The success of the government’s key policy missions – clean energy, housing and productivity – depends on the skills pipeline. The skills pipeline depends on apprenticeships, particularly in building-services engineering, where an apprenticeship is the golden ticket into the workforce.
These jobs support critical national infrastructure, housebuilding and net zero. They are safety-critical occupations requiring technical skills. A balanced system supporting and investing in the apprenticeships of the future is more vital than ever.
JTL is an Independent Training Provider (ITP) and charity, established by the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA) and Unite the Union 30 years ago. We are directly accountable to industry and take pride in training current and future generations of electricians and plumbers. We partner with 3,800 employers in England and Wales and have 8,500 apprentices in training.
Qualified electricians are in demand to fit new homes, instal systems at Hinkley Point C, support the development of HS2, and power new data centres. But the size of the qualified workforce is in decline. The number of electricians in England has reduced by 19.6 per cent since 2018. JTL’s new forecasting model, developed in collaboration with our industry partners, predicts that the workforce will decline by a further 15.4 per cent by 2038.
This is despite an overall increase in the number of electricians being trained in recent years. The ECA estimates that at least 11,000 starts are needed per year just to maintain the size of the current qualified workforce.
Demand for apprenticeship places is strong; the issue is that the training base is constrained. As a specialist in what we do, with a relentless focus on quality, JTL trains a third of the electrical workforce and 12 per cent of plumbers. The rising cost and complexity of delivery and the need for new technologies to meet evolving industry demand are putting us under tremendous pressure. Funding has remained static since 2019; as a not-forprofit ITP, we receive no capital funding to invest in training facilities and are excluded from the support measures granted to further-education colleges.
We are also navigating strong headwinds such as the tax rises announced in the autumn Budget– both from the caution our partner SMEs may now exercise in taking on apprentices and as an employer ourselves.
We are now at a critical juncture. The government, in particular Skills England and the Department for Education, must bring forward policies and funding to cultivate a skills base ahead of major infrastructure projects. This needs a coordinated effort from training providers, businesses and national and regional governments. There can be no shortcuts nor compromises on the quality of training in the rush to power up the workforce.
Apprenticeships are not just part of the solution: they are the solution to making sure there are enough skilled workers.
This month we are marking National Apprenticeship Week, a true celebration of ambition and hard work in what has been a revolution in education over the past ten years. The apprenticeships JTL delivers are a direct path to sustainable employment, bringing value to projects and communities across the country. With the right support, we can step up further to build a skilled, adaptable workforce equipped for the future.
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