Building our workforce
We use data to understand skills gaps and support skills planning, to make learning opportunities accessible.
Skills England, sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), provides a Local Skills dashboard with published local data from a variety of sources, in an easy-to-navigate format. The dashboard covers topics such as employment, qualifications and education outcomes across England, to support local skills planning.
Local Skills Improvement Plans provide in-depth insight into skill needs across a given area, from supporting people into work and progression in employment, through to postgraduate level 8, along with the actions needed to meet them.
The LSIP statutory guidance sets out how key partners across all 39 LSIP areas must work together to develop three-year plans. These will be approved in summer 2026 and run until 2029.
Data is available to view and download for various geographies, including local authority (LA), Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) area, Mayoral Combined Authority (MCA) and national level. The dashboard is produced by Skills England, a body that brings together key partners to meet the UK’s skills needs over the next decade, across all regions.
Find out more about Skills England’s aims.
We support work to attract the brightest and best talent into rewarding construction careers
The Department for Education (DfE) established 10 technical excellence colleges specialising in construction in the 2025 to 2026 academic year. These 10 colleges are the first to achieve technical excellence college status, and will play an active role in shaping the wider programme and supporting other providers in their region.
The Construction Technical Excellence College (CTEC) in each MHA+ region is:
East Midlands: Derby College Group
West Midlands: Dudley College of Technology
South East Midlands: The Bedford College Group
Apprenticeships are the lifeblood of the construction industry, and we want to encourage more young people to join our industry, and more employers to offer opportunities.
On 16 September 2025, responsibility for apprenticeships, adult further education, skills, training and careers transferred from the Department for Education (DfE) to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). This was part of a machinery of government change, aligning skills development directly with labour market policy and the government’s “Get Britain Working” plan. Changes to apprenticeship assessment processes and funding take effect from April 2026.
Skills England provides a comprehensive Apprenticeship Finder, which you can filter by sector, including construction.
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) provides information on how to access apprenticeship opportunities.
The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) provides information on ways to get involved, build your knowledge and become professionally qualified.
The Institute for Apprenticeships provides information on available apprenticeship opportunities, along with a search function to explore apprenticeships and qualifications.
We support choosing construction as a career option
Construction is one of the biggest industries to work in, in the UK and worldwide. There’s a role for everyone, whether you’re good at maths and science, love woodwork or computers, or are great at organising projects.
Go Construct is an online portal providing information on construction career options and the qualification routes available.
Go Construct STEM Ambassadors are industry role models who share what it’s like to work in construction, to inspire young people to join the industry.
Talentview Construction can help you find local first jobs, apprenticeships and work experience.
Find a Job is a useful source of available roles, with an intuitive search engine, featuring job opportunities posted by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Skills Bootcamps may help you develop new skills that employers are looking for. They’re a great opportunity to train in a new industry or progress in your current career.
Find a Skills Bootcamp through the National Careers Service. Bootcamps can take place at a college, with another training provider, or online.
We encourage those in the industry to inspire and support the next generation
The Department for Education is working in partnership with Springpod to give young people access to content exploring their career pathways, including T Levels, apprenticeships and Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQ).
Working in such a fast-developing industry means we need to continually seek out new talent, to help close the skills gap and support creativity.
The MHA+ Skills Community encourages the industry’s workforce to consider becoming Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Ambassadors. STEM Ambassadors help promote the study of, and careers in, STEM industries.
Find out how to become a STEM Ambassador.
Find a local learning provider
The National Careers Service has developed an easy way to find a local course that meets your needs. Find a local course through the National Careers Service.