Construction employers’ confidence will determine whether a £625m skills package can meet the government’s housebuilding and infrastructure ambitions, the National Audit Office (NAO) has warned.
In a report published yesterday, the NAO said the government’s aims to build 1.5m homes, upgrade home energy standards and deliver a £725bn long-term infrastructure pipeline depend on a significant expansion of the construction workforce, and on stronger employer involvement in training new workers.
The watchdog examined progress on the £625m construction skills package, announced in March 2025, which aims to support up to 60,000 more construction workers by 2029. The package combines established initiatives with newer ones, including skills bootcamps, foundation apprenticeships and construction technical excellence colleges.
However, the NAO said the package is not designed to meet all future workforce needs. Government estimates show between 201,000 and 755,000 extra workers could be required by 2030, before accounting for those leaving the sector for other jobs. The construction sector currently has the highest rate of hard-to-fill vacancies due to skills shortages, at 45%, compared with a 27% national average.
Employer engagement is a critical delivery risk, the report said. The government expects 42% of the additional construction workers to come from further education students completing industry placements, but tough economic conditions are affecting employers’ confidence to invest in new staff and apprentices. In 2024, employer investment in training per construction trainee was at its lowest level in 10 years.
Foundation apprenticeships, intended to help young people into entry-level construction jobs, have also fallen behind expectations: by April 2026, only 74 young people had started, against the Department for Work and Pensions’ assumption of 1,000 for 2025-26.
The NAO concluded that the skills package is a positive step and that government now has a clearer framework to track delivery. But it said delivery is not guaranteed, and that without better data, prioritisation of resources and employer buy-in, skills shortages could drive up costs and put major delivery commitments at risk.
The watchdog recommended that departments involved in estimating construction workforce demand – including the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority, the Department for Business and Trade, and the Construction Industry Training Board – work together to improve how they estimate future needs.
It also recommended that the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education keep the package under close review, use performance data to identify problems early, publish regular progress updates, and be ready to adapt initiatives or reallocate funding where delivery falls short.
Confidence and capability
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.”
Responding to the report, David Campbell, chief operating officer at the National House Building Council (NHBC), said: “The report confirms what many across the house-building industry have been saying for some time. If we don’t fix the skills shortage, we won’t fix the housing shortage.
“Building quality homes the country needs requires a long-term commitment to developing the skilled workforce that will build them and you can’t create skilled workers overnight.
“NHBC is investing £100 million in a network of 12 multi-skill training hubs across the UK. Working closely with builders and industry partners, the hubs could train up to 3,000 site-ready apprentices every year in the trades where demand is greatest.
“The NAO is right to highlight the importance of employer confidence. Builders will only continue investing in apprentices if they have confidence in future workloads and access to high-quality, flexible training that delivers skilled people quickly.
“No single organisation can solve the construction skills challenge on its own. Government, industry and training providers all have a role to play and, by working together, we can create the skilled workforce needed to deliver the high-quality homes the UK urgently needs.”
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