There were 24,590 new construction apprentices in England in 2024/25. That is the first year of growth after two consecutive years of decline. Welcome news. But it still represents barely half of the 48,000 new recruits the sector needs every year to meet housing and infrastructure targets.
The skills challenge is not just about numbers. It is about what those apprentices are being taught, and whether that includes the digital and AI literacy the sector now needs.
What Skills England found
A Skills England report published in October 2025 was blunt about the state of AI training in construction. "Despite AI's potential to enhance safety, sustainability and productivity across infrastructure and housing projects, the sector remains one of the least digitally mature." Training is described as "patchy and poorly integrated into national construction qualifications or apprenticeships."
The most pressing AI skills identified span three areas: technical skills like drone operation and BIM data interpretation; decision skills like applying AI output on site; and communication skills for explaining change across teams. All three are underrepresented in current apprenticeship frameworks.
Construction Apprenticeships: 2024/25
24,590: New construction apprenticeship starts in England (up 1.5%)
48,000: New recruits the sector needs annually to meet targets (CITB)
61%: Increase in CITB NEST-supported apprenticeship starts (H1 2025)
10m: UK workers targeted for AI upskilling by 2030 (Skills England)
What CITB is doing about it
The CITB Digital Competence Framework sets out the knowledge and behaviours expected across construction roles, including awareness that images and data shared online can be used to train AI systems, and skills in using digital project management tools and BIM platforms. It is a starting point, though industry critics say it needs more direct AI content to keep pace with what firms are actually deploying on site.
CITB's New Entrant Support Team is making measurable progress on volume. Between April and September 2025, NEST supported 1,521 apprenticeship starts, a 61% increase on the same period in 2024. The government's £600 million investment in construction skills includes £32 million from CITB to fund more than 40,000 industry placements a year. That money needs to follow updated content.
"Most existing AI training is not tailored to construction or provided in accessible, onsite formats." Skills England, October 2025
The generational gap in the room
Skills England flags a specific challenge: digital exclusion among older tradespeople, particularly in rural areas and economically disadvantaged regions. New apprentices may arrive with stronger digital instincts than their supervisors. That creates a mentoring inversion that firms need to plan for. Younger workers confident with apps and AI tools can find themselves working alongside experienced colleagues who find the shift disorienting.
The Construction Leadership Council's Developing Digital Competency in the Built Environment report published in late 2025 addresses this directly, calling for blended training formats that combine digital simulations with onsite coaching. The key word is practical. Workers are not going to engage with abstract AI ethics training between bricklaying and plastering. The learning has to show up where they work.
What firms should be doing now
Construction firms cannot wait for apprenticeship frameworks to catch up. The AI Skills Boost programme, launched in January 2026, offers free, industry-developed short courses aligned to a Skills England benchmark. These cover prompting, interpreting AI outputs, automating routine tasks and understanding risk. They are short, free and available online.
For firms taking apprentices this year, a practical approach means embedding AI tool awareness into day-to-day site induction, pairing new apprentices with digital champions, and giving supervisors the confidence to say "I am still learning this too" without it undermining their authority.
The skills gap in construction is real. But the gap between what apprentices are being taught and what the industry now needs is the one that requires the most urgent attention.
Building AI Competence in the Built Environment
The Responsible with AI programme gives built environment professionals the tools, frameworks and practical guidance to govern AI confidently. Designed for teams at every level, including those supporting apprenticeships and workforce development.
Explore the Programme → Responsible with AI
