IN Brief:
- CITB forecasts workforce growth lagging construction output through to 2029.
- The Industry Picture 2026 highlights ageing demographics, weak inflows, and retention losses.
- Training volume, work placements, and productivity improvements are being framed as urgent areas for action.
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has published its Industry Picture 2026 report, warning that current workforce trends point to a widening gap between project demand and the industry’s ability to deliver. The report frames the issue as a long-term capacity constraint: not enough workers with the right skills are available in the right place at the right time, and the situation is tightening as demand grows faster than supply.
CITB structures its analysis around four connected themes: fewer people are available to the industry, demand is growing faster than supply, too many workers leave too soon, and productivity is not improving quickly enough to offset shortages. The report links these pressures directly to delivery outcomes, including programme delays, cost inflation driven by competition for labour, and increased rework where skills and supervision capacity are stretched.
On the inflow side, CITB points to a training pipeline that is not delivering enough new entrants. In 2023/24, around 33,000 people started construction apprenticeships in Britain, while the report states the industry needs an average of 48,000+ new entrants every year even under business-as-usual conditions. CITB adds that, given current retention rates, apprenticeship starts would need to almost triple to meet future labour demand.
Work placement availability is flagged as a bottleneck between training and competence. CITB reports that only 21% of construction businesses employ apprentices, and only 31% of employers offered any type of work placement over the last 12 months, limiting how quickly learners can convert into productive workers with site experience. The report also states that just under half of apprentices do not complete their end-point assessment, with a sizeable proportion of new entrants leaving within their first 12 months.
Demand-side forecasts point to a structural mismatch between output growth and labour growth. CITB projects construction output growth of around 2% per year over the next five years, reaching around £216 billion by 2029, while employment is forecast to grow by around 0.8% per year. The workforce is projected to reach around 2.75 million by 2029, which CITB says is insufficient for planned work, estimating that around 48,000 extra workers are needed each year — roughly 240,000 people over five years — to meet demand.
The existing workforce profile adds further pressure. CITB reports that, as of 2023, around 24% of construction workers were over 55, compared with around 13% in 2000, and that the average worker age is now over 42 and rising, with a substantial portion expected to retire in the next five to ten years. The report argues retention is now as critical as recruitment, particularly as construction workers in manual roles tend to retire earlier than in other sectors.
CITB’s proposed direction includes coordinated action to align training provision with real job opportunities, improve flexibility and working conditions to retain workers for longer, and accelerate adoption of modern methods and digital tools to lift productivity. Marcus Bennett, CITB head of industry analysis & forecasting, said: “Not enough people are entering the industry, too many experienced workers are leaving, and productivity has not improved at a sufficient rate.”
