Due to growth demands, our local councils in London must go further to support the pressing skills shortage the vital need to tackle this through innovative initiatives. These thoughts spark my curiosity about where the greatest opportunities and challenges lie in reaching more individuals with our employment initiatives. Together, we should explore how we can inspire and empower our community to embrace these upskilling opportunities to deliver housing demand ambitions.
London Local boroughs are actively enhancing construction training opportunities to bridge the skills gap in the industry. They are leveraging section 106 opportunities, government initiatives, and funding support for various training programs, including apprenticeships and skills boot camps. There is a strong focus on attracting a diverse workforce, promoting construction as a viable career for women and underrepresented groups to reshape the industry’s image. Organizations like City & Guilds are offering flexible short courses and skills boot camps tailored to industry needs. The rise of digital technologies in construction is also being highlighted for its training implications. To improve hands-on experience, structured career pathways are being developed to support continuous professional development, ensuring adaptability to evolving industry demands. With hands-on experience being a core area requiring improvement; structured career pathways are being developed to support continuous professional development, ensuring new entrants and training provision can adapt to evolving industry demands.
While the government aims to increase focus in this area, Training Centers, which are crucial for hands-on training, are facing their own challenges. Delays in major project starts have put them in tough positions, limiting their impact opportunities. Contractors also need reliable project pipelines to commit to training schemes, the ever changing timelines make it difficult to create more accessible routes into construction work. At the core of our challenge is the need for meaningful collaboration between government, industry, and educators. We must develop a clear understanding of future skill requirements for the short, medium, and long term to meet our goals.
To meet the growing demands of the construction workforce, we must confront unwelcoming workplace cultures for underrepresented groups by forging innovative partnerships and collaborations. By prioritizing education and flexible traineeships, we can enhance access for adult learners and young individuals eager to advance in the construction industry. This presents a powerful opportunity to establish a robust pipeline for apprenticeships, long-term qualifications, and job placements.
A few Training Centres are now operating in London to support the industry and educate employers. My suggestion? Let’s open these facilities during the 6-week summer holidays or after hours for tasters and traineeships. This would create opportunities for the public and nominated candidates from the community and industry. These spaces allow individuals to explore various trades within the construction industry, potentially igniting a genuine interest in one or more areas. Utilizing the Training Centre Hubs, trainers and employers can deliver intensive, hands-on training and certification opportunities, empowering participants to build sustainable careers in construction. The goal is to place everyone who successfully completes the training into a role within the industry within three months, not just building a portfolio of completed courses, but fostering careers that empower individuals to shine and make a real difference.
There hasn’t been widespread implementation of these Traineeship programmes just yet, but the evidence shows they are a tried-and-true method and bring substantial benefits to local employers and economies throughout the boroughs. In 2026, myself and the Fit-Out Futures team are looking to partner with these Training Centres, both in the commercial, non-profit, and private sectors, to offer new learning and training opportunities to local communities. We’d love your support here, and if you’d like to potentially get involved, please pop me an email – FitOutFuturesGroup@thefis.org
