CONSTRUCTION
Competency is key – associations respond to UK building plan
IOSH and CIOB have urged Labour to consider quality and competency in its ambitious construction targets.
Associations including IOSH, CIOB and RoSPA have expressed caution in response to the Government’s plan to build 1.5 million homes over five years.
Labour’s landslide election victory means attention is now on one of its key manifesto promises.

CREDIT: Tony Curry / Alamy Stock Photo
The new Chancellor Rachel Reeves used her first speech in the role to outline new planning reforms, part of which involves reversing the Conservative’s 2023 policy to ignore housing targets to protect green belt areas – land protected against planning rules to prevent urban sprawl.
The green belt covers approximately 13% of England’s land but incorporates sites such as disused car parks and wasteland, prohibited from development as they technically remain green belt areas. Labour has classified these as ‘grey belt’ and identified them as spots for future housing development.
The party claims that utilising these areas alongside existing brownfield sites will help them meet the 1.5 million target.
However, safety and construction bodies are urging Labour to pursue such goals carefully and not compromise on competency during any future construction plans. “While we welcome the government’s plans to build 1.5 million homes throughout the next parliament, they must be realistic about the significant lack of skilled workers the construction industry has to deliver such ambitious targets,” warned the Chartered Institute of Building’s (CIOB) Head of Policy and Development, David Barnes. “The introduction of the Building Safety Act means there is rightly a requirement for those undertaking a range of construction roles to be qualified and able to demonstrate competence, and these people cannot be recruited and trained overnight.”
“All duty holders must be aware of their health and safety responsibilities”
In light of recent HSE statistics, Ruth Wilkinson, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) called for OSH to be central in any process. “It’s crucial that any plans to build more homes or any other types of building have safety and health designed in from the very start.” she said. “Last week, the HSE announced that 51 people were killed in fatal accidents in construction in 2023-24. Many more were injured, some seriously, in accidents or suffered ill health because of something they were exposed to at work.”
She continued: “All duty holders must be aware of their health and safety responsibilities, comply with the legal requirements, and ensure competencies. To support this process, they should involve competent safety and health professionals, who can advise and also support with procedures to manage the risks – via implementing the principles of prevention – faced by the construction workers who will be involved.
As well as competency, Barnes at CIOB said maintaining high levels of build quality was essential. “It’s vital the race to meet targets doesn’t impact the quality of new homes, as low-quality housing can not only pose a safety risk but can also be detrimental to the wellbeing of the occupants,” he said.
Steve Cole, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at RoSPA agreed, again citing the lack of qualified construction workers. “Regrettably, the construction industry’s chronic labour shortages already place immense pressure on its limited pool of skilled tradespeople. Attempting to build even more homes without a strategy to increase the workforce or adopt modern manufacturing methods risks compromising quality further.”
Competency is key – associations respond to UK building plan
IOSH and CIOB have urged Labour to consider quality and competency in its ambitious construction targets.
Mark Glover - SHP Editor
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