It’s been a busy week for government announcements in the construction industry- here we have detailed some reactions from key industry members
From last weekend onwards, the government have made a series of UK construction announcements, from skills training to new towns.
Several large bodies have published their reactions detailing support and concerns for these announcements.
The HBF urges more action on skills training and building a workforce
In response to Angela Rayner’s re-commitment to striving for the 1.5m new homes target by 2029, the Home Builders Federation has stated that more support will be needed.
According to their statistics, the workforce will need to grow by 25%, or around 224,900 workers.
The HBF State of Play report says that 35% of SME home builders cite that skills capacity is a major barrier for housing supply, and that for ever 10,000 new homes to be built, 30,000 new workers will be needed, including 2,500 bricklayers, 2,500 groundwork/plant operatives, and 1,000 carpenters.
As National Apprenticeship Week draws to a close, the HBF urges the government to act now on increasing construction recruitment. A statement says: “HBF is calling on the Government to take a leadership role in shaping skills policies that are practical, industry-aligned, and easy to navigate. Early industry involvement in policy discussions will ensure that interventions effectively address on-the-ground challenges and work to build a resilient workforce.
“The Government must increase funding for further education and apprenticeships in construction and homebuilding, strengthen industry partnerships to create clearer vocational pathways, support SMEs in accessing skilled talent by reducing bureaucratic barriers, and promote the homebuilding industry as an attractive and viable career choice.
“Additionally, HBF urges the Government to reform the Apprenticeship Levy, allowing greater flexibility in its use to address skills shortages and making funding more accessible to smaller employers.”
Neil Jefferson, chief executive at the Home Builders Federation, said: “The homebuilding industry is fully committed to tackling the skills crisis, but we cannot do it alone. We need government support to expand alternative pathways of entry into the sector, ensuring they are aligned with industry needs.
“The future of our sector, and the delivery of much-needed housing depends on a skilled workforce. Without stronger action now, when the time comes the skills gap will become a major barrier to delivery, impacting productivity, housing supply, and economic growth.”
CIH responds to the social housing boost announcement
Also responding to Rayner’s announcement this week, the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) responded to £350m for house building, as well as the promise to tackle ‘rogue landlords’.
CIH had previously submitted recommendations for the spending review, and so were pleased with the announcement of further support for housing.
CEO of CIH, Gavin Smart, said:“The housing crisis is one of the biggest challenges facing the country, and we know that increasing the supply of truly affordable homes is key to tackling homelessness, easing pressure on local authorities, and driving economic growth. This additional investment into affordable housing is therefore very welcome and will help support the delivery of much-needed affordable homes ahead of a new Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) at the forthcoming Spending Review.
“The confirmation that 50 per cent of the additional investment in the AHP will be used to support building new homes at social rent is particularly welcome as these are the most affordable and needed. Expanding the Local Housing Fund will help local authorities respond to the huge rise in the need for temporary accommodation which has put huge pressure on council funds and made life very difficult for some of the most vulnerable.
“Going forward, we hope the government will use the next fiscal update to confirm sustained, long-term investment to meet the scale of demand and ensure everyone has access to a safe, secure, and affordable home.
“ We also welcome confirmation of action to implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act. It is right that the government moves to clamp down on a small minority of exploitative supported housing landlords who are providing unacceptable poor homes to vulnerable people. We look forward to seeing more details and working with government, housing providers, and local authorities to ensure these commitments translate into real change on the ground.”
The NFB hailed the new towns announcement
The National Federation of Builders were happy to hear the announcement of over 100 sites across England being considered for new towns, each able to deliver at least 10,000 homes.
Richard Beresford, chief executive of the National Federation of Builders, said: “New Towns are key to solving the housing crisis as they can set affordable price points for homes, attract businesses with the promise of strategic employment land, and build all things a community needs to ensure housing and infrastructure are not competing for limited land availability.
“The Government should be commended for taking on the NIMBYs to deliver new towns, and it will greatly help them toward their 1.5m home target and delivery of sustainable and strategic growth.”
“The Government also highlighted that the Homes Accelerator programme unblocked 20,000 homes, £1m extra funding for government agencies, £2m for the Building Safety Regulator and £3m in grants for local councils to bolster planning.”
Rico Wojtulewicz, head of policy at the NFB, said: “New Towns are an opportunity to support SMEs by allocating sites specifically for them, which is important for housing diversification and because 73% of construction apprentices are trained by SMEs, who typically employ within 20 miles of their head offices. This makes SMEs key to reducing reliance on immigrant labour and ensuring people have good careers.
“Supporting SMEs through new town planning would also rectify some of the criticisms made by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) about the planning system being anti-competitive, and so reducing the quality and variety of new homes, while also being the reason SME market share continues to drop.”
The NFB have also recently supported the government’s decision to head off the Climate and Nature bill, stating it would have put too much pressure on the system, and cost too much.
RIBA responded to the new towns announcement and social housing boost
The Royal Institute of British Architects were also pleased with the announcement of extra support for social housing, with the funding allowing for a social housing boost of 2,800 affordable homes, and 250 more council homes.
The new towns announcement also assured that green and natural spaces will be considered in its delivery of affordable housing.
RIBA president, Muyiwa Oki, said: “The Government has made no bones about its ambition to address the housing crisis, and this week’s announcements put positive intentions into action.
“We welcome the focus on ensuring new towns are well-designed and provide communities with both affordable housing and essential infrastructure and amenities.
“Delivering new homes is crucial to the Government’s growth agenda. While we’re pleased to see funding committed to this, notably for affordable housing and unlocking brownfield and council-owned sites, it will take innovative solutions to meet the scale of need.
“We outlined one way to deliver a pipeline of new social housing in our Foundations for the Future report. Our model could reduce the cost of delivering social housing by using public land to build mixed-tenure developments, and reinvesting profits. It’s time to try ideas like this to secure the future of our housing.
“We look forward to continuing our work with the Government to achieve this shared goal.”
