A-Level Results Day: How Britain Falling Out of Love with Vocational Training Worsened the Housing Crisis

This Thursday, thousands of A-level students will receive their results deciding if they will be able to attend their chosen university. Yet many Brits will not attend university due to financial constraints, with Student Loans Company revealing that the average student debt in the UK is £45,600 for students who started their course in 2022-23. This comes as new research from Fix Radio – the UK’s only national radio station for builders – finds that 65% of Brits saying they did not receive enough encouragement to pursue a career in the trades during their academic years. With the Institute of Student Employers (ISE) research indicating that the average graduate salary in the UK sits at £33,229, students are increasingly being turned off by the idea of a university education and should consider an apprenticeship and career in the trades, according to Clive Holland, broadcaster on Fix Radio.

In the wake of the new Labour government’s pledge to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years, comes a need for more young people to be encouraged to take apprenticeships to become qualified builders. With the number of people starting apprenticeships falling from 500,000 in 2015 to 337,000 last year, more must be done to encourage young people to opt for apprenticeships over traditional university degrees. Clive Holland, broadcaster on Fix Radio – the UK’s only national radio station for builders and the trade – argues that a combination of declining apprenticeships and a rapidly shrinking workforce is exacerbating the current housing crisis.

In light of this, Fix Radio recently launched its National Construction Audit further revealing a lack of incentive amongst Brits to take up construction roles, with 65% of Brits saying they did not receive enough encouragement to pursue a career in the trades during their academic years, and 18% of British parents saying they would not want their children to work in the construction industry because they don’t believe they will earn enough money. With a further 67% of Brits (29.7 million) agreeing that their most valuable professional development came from learning on the job from skilled professionals, it is more imperative than ever for the UK to support apprenticeships.

As the national average salary for a construction apprentice at £23,828 according to Glassdoor, apprentices will be able to not only earn on the job but also be debt-free. This also coincides with many tradespeople’s jobs earning sizeable amounts more than university graduates. According to research carried out by The Federation of Master Builders, brickies, plumbers and other skilled professionals were taking home earnings which dwarfed those of graduates by thousands of pounds.

Site manager – £51,266
Plumbers – £48,675
Supervisors – £48,407
Electricians – £47,265
Roofers – £42,303
Bricklayers – £42,034
Carpenters and joiners – £41,413
Plasterers – £41,045
Scaffolders – £40,942
Painters and decorators – £34,587
According to Clive Holland, failure to address the lack of builders in the UK will affect any measures introduced to tackle the housing crisis after the election, which could potentially be alleviated by encouraging more young people into apprenticeships. The CIPD states the number of apprenticeships starts has significantly decreased since the introduction of the current apprenticeship levy system in 2017, creating a bigger issue around labour shortages. Analysis of Department for Education figures shows a 41% decline (almost 54,000) in starts for those under 19 and a 36% decline (55,000) for those aged 19-24 between 2015 and 2023.

Clive Holland, host of The Clive Holland Show on Fix Radio, shares his thoughts on how the skills deficit has affected the construction sector:

“It’s not uncommon for the nation to be blighted by a skills deficit, but it’s almost unmanageable state led Fix Radio to commissioning their National Construction Audit, shedding light on the critical impact that the lack of skills is having on the UK. Apprenticeships are on the decline and the Department of Education by their own admission shows that only one percent of all young people are studying for a T-Level.

“Since Brexit, record numbers of tradespeople have left the country, and the stresses of an overstretched workforce are prompting thousands of colleagues to either retrain or leave the industry entirely. As Fix’s research has shown that the nation is starting to feel this pinch – with increasing numbers finding themselves waiting in excess of a year for a tradesperson to see them – imagine what this means for the housing crisis in the long-term.

“Years of continually missed homebuilding targets is now pricing millions of people out from the property market, and it’s only going to get worse. We simply need more builders. If political parties, irrespective of their stripe or colour, honestly believe they can address the housing crisis without having the serious conversation of addressing the skills deficit, we’re heading into a very dangerous position.”