The Construction Leadership Council sets out priorities shaping digital construction, skills, safety, and sustainability delivery nationwide.
The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) has published its latest biennial report, outlining strategic priorities for 2026 alongside measurable progress achieved during 2025. The report positions digital construction, regulatory reform, and workforce transformation as central to improving productivity, safety, and sustainability across the UK built environment.
The CLC’s 2025 achievements reflect coordinated action across four strategic pillars: building safety, net zero and circular economy, people and skills, and next generation delivery. A key milestone was the establishment of the Construction Skills Mission Board, supporting delivery of the £625 million Construction Skills Mission. This initiative aligns with industry-wide efforts to address labour shortages and improve competency standards through over 40 frameworks developed by the Industry Competence Steering Group.
In parallel, the CLC worked closely with the Building Safety Regulator, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the Health and Safety Executive to implement the Building Safety Act. This collaboration has been critical in embedding compliance requirements and strengthening accountability frameworks across construction projects.
Sustainability also advanced significantly through the expansion of the CO2nstructZero programme, which now includes over 300 companies committed to reducing carbon emissions. Alongside this, the continued rollout of the Information Management Initiative Framework has supported standardisation in construction data management, reinforcing the role of digital construction methodologies.
Digital construction strategy: A shift in 2026 priorities
A notable structural change within the CLC’s strategy is the retirement of the ‘Next Generation Delivery’ priority. This follows the successful launch of the Information Management Initiative in 2025, which established a foundation for digital transformation across the sector.
In its place, two new priorities have been introduced: digitalising planning and building control, and business model reform. These changes reflect a more targeted approach to resolving systemic inefficiencies within construction processes.
Digitalising planning and building control is expected to accelerate approvals, improve data interoperability, and reduce project delays. The initiative will involve collaboration between government departments and industry stakeholders to modernise legacy systems and embed digital workflows.
Business model reform, meanwhile, addresses long-standing commercial challenges, including late payments and retention practices. The CLC aims to facilitate engagement between government and industry to support legislative changes that improve financial stability across supply chains.
Net zero construction and sustainable procurement
The CLC’s 2026 action plan places strong emphasis on aligning industry practices with national climate targets. The CO2nstructZero Performance Framework will be updated in line with the Climate Change Committee’s Seventh Carbon Budget, ensuring consistency between policy and implementation.
The Green Construction Board will also play a central role in enabling procurement strategies that prioritise low-carbon materials and construction methods. This marks a shift towards embedding sustainability into decision-making processes rather than treating it as a compliance requirement.
Skills, digital competence and workforce transformation
Addressing the construction skills gap remains a priority, with a particular focus on digital capability. The CLC plans to convene industry stakeholders to design and implement a digital skills passporting ecosystem for the built environment. This system will enable workforce mobility, improve training transparency, and support competency verification across projects.
The integration of digital skills into construction roles reflects the increasing reliance on data-driven processes, including Building Information Modelling (BIM), digital twins, and automated workflows.
Strengthening building safety and regulatory frameworks
Building safety remains a core focus, with the CLC working towards implementing a Single Construction Regulator. This initiative aims to streamline oversight, reduce duplication, and ensure consistency in regulatory enforcement.
In addition, the CLC will publish a Health, Safety and Wellbeing Action Plan in May 2026, followed by a Mental Health Action Plan and Joint Code of Practice. These frameworks are designed to provide employers with clear guidance on improving workplace conditions and supporting employee wellbeing.
Industry leadership perspectives
Mark Reynolds, Executive Chairman of Mace Group and CLC Co-Chair, emphasised the importance of collaboration: “The CLC’s latest report highlights a successful and productive 2025, but also recognises that significant work still lies ahead if the sector is to meet its long-term ambitions.
“What remains unchanged is the critical importance of collaboration between Government, regulators and industry, and ensuring that organisations of every size are part of that effort.
“By working together, we can accelerate progress in 2026 on the issues that matter most, from improving skills, safety and wellbeing to enhance industry performance and helping the Government to achieve its growth objectives for housing, infrastructure, retrofit and remediation.”
Chris McDonald MP, Industry Minister and CLC Co-Chair, added: “This new report shows how vital the Construction Leadership Council’s work was to our construction sector in 2025, including establishing the new Mission Board to oversee £625m of skills investment, supporting delivery of the Building Safety Act, and growing CO2nstructZero to involve more than 300 companies.
“Construction is central to the UK’s growth and as Co-Chair of the CLC I’m proud to back its 2026 action plan, which will streamline regulation to boost productivity, improve health and safety for workers and double down on sustainability so the sector can play its part with our natural environment.”
The Construction Leadership Council’s 2026 strategy establishes a clear framework for digital construction adoption, regulatory reform, and sustainable growth, reinforcing collaboration between industry and government to deliver measurable sector-wide improvements.
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