building 10,000 homes alone requires 2,500 bricklayers, 2,500 groundworkers and 1,000 carpenters. Right now, those people are not there.”
Mr Campbell pointed to the NHBC’s £100m investment in a national network of 12 multi-skill training hubs, which will train up to 3,000 apprentices a year.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been contacted for comment.
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