A new report from the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) predicts average annual industry growth of 2.9 per cent until 2019.
As a result, the next five years will see construction firms grow exponentially, with the CITB forecasting the creation of 224,000 jobs during the period. As around 2.6 million workers are currently employed in the industry, this will prove to be a massive boom with the 44,690 positions created per year on average – more than 8,000 higher than predictions set following last year’s survey.
Yet this particular silver lining comes with a fairly sizeable cloud – the fact that this boom in jobs creation could see the skills shortage issue currently facing the construction industry heavily intensify. Policy and strategic planning director at the CITB, Steve Radley, has called on the government to intervene by making apprenticeship schemes more accessible for construction firms of all sizes.
He says; “Our forecast shows that construction is experiencing a major comeback, with a sustained period of growth set to make a positive impact on the wider economy.
“Employers will need to pull every lever available to them to meet the skills challenge they face but government can play a vital role in giving them the confidence to invest in training for the long term.”
The CITB has also asked the government to pledge that all planned infrastructure projects funded by the taxpayer will be allowed to go ahead as a means of further stabilising the industry and growing the economy. According to its report, infrastructure alone will grow by 2.4 per cent per annum until 2019 which, although seemingly small, will encompass large scale projects such as Crossrail which are due to complete during the period.
Mr Radley continues; “Industry needs a clear commitment from all political parties in the run up to the General Election that infrastructure projects will be delivered on time and to plan in the next Parliament.”
Commercial construction is also set to grow significantly in the years until 2019, with the predicted average annual growth of 4.6 per cent finally drawing equal with growth in the private housing sector. This is extremely encouraging news not only for the construction industry but for the wider business world as it indicates availability of commercial space in prime city centre destinations is set to increase, potentially lowering rent pressures for smaller firms.
Concluding, the report states that the sustained upcoming period of growth is set to be reflected throughout all regions in the UK. This indicates that previous assessments by industry experts, claiming that recovery within the construction industry is based solely on housing growth within London and the South East, are not in fact entirely accurate.
