CLC sector-wide skills plan will benefit broader industry says BMF

The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) has published the first sector-wide skills plan for construction, developed by industry.

The Industry Skills Plan for the UK Construction Sector 2021-25, sets out the key skills challenges facing construction and how they will be tackled and has been welcomed by the Builders Merchants Federation.

Traditionally there has been a narrow definition of the construction industry, limited to those who construct, repair and maintain buildings.  Behind this sector-wide plan is the belief that the industry should increasingly be viewed in terms of a broader definition, to include the supply chain for construction materials, products and assemblies, and professional services such as management architecture, engineering and surveying.

The CLC plan sets out a series of clear actions and commitments for both industry and Government to help meet these challenges, grouped under the following four areas: Careers; Standards and Qualifications; Training, Education and Development; and Culture and Working Environment.

Commitments include:

• Creating Talent View, a one-stop-shop portal for new entrants
• Recruiting 7,000 construction STEM Ambassadors
• Developing an industry standard for work experience
• Producing competence frameworks
• New training standards for Net Zero and Smart Construction
• A pledge to promote direct employment

BMF CEO, John Newcomb said: “This is a plan for the broader construction industry, encompassing a total workforce of over 3.5million people. It can only benefit the whole industry to work together with Government and education bodies to develop appropriate pathways from schools, further education, higher education, as well as for adults changing careers, into every aspect of construction.”

Copies of Industry Skills Plan for the UK Construction Sector 2021-25 are available at https://www.constructionleadershipcouncil.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/B06322_CLC_SkillsPlan_v27.pdf.