Worsening skills shortage could threaten local building projects

Worsening skills shortages in the construction sector could threaten many building projects in the South West by 2019, new research* reveals today.

Data released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) highlights the severity of the skills shortages facing businesses across the region.

More than nine tenths (93%) of the surveyors questioned said that a lack of qualified candidates meant they had problems recruiting, but more alarming is the amount of paid work being turned down by many companies.

Three in five (60%) surveying firms in the South West currently turn down new business opportunities due to a dearth of skilled workers, with each of them passing up an average of five contracts per year.

The problem looks set to peak in the next five years, with a further 5% of the region saying that they too will begin turning down work by 2019. By that time, around 27,000 projects a year could be at risk across the country.

The trend has raised fears that, unless something changes, the UK’s construction sector may not be able to cope with increasing demand.

Alan Muse, Director of Built Environment Professional Groups at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, said: “Surveyors play a pivotal role in the delivery of every construction project. Simply put, without surveyors, things don’t get built.

“That’s why our research is worrying: if so many firms in the South West are turning down work due to a lack of available talent, demand for skills will soon far outstrip the supply. For many companies, that time is already here, but the next few years look like a real tipping point – construction as an industry looks set to grow, but at this rate it’s very unlikely that we’ll have the capacity or the capability to fulfil planned projects.”

RICS is now calling for surveying companies to support its work in bringing through the next generation of surveying talent.  Surveying the Future is RICS’ campaign to attract a more diverse workforce for the benefit of the surveying profession. You can find out more here or by following #SurveyingTheFuture