UK infrastructure strategy takes aim at construction skills gaps

Neil Black and Susannah Donaldson of Pinsent Masons were commenting after the government set out a 10-year infrastructure strategy (106-page / 3.9MB PDF) on Thursday.

The strategy sets out a wide range of measures designed to drive investment in, and delivery of, economic, social and housing infrastructure in the UK. A central focus of the strategy is skills. A recent report by the Construction Industry Training Board estimated that the construction industry needs around 240,000 extra workers over the next five years and the government acknowledged in its strategy paper that the UK’s infrastructure needs “will only be delivered if it has a workforce with the necessary skills”.

Among the measures that the government has outlined to address the issue is a plan to publish a new online dynamic infrastructure pipeline. This pipeline, expected to be set out next month, will list over 300 priority projects scheduled for development over the next decade. These range from major rail upgrades and green energy hubs to digital infrastructure and flood defences.

The government said: “On-site labour productivity has flatlined in recent years and there is a significant workforce deficit. With a clear and credible pipeline, the industry can feel confident knowing what infrastructure they will build, stimulating investment in key skills, technologies and sectors and build market capacity.”

The government has already changed immigration policy to promote recruitment of British workers and reduce reliance on overseas recruitment, while providing some flexibility to ensure employers have access to deliver critical infrastructure and on its industrial strategy – expected to be published next week. In its infrastructure strategy, the government reiterated its desire to see infrastructure investment translate into “good jobs” for British people. To support that objective, the government said it also intends to reform procurement rules.

Black said: “We knew from Labour’s plan to make work pay that a new national procurement plan would make social value mandatory in public sector contract design. The detail was shared by the Cabinet Office in February 2025 in new procurement guidance which set out social value requirements. This procurement guidance introduced a new ‘social value model’ for in-scope organisations to use when selecting appropriate social value outcomes and criteria for their contracts and reaffirms that in-scope contracting authorities must consider social value when awarding contracts.”

“The social value outcomes that can be selected by suppliers in their bid include a number of really significant employment/workforce angles, including bringing in aspects of policy which form part of the Employment Rights Bill and other government initiatives. In-scope organisations have a transition period in which to apply the new model, which started on 24 February 2025, but its use will not be mandatory until 1 October 2025,” he said.

“Building on this, the Cabinet Office announced this week that it wants to go further in relation to major infrastructure projects, such as building roads, railways or schools. A consultation will be launched to link the award of major infrastructure projects to the creation of high-quality British jobs and the boosting of skills in local communities. Although more detail is awaited, plans for new requirements focusing on job and skill creation will help focus the development of social value priorities in this sector,” Black said.

In its infrastructure strategy, the government further committed to “creating incentives to encourage investment in UK supply chains and workforce”.

Donaldson said the strategy “builds on government interventions earlier this year”, which are aimed at boosting apprenticeships, which she described as “a key talent creation tool” in the infrastructure sector.

In February, the government announced an immediate change to allow employers to decide whether adult learners aged over 19, when they start their apprenticeship course, need to complete a level 2 English and maths qualification, equivalent to GCSE. From August, the minimum duration of an apprenticeship will be reduced to eight months, down from the current minimum of 12 months.

Donaldson added that the government’s pledge to build its knowledge of the UK’s infrastructure skills requirements, to better identify where it needs to provide further support, builds on existing funding commitments. In March, chancellor Rachel Reeves pledged £600 million of public funds to support the training of an anticipated extra 60,000 construction workers in England by 2029.