The West Midlands Combined Authority and the Construction Industry Training Board are developing a National Skills Academy for Construction, giving HR and workforce planning functions at construction employers a structured, data-led route to close a projected annual shortfall of more than 3,800 workers over the next five years.

The West Midlands Combined Authority is the regional combined authority covering the West Midlands, led by mayor Richard Parker.

The Construction Industry Training Board is the UK's statutory training body for the construction sector, led by chief executive Tim Balcon.

The strategic logic converts workforce planning from reactive recruitment into a data-led, forward-looking process. The academy will use live data from construction sites across the region to identify emerging skills gaps, giving employers earlier warning of shortages rather than discovering them at the point of hire.

The partnership follows the WMCA's earlier £75 million investment in construction skills and training over three years, targeting an expected 12,000-worker shortage, and mirrors a similar CITB partnership with Liverpool City Region addressing a 9,000-worker shortfall, part of a wider national initiative to build a more connected construction skills system across England.

Richard Parker said the region is heading into a construction boom driven by investment in housing, infrastructure and regeneration, and that working with CITB and local employers would help tackle the skills shortage and prepare the workforce for future growth. Tim Balcon said collaboration between industry, government and local authorities is essential to addressing the sector's skills needs. Hill Group chief executive Andy Hill said the industry can only deliver the homes and regeneration projects communities need if it has the skilled workforce to build them.

For the sector, the case signals that regional, data-led skills academies are becoming the preferred model for addressing construction labour shortages, meaning HR and workforce planning functions should expect closer alignment between regional authorities, training providers and site-level recruitment needs.

Source: Construction Management