Research conducted by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) suggests that skills shortages could put at risk as many as 27 000 building projects in the UK by 2019.
Some 85% of surveyors questioned by RICS reported difficulty recruiting qualified candidates, with 43% of surveying firms turning down new business due to a lack of skilled workers. This currently equates to an average of five contracts per year. Furthermore, an additional 11% of respondents said that they anticipate having to turn down work by 2019.
“Surveyors play a pivotal role in the delivery of every construction project. Simply put, without surveyors, things don’t get built,” says Alan Muse, Director of Built Environment Professional Groups at RICS. “That’s why our research is worrying: if so many firms are turning down work due to a lack of available talent, demand for skills will soon far outstrip the supply. For many companies, that time is already here, but the next few years look like a real tipping point – construction as an industry looks set to grow, but at this rate it’s very unlikely that we’ll have the capacity or the capability to fulfil planned projects.”
Muse adds: “We are now calling for surveying companies to support our work in bringing through the next generation of surveying talent. Our Surveying the Future campaign aims to attract a more diverse workforce for the benefit of the surveying profession.”
Adapted from press release by Louise Fordham