The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) doesn’t represent small building firms, says FMB.
The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) needs to increase its representation of construction SMEs and better reflect the building industry, according to the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). The call comes after the announcement that the Chief Executive of Balfour Beatty is stepping down from the CLC.
Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), said: “Whoever replaces Leo Quinn as the Skills Lead on the CLC should come from a small or micro construction firm. Construction SMEs train two-thirds of all construction apprentices and are key to resolving the chronic skills shortage in the UK. Small construction firms are champions of quality training and will play an integral role in helping the Government to reach its ambition to deliver three million apprenticeships by 2020.”
The CLC’s objective is to drive industry improvement drawing together business leaders from across the sector to identify how to promote solutions to meet the ambitions of, amongst other things, a reduction of a third in costs and halving project times by 2025.
Berry continued: “More generally, questions remain regarding how well the CLC reflects the structure of the construction industry. Quinn stepping down presents the Council with an opportunity to take a fresh look at its membership. Arguably it doesn’t currently represent or engage with huge swathes of the construction industry – most notably the private domestic contractor. Professionalising the domestic builder is key to improving the overall image of the construction industry and until we do that, we won’t succeed in attracting the right calibre or number of new entrants into our industry.”
