New CITB research suggests the construction workforce is becoming increasingly local. Fewer workers are travelling long distances for employment, while the industry still needs tens of thousands of additional people each year. For contractors, that means recruitment strategies built around bringing labour in from elsewhere may become less reliable — and developing skills closer to where projects are being delivered will matter more.
CITB’s latest data points to a more local labour market
The CITB Workforce Mobility and Skills research, published on 12 August, found that 34% of construction workers had worked no more than 20 miles from home during the previous 12 months.
At the other end of the scale, 28% had worked more than 50 miles from home, down from 32% in 2022. The longer-term change is even clearer: only 10% had worked more than 100 miles from home, compared with 21% in 2015.
CITB attributes the trend partly to family, lifestyle and personal circumstances becoming more influential when people decide where they are prepared to work. Its conclusion is that skills strategies increasingly need to be place-based, linking employers, training provision and workforce development more closely to regional demand.
This is labour-market research rather than a new legal requirement, but it raises an important practical question for contractors: where will your next generation of skilled workers actually come from?
Why relying on a travelling workforce may become harder
Construction has always depended heavily on mobility. Major infrastructure schemes, commercial developments and housing programmes create temporary peaks in demand, and skilled workers have traditionally followed the work.
That flexibility is unlikely to disappear, but CITB’s figures suggest employers should not assume it will continue at the same level.
This comes at a time when the underlying workforce requirement remains substantial. CITB’s Construction Workforce Outlook 2026–2030 estimates that construction needs an average of around 41,200 additional workers each year between 2026 and 2030 — approximately 206,000 people over five years.
The issue is therefore not simply attracting people into construction nationally. Employers increasingly need to consider whether the right trades, plant operators, supervisors and managers will be available within realistic travelling distance of their projects.
For a business tendering for work several years ahead, workforce availability should therefore sit alongside plant, materials, subcontractor capacity and programme risk when assessing whether the job can genuinely be resourced.
Local training becomes part of project resilience
One response is to recruit locally. Another is to develop more capability within the workforce already available.
That might include bringing apprentices and new entrants into the industry, but it should also include existing employees who can progress into skilled, supervisory or management roles.
An experienced operative may already be carrying out work competently but need an occupational qualification to demonstrate that competence formally. A supervisor may be capable of progressing into site management but require structured development before taking on the wider responsibility.
Workplace-based construction NVQs can be particularly useful in this situation because experienced workers can demonstrate competence through their normal work rather than being removed from productive employment for lengthy classroom programmes. All Star Safety’s current NVQ provision ranges from trade and plant operations through to supervisory, management, lifting and occupational health and safety qualifications.
That does not mean qualifications should be used simply to fill vacancies quickly. The aim should be to identify people with the right experience and potential, then give them the development required for the role they are moving into.
Local recruitment does not lower the competence standard
A shortage of available workers does not change the employer’s health and safety responsibilities.
Under CDM 2015, contractors must have the necessary skills, knowledge, experience and, where relevant, organisational capability to undertake construction work safely. Contractors must also check that workers they employ or appoint have the skills, knowledge, training and experience necessary for their work, or are receiving appropriate training and supervision while developing them.
The HSE guidance for contractors makes the important point that the required level should be proportionate to the complexity of the work and the risks involved.
That creates an important distinction between developing someone and putting someone into a position before they are ready.
For example, promoting an experienced tradesperson into a supervisory role can be an excellent way to retain knowledge locally. But the individual may now need development in planning work, communicating controls, monitoring subcontractors, managing changing conditions and challenging unsafe behaviour.
Similarly, a competent plant operator does not automatically become a competent lift supervisor simply because the project cannot recruit one locally.
A successful local skills strategy must therefore develop competence rather than simply change job titles.
Employers may be able to obtain help with the cost
CITB is increasingly organising training support around local employer demand.
Its Employer Networks bring employers together within local areas to identify skills needs and influence how training support is prioritised. From April 2026, eligible micro, small and medium employers employing up to 249 people can access support through the networks, subject to the current funding rules and available budgets.
Current arrangements include 50% match funding for eligible training, or fixed contributions for certain health and safety courses. Annual caps vary according to employer size, and some areas such as plant, scaffolding and first aid are treated differently, so businesses should check eligibility before committing expenditure.
CITB’s East of England team also highlights local support including Employer Networks, apprenticeship assistance and Norfolk and Suffolk Skills Bootcamps.
The wider point is important: training budgets should not automatically be planned on the assumption that the employer must pay the full commercial cost of every development activity.
What does this mean for Suffolk and East Anglia?
For employers in Suffolk, this is more than a national workforce statistic.
Major projects such as Sizewell C are creating long-term demand alongside existing construction, civil engineering, utilities, housing, maintenance and infrastructure work throughout the region. All Star Safety already supports contractors and workers around Leiston and the wider East Suffolk area through local construction training and assessment.
Where several projects compete for the same occupations, waiting until mobilisation to recruit can leave employers competing for a relatively small pool of qualified people.
A stronger approach is to work backwards from the programme.
If a project will need additional supervisors in 12 months, identify potential supervisors now. If additional plant categories will be required, assess the existing workforce. If managers need stronger health and safety knowledge, programmes such as IOSH Managing Safely can form part of that development before the responsibility arrives.
The training plan then becomes part of workforce planning rather than an exercise carried out only when a card expires or a client refuses site access.
What should you do now?
Contractors planning work over the next 12–36 months should consider adding a simple workforce capability review to their normal business planning:
- Identify the occupations and supervisory roles required by confirmed and likely projects.
- Record where shortages already exist.
- Consider how far workers currently travel and whether that model is sustainable.
- Identify existing employees capable of progression.
- Check which roles require additional training, occupational qualifications or supervised experience.
- Review apprenticeship and new-entrant opportunities where genuine long-term roles exist.
- Check available CITB grants, Employer Network support and other local funding before booking training.
- Speak to training providers early enough for courses and assessments to be completed before project mobilisation.
- Keep competence requirements separate from simple labour availability — particularly for safety-critical roles.
The change highlighted by CITB is gradual rather than dramatic, but the direction is significant. Employers that develop people locally, retain experienced workers and plan competence ahead of project demand are likely to be less exposed when the next major project starts competing for the same workforce.
For contractors reviewing their future skills requirements, All Star Safety can help develop a structured construction training plan covering the qualifications and development required by the people already within the business.