Tradespersons who have taken plumbing or electrician training courses could find that their employment prospects receive a boost over the next year.

According to Nick Whitten, associate editor at Construction News, confidence has begun to grow in the house building sector, which could lead to thousands of jobs being made available to workers needed to fit out new properties.

"We are expecting house builders to hire something like 10,000 people this year and the supply chain that works with them [will be] probably another three times that," Mr Whitten explained.

He added that the mood among companies of this kind is far more upbeat than six months ago.

"There are positive signs," he said.

His comments came after research by the Federation of Master Builders found that 44 per cent of its small to medium-sized member firms expect their workload to decrease in the first quarter of the year.

Only 18 per cent anticipate an increase in this period of time.

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