WORK is required to boost recruitment in the construction sector in Cumbria as the area awaits numerous developments across the county to be completed and an ambitious new housing plan from the government.

This week, the British Chamber of Commerce release its quarterly recruitment outlook – a survey of over 4,700 British firms of all sectors and sizes.

Hiring problems were revealed across all sectors, with this most recent survey showing 59 per cent of respondents had attempted to recruit in the last three months, down from 62 per cent in the first quarter.

Sectors reporting high figures in businesses attempting to recruit included hospitality at 80 per cent, logistics at 79 per cent, and production and manufacturing at 77 per cent, while retail was relatively low at 44 per cent.

But the sector bearing the brunt of this staffing issue is construction and engineering, with 82 per cent reporting recruiting problems in the second quarter of 2024, up from 69 per cent last quarter.

This is compared to 71 per cent of businesses in the hospitality sector that said they faced recruitment issues, and 70 per cent of retailers.

While most businesses said they’re struggling to increase investment in workplace training, the second quarter did see a slight increase in this.

28 per cent of firms reported increasing staff training investment, two per cent up from the previous quarter, with 11 per cent reporting a drop.

61 per cent reported no change in their investment plans for training over the past three months.

The main external pressure on recruitment appears to be labour costs this quarter, with 67 per cent of firms saying they could be forced to put up prices because of this.

These labour cost concerns are most glaring in hospitality (77 per cent), construction and engineering (76 per cent), and production and manufacturing (72 per cent).

The issues facing construction add more pressure to plans underway across the county, including housing developments in the pipeline such as the St Cuthbert’s Garden Village in Carlisle and developments in Barrow, irrespective of any central government housing plans – a target figure for which is currently still 1.5million new homes across the UK.

Suzanne Caldwell, managing director at Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, said existing staff shortages mean there is a great need for action.

“There's the construction issue full stop and on top of the growing demand, and forecast further demand, for green construction skills, so a need for both training and retraining.

“There is already a lot happening and available to support employers in recruiting and training staff and the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) are a very active part of that,” Ms Caldwell said.

The CITB offers a range of grants to cover various costs like travel and apprenticeships.

They’re also running work placement opportunities for unemployed people in Cumbria under the banner ‘Creating Careers in Cumbria’ and are offering grants for net zero training and qualifications, including for trainers and assessors, and support with supply chain sustainability.

They’ve also launched a network for Cumbrian construction employers and, with Cumbria Chamber, are aiming to promote access to digitalisation and develop pathways for construction workers to train as teachers/assessors.

In West Cumbria, the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB), an employer-led skills body, is piloting a ‘work-ready’ project for people from deprived areas.

In Cumbria there are college and training providers active, such as at Carlisle College’s ‘Construction Skills Academy’ offering more opportunities in bricklaying, and Lakes College’s ‘Retrofit Academy’.

Over £1.5million was invested in the Carlisle project which took 12 months to complete.

The current site caters for around 80 students and can be expanded, with working partnerships with major building companies including Persimmon, who donated 12,000 bricks for the launch.

Many construction graduates from Carlisle College go on to work for housebuilder Persimmon Homes in Cumbria.

Without Carlisle College, they wouldn’t be able to run their apprenticeship programme, according to their MD Ant Mansfield.

READ MORE: New construction academy unveiled to meet demands for new workers

Despite this, there remains a challenge in finding enough people to train, Ms Caldwell explained.

She said employers may need to look at various things to address this, which involve looking more widely for workers, such as by signing up to the Armed Forces Covenant and using the relevant free recruitment services for hiring service leavers and veterans and working with initiatives to find employment for refugees.

Working with the prison service to give jobs to approved prisoners on day release and prison leavers, and recruiting more people with disabilities/long-term health conditions may help as well, she said, adding that there are active initiatives about opportunities for people with special educational needs.

There are also ways to work with schools and colleges to engage more young people in construction, such as taking part in events like Cumbria Careers Day, she added.

“Even with all of that, we are still facing shortages, not helped by Cumbria's ageing population, so the government does need to support in terms of enabling people to come into the county from abroad to support these workforce needs,” Ms Caldwell concluded.

Responding to the findings, Jane Gratton, deputy director of public policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “It’s alarming that recruitment difficulties have increased in recent months across all sectors.

“The very sharp rise in the construction industry is particularly worrying.

“People shortages and labour costs are ramping up pressure on firms and holding back growth.

“We need to prioritise help for people to get back into the labour market and remove the barriers to business investment in training.

“Better planning for skills is crucial.

“The new government must work at pace to outline a long-term national skills strategy, working closely with the devolved administrations.

“Building on the Local Skills Improvement Plans will help develop strong partnerships between employers, training providers and others to ensure people get the skills and support they need.”