The West Midlands Mayor and the Construction Industry Training Board have signed a Memorandum of Understanding committing to the development of a National Skills Academy for Construction in the West Midlands.
It’s one of the first partnerships under CITB’s national initiative to create a connected construction skills ecosystem across England, aligning national and regional priorities.
Through greater employer engagement in training and skills planning, the network will support more people into construction careers and help ensure local skills provision is aligned to workforce demand.
For the West Midlands region to meet expected workforce demand in the construction industry, CITB’s forecasting shows that recruitment would have to increase by more than 3,800 extra workers every year for the next five years.
Richard Parker, Mayor of West Midlands Combined Authority, said: “We’re heading into a construction boom that will power new jobs, new homes and new opportunities right across the West Midlands.
"And this latest investment in training and apprenticeships will help make sure local people have the skills they need to land those new jobs.
"It’s by working with the CITB and local employers in this way that we can tackle this industry skills shortage head-on and get our workforce ready to build the infrastructure that will drive future growth.”
Last year the Mayor announced a further £75m for construction skills training over the next three years to address the expected industry shortage of around 12,000 workers.
The construction boom is being driven in part by the Mayor’s commitment to tackle the region’s housing crisis, which saw him contract a record 7,237 new homes over the last year, 2,452 of which were affordable, including 1,086 for social rent, the most affordable type of housing.
Tim Balcon, CEO, CITB, said: “Addressing the construction industry's skills needs requires industry-wide collaboration, strong partnerships with central and local governments, and long-term commitment.
“This is the latest strategic partnership we’re establishing with mayoralties across the country, strengthening relationships between employers, training providers and local decision-makers, creating a stronger foundation for addressing emerging skills challenges at a local level.
"The Memorandum of Understanding is an important step towards establishing a National Skills Academy for Construction and ensuring the workforce is ready to meet future demand.”
Last week, the Mayor officially opened The Skills Centre at City Centre South, a £450m regeneration project being delivered by The Hill Group to transform Coventry city centre.
This marks a major milestone in the West Midlands’ drive to equip local people with the skills needed to access careers in construction and help deliver one of Coventry’s most significant regeneration projects.
This latest agreement allows West Midlands Combined Authority to analyse live data from building sites across the region to pinpoint skills gaps and train the estimated 12,000 extra workers needed over the next three years.
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