The Skilled Trades Shortage Isn't Just a UK Problem — and the Training Pipeline Isn't Keeping Up

The UK needs tens of thousands of new skilled trades workers every year through 2030, according to CITB's latest Construction Workforce Outlook, just to keep pace with retirements and demand.

Bricklayers, electricians, plumbers and scaffolders are consistently named as the hardest roles to fill. Apprenticeship applications already outstrip available places by 3 to 1.

It's not just construction. Engineering faces a shortfall of up to 59,000 roles in the UK, with a fifth of that workforce retiring this year alone.

The US is living a version of the same story: Georgetown University projects a 4.6 million worker gap there by 2032, driven by the same mix of retirements and graduates funnelled into the wrong careers.

As one economist put it, the UK has "a misallocation of educational resources" — too much invested in university routes, not enough in vocational training.

The jobs are there. The training pipeline isn't keeping up.

That's the exact gap Renzo exists to close.