The Rt Hon Baroness Smith meets homebuilders to address construction skills shortage

The National House Building Council (NHBC), in partnership with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), has welcomed The Rt Hon Baroness Smith of Malvern, Minister for Skills, to a roundtable discussion with senior leaders from across the house-building industry to explore urgent solutions to the sector’s ongoing skills shortage.

Hosted by David Campbell, Chief Operating Officer of NHBC, and Tim Balcon, Chief Executive of CITB on Tuesday 25 June 2025, the event brought together representatives from SME builders, major housebuilders and industry trade bodies for a forward-looking conversation on how to build the workforce the country needs.

The discussion covered a wide range of issues affecting construction skills development. Attendees highlighted the commercial challenges employers face, including how market uncertainty often limits investment in training. There was agreement on the importance of training providers delivering programmes that reflect employer needs and ensuring apprentices add value quickly on site.

Topics also included the role of transferable skills, the need for modular and flexible training pathways and better use of tools like CSCS cards. Attendees discussed the importance of improving retention and absorption rates, especially among SME supply chains, and increasing incentives for smaller employers to take on apprentices. The group also shared experiences around the use of Section 106 agreements and encouraged broader participation in initiatives like the Home Builders Federation’s Partner a College scheme.

Baroness Smith thanked NHBC and CITB for their leadership in tackling the skills challenge and emphasised construction skills are a vital part of the Government’s wider growth strategy and ambitions to increase the delivery of new homes.

Following the event, The Rt Hon Baroness Smith, said: “We need more skilled construction workers to deliver our Plan for Change by building new homes, upgrading our infrastructure and driving economic growth – and the Homebuilding Skills Hubs we are backing will help make sure this happens.

“On top of this work we are investing £625 million to train 60,000 more skilled workers, launching new foundation apprenticeships in construction, expanding construction skills bootcamps and opening 10 new construction technical excellence colleges to ensure we take skills seriously as a country again – unlocking opportunity and driving growth."

During the Roundtable, Baroness Smith also emphasised construction skills are a vital part of the Government’s wider growth strategy and ambitions to increase the delivery of new homes. She acknowledged the need for a step change in how the sector is skilled and welcomed the recent Spending Review settlement, which includes significant investment in construction skills.

She outlined how recent announcements covering new construction courses, bootcamps, foundation apprenticeships and funding for industry placements, would support efforts to strengthen the talent entering the industry. Technical colleges will also play a key role by building on the progress made by initiatives such as NHBC’s training hubs.

The Minister stressed the importance of understanding the real-world challenges employers face and welcomed the opportunity to hear directly from housebuilders and training providers. She highlighted the need for stronger collaboration between employers and colleges and the importance of making career routes into construction clearer and more attractive. She also underlined the need to simplify the skills system and remove underperforming courses, while ensuring that foundation apprenticeships provide learners with a broad understanding of the sector.

Baroness Smith echoed the view shared during the discussion that solutions should be kept simple and focused.

Hosting the event, David Campbell, Chief Operating Officer of NHBC said: “It was a productive discussion on one of the most urgent challenges facing our sector: the chronic shortage of skills in house building.

“We know that without a growing, skilled workforce, meeting the demand for quality new homes simply won’t be possible. At NHBC, we’re committed to being part of the solution. That’s why we are investing £100 million in 12 new multi-skill training hubs, with the ambition of creating 3,000 apprenticeship starts a year, training skilled workers in real-site conditions from day one. Each of these new hubs, which will be roughly two-thirds the size of a football pitch, will initially support training for the most urgently needed trades – bricklaying, groundworks and site carpentry. With high achievement levels and retention rates of around 90% at our current hubs, we’re confident many apprentices will go on to build meaningful careers in the industry.

“At NHBC, we understand what’s needed to deliver quality new homes and we’re using our insight and expertise to help grow a skilled workforce. Collaboration, particularly with housebuilders and SME supply chains, is essential to success. Together, we can fast-track high-quality training that reduces costs and downtime.”