Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce
The Greater Manchester Construction Sector Pipeline Analysis report is published and is now available for download.
The report has been hailed by the Greater Manchester construction sector as a major UK first in the vital task of assessing the skills and employment needs of the industry. It has already generated considerable interest within Government circles, with the Cabinet Office and Infrastructure UK both showing interest in how this methodology could be used to deliver the National Infrastructure Plan.
Click here to view or download the report
Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce’s Chief Executive, Clive Memmott, explained the report’s significance: “The Chamber research team has analysed the pipeline of construction projects in Greater Manchester for the next four years and, working with the Construction Industry Training Board, has produced a forecast of the labour required to deliver those projects – not just a headline number – but by individual trades.
“But we’ve gone even further, and have analysed the current skills being trained in GM and mapped this against what will be needed to deliver the £15bn of construction activity in the pipeline until 2017.
"This means that, for the first time, we are beginning to understand what skills, what trades and what apprenticeships need to be created and delivered in GM. Our young people can then see, or be directed to specific employment opportunities and our employers get the skills they need.
“I think this is a unique piece of work that is long overdue and provides a blue print of how we think about planning for skill demands in the future.”
The report delivers a range of important findings:
- There is be a total value of £15.576bn of construction work in our forecast period between 2013 and 2017.
- There is to be a total of £11.05bn of new construction starts between 2013 and 2017.
- The new boom is to be led by Housing (£5.576bn) and Private Commercial (£4.585bn) starts.
- There is to be a total of £3.918bn of new projects set to start in 2014 alone.
- There is to be a 632% increase in Greater Manchester infrastructure starts over the next two years.
- The GM-recovery is being led by an increase in private housing and infrastructure whilst public spending on construction remains constrained.
- The North West is seeing the second fastest recovery (2013-14) in infrastructure starts behind only the North East.
- Labour demand is set to reach 64,232 workers on site in March 2014.
- There are 200% increases in demand for both labour and additional skills over the four-year forecast period compared to the four years before 2013
- There are set to be key shortages in skills such as floorers, interior fit-out, steel erectors and building envelope specialists.
- There is a lack of on-site competency-based training with significant skills gaps across all trades.
- According to SFA Data 2012/13 only 29% of current construction training starts (including apprenticeships) represent an on-site competency-based qualification (NVQ).
- There is an oversupply of degree level construction qualifications (architects and surveyors)
