The latest from the CITB Construction Skills Network (CSN) report

The latest CITB Construction Skills Network (CSN) report was released earlier in June. The data is used to provide insight and help forecast how the UK construction economy will change over the coming years. This includes looking at gaps in the workforce, skills, predicted industry changes and the growth in certain sectors and analysing against the current economic climate and macroeconomic backdrop.

The report highlighted significant recruitment and training challenges as the construction industry will grow and the needs of the industry will change in the period between now (14th June 2022, when the report was released) and 2026.

These highlighted trends include a need for additional skilled workers, and UK-wide growth across private housing, infrastructure, and the repair and maintenance sectors. 

“266,000 additional workers will be required to meet UK construction demand by 2026 (53,200 workers per year, up from last year's figure of 43,000)”

“UK-wide growth - All nine English regions plus Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are set to experience growth resulting in increased demand for workers”

“As demand soars most affected sectors: Private housing, Infrastructure, Repair and maintenance”

“2.78 million workers employed in construction industry by 2026 if projected growth is met.”

CSN Industry Outlook - 2022-2026

Job vacancies are at a record high

Construction Enquirer reports that the findings warned that with job vacancies at a record high, it will be a challenge for contractors to fill these vacancies and create the required highly-skilled workforce for the changing industry.

As mentioned in the figures above, an extra 266,000 workers will be needed to meet UK construction demand by 2026. Each year, that’s an extra 53,200. Whereas last year, an additional 43,000 workers were required.

In the South East region alone, the report cites that an extra 23,000 workers will be needed. This is due to a number of factors including growth rate, job creation, and growth drivers.

The volume of work in this region will grow by an average rate of 3.4% each year. When looking at the construction workforce in the region, it is expected to increase to 387,800 during this year and then grow to just over 400,000 by 2026. Main drivers for growth include plans for new community developments across the South East.

Increase in demand for specific roles

The CITB CSN report also identified that the largest increase in demand each year is expected to be for carpenters and joiners, construction managers, and a range of technical roles including electronics technicians, civil engineering technicians, estimators and valuers, and also staff that work in supporting roles based in the office.

“Construction is vital in supporting the backbone of the UK economy. These future growth projections are encouraging after the stalling effects of the pandemic. However, this is set against a current backdrop of higher energy costs, material shortages, and associated price inflation that is currently hitting companies across the sector.   

CITB CEO Tim Balcon