UK ‘doesn’t have enough builders’ for Labour’s 1.5m homes
public mediaIndustry leaders have warned that the UK does not have enough construction workers to build the 1.5 million homes promised by the government.
They told the BBC tens of thousands of new workers in bricklaying, foundation work and carpentry would be needed to get close to the target.
The House Builders Federation (HBF) and Barratt Redrow, the UK’s largest housebuilder, said skills shortages, aging workers and Brexit were some of the factors contributing to the shrinking workforce.
The government confirmed there was a “critical shortage” of construction workers but said it was “taking steps to rectify” the problem.
Last week, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer reiterated a pledge he made shortly after coming to power to build 1.5 million new homes in England by 2029.
On Thursday, he released a comprehensive Changes to the planning system and a vow to overcome “barriers” to the construction of new homes.
Labor wants to build more houses to bring down house prices and make buying and renting a home more affordable, especially for young people.
The aim is to build an average of 300,000 new homes a year – the average in recent years is around 220,000.
According to the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), the current workforce is estimated at 2.67 million people.
But for every 10,000 new homes built, the industry needs around 30,000 new workers across 12 trades, according to HBF, the industry body for the housebuilding industry in England and Wales.
For example, according to the government’s plan, the number of new workers needed in some common industries is expected to be:
- 20,000 bricklayers
- 2,400 plumbers
- 8,000 carpenters
- 3,200 plasterers
- 20,000 ground staff
- 1,200 cultivators
- 2,400 electricians
- 2,400 roofers
- 480 engineers
HBF said that while the industry “has the capacity to reach current levels of construction, tens of thousands of new staff will need to be recruited if we are to meet our targets”.
Asked whether there were currently enough workers to build the extra homes, Barratt Redrow chief executive David Thomas said: “The short answer is no.”
He told the BBC the government would have to “radically change the market, radically change planning, radically change production methods” to achieve its targets.
“They are challenging targets and I think we have to recognize this is a national crisis,” Mr Thomas said.
But HBF also said there was “an insufficient talent pipeline” to employ builders in the UK. It cited a number of recruitment constraints including poor perceptions, lack of training within schools, insufficient apprenticeships and the cost of taking on apprentices.
The industry body admitted the industry itself had not “attracted” enough new staff in recent years.
All these factors have contributed to an aging workforce over time, with one in four workers aged over 50, the report said.
Barratt Redrow boss Mr Thomas said efforts over the past few decades to encourage young people to further their education rather than enter a trade had not helped recruitment.
“If you go back to the ’60s and ’70s, I think parents, teachers and governments were very comfortable with the idea of people becoming tradies, electricians, plumbers, bricklayers,” he said.
He said the average wages for these jobs were “high” but the issue was more about “the availability of skilled labour”.
According to government figures, experienced bricklayers earn around £45,000 a year, while carpenters earn around £38,000 and electricians around £44,000.
Skills shortages have been an issue in the UK for some time, but in recent decades workers from the EU have partly filled the gap – a recruitment pool that has now dried up due to the end of free movement of people due to Brexit.
HBF said 40 to 50 per cent of skilled workers also left the industry after the 2008 financial crisis, with “restrictions” making it harder to recruit from overseas.
Mr Thomas said the construction industry had historically recruited a large number of bricklayers from Eastern European countries and admitted that “in hindsight” the UK had been overly reliant on overseas workers but this had become “the norm”.
Romania, India and Poland are the most common countries of origin for overseas construction workers, according to the latest census of the industry. More than half of London’s construction workers are EU/EEA nationals.
Last month, the government announced £140 million in funding to create 5,000 new construction apprenticeships each year and to establish “residential construction skills centers” to provide rapid training.
A government spokesman said the skills center showed it wanted to “ensure the country takes skilled careers like construction seriously”.
But ministers’ plans have been hit by local councils responsible for implementing the new targets in their areas, who said they is “unrealistic” and “impossible”.
Independent think tank Center for Cities also estimates housebuilders will fall short of the government’s target of 1.5 million homes by 388,000 homes.
But both Barratt Redrow and HBF welcomed the government’s plans. HBF said a “more pro-development policy approach” would allow the sector to “invest in the people and land needed to increase housing supply”.
Despite recruitment challenges, Barratt Redrow plans to employ between 16,600 and 17,200 people in the next financial year, nearly 4,000 more than Barratt’s own forecast. Before merging with Redrow October.
