David Campbell, chief operating officer at NHBC, discusses ambitious housing targets, maintaining quality while building large numbers of new homes and why skills might be the key to unlocking both
Many in our industry have welcomed the government’s ambitious pledge to build 1.5m new homes in England within this parliamentary term but, unfortunately, there are barriers to growth of this scale.
Actions that have already been taken to try to break down these barriers, including the £625m investment in construction skills, the establishment of the Construction Skills Mission Board and the £3bn apprenticeship budget, are commendable, all supporting growth and quality in our sector. The announcement on the locations of the next generation of Britain’s New Towns is also a significant step forward.
Indeed, there has been a notable commitment from Steve Reed, the new secretary of state for housing, communities and local government to “get spades in the ground and
cranes in the sky”.
However, if we want to “build, baby, build” we need to “skill, baby, skill” as without a substantial increase in the workforce, scaling up the volume of new homes will be incredibly challenging.
Building quality and quantity
NHBC is the UK’s largest independent provider of warranty and insurance for new homes and are well-placed in our understanding of what is needed to build new homes as we carry out over 1m home inspections each year. In addition to our inspection service, NHBC supports the sector with data-led insights and a comprehensive range of training courses, all underpinning our purpose of raising standards in house building.
Quality is fundamental to all we do and it is at the core of all our products and services.
In one of the latest reports from NHBC Foundation, we have found that historically as build volume increases, customer satisfaction decreases, and the number of potential defects identified rises.
Indeed, it feels like stating the obvious but if you are struggling to find anyone to complete a job, particularly if the progress of an entire site is at stake, the importance of
the level of quality to which that job is completed diminishes.
While this is perhaps not surprising, the report not only highlights the potential pitfalls of increasing volume at pace; it also offers positive recommendations for multiple industry stakeholders, underlining NHBC’s commitment to improving quality.
Importantly, though, it is something we can avoid in the future. It is possible to build the number of homes needed and maintain quality and providing access to skilled workers is crucial to breaking this cycle.
Three key aspects
I feel there are three simple but fundamental things needed to build a significant number of high-quality homes:
1. The right locations.
2. The right people.
3. The right skills.
I have already mentioned the next generation of Britain’s New Towns. These will give us locations where much-needed new homes can be built.
When it comes to the right people, the house-building industry is already fortunate to have many talented and capable people working within it, but we need more – you simply cannot create a skilled workforce overnight.
Put starkly, a third of skilled tradespeople will retire in the next 10 years and more than 250,000 extra construction workers will be needed by 2028 just to meet the current demand, let alone support an increase in construction output.
We face a pressing and undeniable skills shortage that will only get worse if we do not act now. It is only by recruiting the workforce now and providing the opportunities for people to develop these vital skills that we can make the progress needed and build the volume of homes required to meet the housing shortfall.
I am immensely proud that NHBC is committed to being part of the solution and helping the house-building industry meet the challenge of the skills shortage. We are committed
to a substantial investment in practical, long-term initiatives to help to begin to build the skilled workforce the industry urgently needs.
That is why we have allocated £100m of investment, as part of the HBF Home Building Sector Skills Plan, to create a national network of 12 multi-skill training hubs.
These hubs will provide Level 2 apprenticeships in bricklaying, groundworks and site carpentry and we will be considering the locations of our training hubs to support areas identified for new towns. NHBC stands ready to equip local people with the skills to build the quality homes their communities need.
The time is now
I have always admired the drive and tenacity of the house-building industry. It is a sector that constantly evolves and adapts thanks to skilled tradespeople, effective management and dedicated site teams. That is why, together with continued collaboration between industry and government, I am confident we can build the high-quality new homes we need.
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