Contractor and CIH president call for national retrofit skills strategy

“Progress is being made, but efforts need to be better connected and funding more consistent.”

In the report, Sureserve outlined priority areas for action, including expanding apprenticeships and entry pathways to attract new talent, and updating qualifications to include renewables and low-carbon technologies.

Other priorities involve coordinating training schemes to improve consistency and scale, and better support and funding routes for businesses and individuals to aid the cost of training and reskilling.

In May, the government extended the Heat Training Grant and launched the Warm Homes Skills Programme in England to train up to 18,000 workers to install heat pumps, solar panels and insulation, and work on heat networks.

The report said there was still a need for all these activities to come together within a comprehensive supply chain and skills strategy. This should be supported by the Office for Clean Energy Jobs, Skills England and equivalents in devolved nations, with coordinated funding, clear standards, regional access and meaningful pathways for both new and transitioning workers.

The report found there were systemic barriers to progress, including an ageing workforce, unclear career pathways, outdated qualifications and inconsistent training provision.

Other challenges include: a fragmented policy and funding environment which is limiting employer confidence to invest in training; lack of standardisation; insufficient teaching capacity; and low diversity in the workforce.

The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) warns that 500,000 entrants into the retrofit workforce will be needed by 2030 to meet the UK’s climate and housing commitments. The report added that worker shortages were being cited as a cause of delay, alongside price inflation and low-quality delivery.

The range of skilled roles required include dual-fuel heating engineers, surveyors, retrofit assessors, retrofit coordinators, insulation installers, window and door fitters, solar panel and electric battery installers, and heat pump installers.

Andrew Tod, head of net-zero carbon at Sureserve, said: “The UK has the chance to create thousands of meaningful jobs, deliver warmer, safer homes and take real strides towards net zero.

“But to get there, we need a coordinated national approach that joins up policy, funding and training.”

Additional requests for the government include a phased introduction of mandatory qualifications, backed up by stronger accreditation pathways; the promotion of the vital role of local technical colleges and training hubs working in close partnership with employers; and encouraging current workers in housing, compliance and construction to embrace mid-career retraining.

Other elements involve promoting rewarding careers to a more diverse workforce, and a policy environment and cultural shift which encourages employers to treat training like research and development.

Elements of the Sureserve healthy homes and retrofit model, a new framework for collaboration, include community-based recruitment and inclusion, embedded local employment and mentorship, and local training, partnerships and social value integration.

Margaret Mullane, MP for Dagenham and Rainham, said: “In Barking and Dagenham, 18,000 homes on the Becontree Estate require deep retrofit measures. However, we face a significant challenge of where the finance and skilled work to upgrade them will come from.”

A spokesperson from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “Our clean-energy mission is the economic opportunity of the 21st century.

“Our upcoming Clean Energy Workforce Strategy will set out how government, industry and trade unions will come together to address skills and workforce challenges to provide good jobs for current and future generations.

“We have also set out plans to train up to 18,000 skilled workers to install heat pumps, fit solar panels, install insulation and work on heat networks.”