Industry and government launches Construction Talent Retention Scheme

Chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, has announced the launch of the Construction Talent Retention Scheme, a partnership between the government and industry to secure essential talent in the UK construction sector. 

The Construction Talent Retention Scheme, which formally launches later this month, will be an online portal that supports redeployment of staff at risk of redundancy across the sector, while also enabling temporary employee loans between businesses. The scheme will also give displaced workers from other sectors a route to find new employment in construction.

Based on a proven model to safeguard talent in the aerospace and automotive sectors, the scheme is backed by the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) and all leading sector trade bodies. CLC co-chair Andy Mitchell said: “This is a great example of what we can achieve when we work collaboratively with government and we look forward to continuing in this spirit when the proposals and recommendations of our broader Roadmap to Recovery are published. In the meantime, we will work with our members and industry stakeholders to encourage the scheme’s use and success.”

Association for Consultancy and Engineering chief executive Hannah Vickers said: “This is a proven solution with a strong track-record in other sectors, cross-industry support and pledges from our leading employers. It is vital we keep the skills in our sector to avoid a talent drain and is the only way we will be able to ramp-up activity to lead the recovery of the wider economy and deliver growth through new buildings and infrastructure.”

Group chief executive of Mace, and skills workstream lead at the CLC, Mark Reynolds, said: “The CLC’s Construction Talent Retention Scheme will offer a critical lifeline for the construction industry. It will help the industry retain and share our exceptional talent needed to deliver vital infrastructure and support the country’s recovery plan. The scheme is a great example of government and industry collaboration during these challenging times for the construction sector. We are delighted to support the initiative as a real solution to protecting employment for thousands in our industry, continuing to build a better future.”

Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Alasdair Reisner said: "Our industry will be central to securing the UK’s economic recovery from Covid-19. This is a fantastic initiative that will safeguard our sector, which is both highly skilled and requires the retention of skills to operate at its full potential. CECA is fully supportive of the Construction Talent Retention Scheme and anticipates it will be key to ensuring that where there are unavoidable job losses as a result of the end of the furlough scheme in October, employees will be able to find new employment within our industry."

The not-for-profit programme has funding secured until the end of the financial year, providing a free online platform for any organisation looking to hire, while ensuring that candidates’ skills and experience are given a prominent platform within the industry. 

Businesses can register their interest in the scheme at www.trs-system.co.uk/construction

Find out more about this issue at our webinar, "Post-Covid - the skills challenge for construction".