The government’s ambitions to build 1.5 million homes, upgrade home energy standards, and deliver a £725 billion long-term infrastructure pipeline will depend on a significant expansion to the construction workforce – and stronger employer involvement in training the next generation of workers, according to a new report from the National Audit Office (NAO).
The watchdog examined the government’s progress in delivering its £625 million construction skills package, announced in March 2025, which aims to support up to 60,000 more construction workers by 2029.
The package combines tried and tested initiatives, alongside newer initiatives, including Skills Bootcamps, and new foundation apprenticeships, and construction technical excellence colleges.
However, the package is not designed to meet all future workforce needs, with government estimates showing that between 201,000 and 755,000 extra workers could be required by 2030, before accounting for those who leave the sector for other jobs. This comes as statistics show the construction sector had the highest rate of hard-to-fill vacancies due to skills shortages – 45% compared with a 27% national average.2
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “The government is taking action to address shortage of skilled construction workers as part of its ambitious commitments for housing, infrastructure and energy efficiency. Success will depend on employers having the confidence and capability to offer placements, apprenticeships and jobs.”
Employer engagement is a critical delivery risk for the construction package. The government hopes that 42% of the additional construction workers will follow from further education students completing industry placements.
Businesses make recruitment and training decisions depending on the expected pipeline of work, costs and market competition – but tough economic conditions are affecting employers’ confidence to invest and take new employees and apprentices on board. In 2024, employer investment in training per construction trainee was at its lowest level in 10 years.
Foundation apprenticeships are intended to help young people move into entry-level construction jobs, but by April 2026 only 74 young people had started, against DWP’s assumption of 1,000 in 2025-26.
The NAO concludes that the government’s construction skills package is a positive step, and that it now has in place a clearer framework to track delivery.
However, delivery is not guaranteed. To achieve its aspiration of up to 60,000 workers – and support its housing and infrastructure commitments – government will need better data, to prioritise resources, and to get employers’ buy in. Without this, skills shortages could drive up costs and put major delivery commitments at risk.
The NAO now recommends:
- Departments involved in estimating construction worker demand – including MHCLG, DESNZ, NISTA, DBT and the Construction Industry Training Board – work together to improve how they will estimate future workforce needs to deliver government ambitions
- Departments responsible for skills delivery – DWP and DfE – keep the construction skills package under close review, using performance data to identify problems early, and publish regular updates on progress towards their 60,000 ambition.
- DWP and DfE – should be ready to consider adapting the package where initiatives are not delivering as expected, including changing course if initiatives need to be modified, or funding reallocated.
