Why we must own the housing skills crisis
14 October 2025
We welcomed housing and construction leaders to our new PfP Thrive Skills Centre in Derby earlier this year. The event was filled with frank debate as attendees reflected on the growing skills crisis that threatens the UK’s ability to build and maintain homes.
Hosted by PfP Thrive, part of Places for People, the event brought together senior figures from housing associations, training providers, and contractors; among them was Phil Pemberton, Director of Assets at Riverside, and in this article, he reflects on how we can tackle the crisis from within.
I’ve worked in this sector for a long time. I’ve sat in many a boardroom where we pat ourselves on the back for our past successes, but in doing so we ignore the very real problem staring us in the face: the growing skills shortage.
As I told my peers at the recent PfP Thrive summit in Derby, “I and others in this room are part of the problem.” We are, quite literally, a greying workforce. Too many of us are men over 50 who, upon retirement, take decades of hands-on expertise with them. That institutional knowledge is irreplaceable – unless we find ways to incentivise experienced colleagues to stay on as mentors and coaches for the next generation.
At the same time, we must capture the imagination of young people entering the job market. Today’s entrants expect digital tools, smart tech and flexible working patterns. If we cannot offer a modern, compelling workplace, they will look elsewhere.
Demand for our services has soared. Since the Covid-19 lockdowns, I’ve watched repair requests climb by around 20%, year on year – that’s 100% growth since Covid. Add in stringent new building-safety regulations and the mounting pressure on an ageing housing stock, and the result is nothing short of a crisis. We need to bring government departments and educational bodies to the table – so they truly grasp the scale of our capacity gap and help unlock the funding and policy support required to both build and maintain safe, high-quality homes.
Our sector’s missteps are all too clear when we reflect on past tragedies. The fallout from Grenfell exposed our shortcomings in customer care and technical rigour. We cannot allow neglect to define us again. Skills, competence and capacity must be our watchwords going forward.
We have globally revered doctors and nurses, so why shouldn’t we build, manage and maintain homes to the same standard? I’m convinced that, with collective effort, we can declare a future where the people building, maintaining and managing our homes in this country are world-beating.
To achieve that vision, we need to reimagine our current approach. Take traditional training models; it’s crazy to give apprentices only one annual chance to join the sector. A September-to-July academic calendar simply won’t cut it and if we’re to address the skills shortage we must adopt flexible, year-round intakes that respond to real-time demand.
Ultimately, this isn’t about blame, it’s about responsibility. We must own our mistakes and collaborate across industry, government and education to plug the tap of departing expertise, ignite fresh talent and secure a brighter, more resilient future for every home in the UK.