Government Announces £600m Investment to Tackle Construction Skills Shortage

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24 March 2025 | Updated 26 March 2025

New reforms to plug the skills gap in construction include a new Construction Skills Mission Board, co-chaired by Mark Reynolds, Executive Chair of Mace.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced a roster of changes to address the fact that there are over 35,000 construction job vacancies that can’t be filled due to a lack of specialist skills.

£100 million will fund ten new Technical Excellence Colleges and £165 million will help colleges deliver more construction courses. £100 million will go towards expanding skills bootcamps and all Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) areas will benefit from £20 million to form partnerships between colleges and construction companies.

New foundation construction apprenticeships will launch in August 2025, with employers given £2,000 for every foundation apprentice they take on and retain in the construction industry.

A new Construction Skills Mission Board, co-chaired by Mark Reynolds, Executive Chair of Mace will “deliver a construction skills action plan and provide strategic leadership to the construction sector”

Mark said: “This is fantastic news and demonstrates that government is committed to working with the construction industry to deliver 1.5m homes by the end of this Parliament and its ambitious plans for infrastructure delivery. It’s a hugely significant funding package, and the establishment of the Construction Skills Mission Board will enable us to collaborate with government to drive change at pace.”

“Understandably, construction firms across the country are looking for certainty of pipeline before they commit to investing in new jobs and skills – but this investment by the Chancellor will be critical in giving them the confidence they need. There is now no excuse – industry must embrace the Government’s growth mission and match their ambition.”

Leeds College of Building CEO Nikki Davis welcomed the announcement:  “We welcome the announcement made by the Chancellor that £600 million worth of investment is being made available to train up to 60,000 more skilled construction workers. Without this, government priorities such as house building, retrofit, or mass transit would likely be stalled.

“Construction employs 2.15 million people, but more than a third are now over 50 years old. The latest Office for National Statistics figures show that there are over 35,000 job vacancies in the industry, with many due to a lack of required skills – the highest rate of any sector. Demand is only expected to increase further.

“FE colleges, such as Leeds College of Building, are instrumental in meeting these training demands, and we are ready to meet the challenge. Although we are doing much already with limited resources, we urgently need this funding to tackle critical shortages and ensure a skills bottleneck is averted.

“After years of campaigning on this issue, we are delighted that the skills crisis in construction and the built environment is being taken seriously, and I look forward to reading the details of the plans.”

Picture: a photograph of Mark Reynolds. Image Credit: Mace

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 24 March 2025

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