The construction industry, currently in retreat over the economic downturn and the lack of development opportunities, is facing yet another problem — a shortage of skilled tradesmen.

The wave of European migrant workers has meant that most firms have had no problems employing basic labourers.

However, senior and middle management posts and vacancies for skilled carpenters, plumbers, bricklayers and other key tradesmen have been much more difficult to fill.

The problem has been highlighted in a survey by the Chartered Institute of Building, the result of which surprised nobody in the industry.

The skills shortage has been cited as one of the reasons for the delay in Aldershot’s long-awaited Centre for Health, now finished and due to open in August.

Michael Brown, the deputy chief executive of the institute, acknowledged that the lack of skilled building workers is a global problem.

But it could present major problems in the UK, particularly in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics.

A lack of opportunity for the next generation of skilled workers is at the heart of the problem.

“Demand from young people for apprenticeships is outstripping the number of training places available in the industry,” said Mr Brown.

“In 2007, Construction Skills, the industry’s Sector Skills Council, was only able to place 8,500 people into apprenticeships out of the 50,000 who applied.

“This lack of apprenticeships will have a long-term impact on the skills base in the future.”

A spokesman for the National Housing Federation said it was well established that there was a lack of skilled people across the construction industry, but it was also important for there to be skilled people within local authority planning departments.

“There is a critical shortage of social housing across the country for people on low incomes and it’s vitally important that this is addressed,” he said.

“We need the government to invest in the next generation.

“Planning departments play an important part, particularly in ensuring that social housing is mixed in properly when private developers’ deals go through, and not just all dumped together on one part of an estate.”

The federation spokesman agreed that apprenticeships were a good way of investing in the industry and said housing associations up and down the country were doing their bit.

He said: “Housing associations are non-profit making, and although there is no national scheme and things work on an ad hoc basis, they do set up apprenticeships, sometimes through sponsoring a local company and sometimes through their own initiative.”

Roger Jelley, the managing director of Premier Properties in Camberley, said a lack of skilled workers was not a problem for his company.

But he welcomed the government’s support for traditional apprenticeships.

He said: “We are a residential development company and our problem is not having areas to develop due to the restrictions from Europe to protect rare birds.

“We have had no applications for residential development within Surrey Heath for three years and that is a real problem.

“We have skilled people to call upon but I certainly welcome any government support for apprenticeship schemes. They are a very good idea.”

Farnborough College of Technology is one of several colleges running courses aimed at developing construction industry skills, including Foundation Construction, bricklaying, carpentry, plumbing and inspection and testing.
 
Deputy principal Phelim Brady said the college’s building in Holder Road, Aldershot, hosted excellent trades industry training, including for the construction industry.

There are sessions for visiting schoolchildren, courses for college students and adults, and apprentice schemes.

Mr Brady said the classes were very popular and successful, and were backed up by excellent facilities.

All this will go some way to solving the problem in the medium term.

But, more urgently, construction firms need more encouragement to develop apprenticeship schemes to create openings for the next generation of skilled workers.