COMMENT 15
mandate biodiversity net gain on all housebuilding sites.
STRUCTURAL BARRIERS However, after what has been a very difficult year for society and business, it is clear that SME housebuilders need the Government to do more to remove the structural barriers they face to building, so that there is the capacity and resource to adapt and respond positively to these changes. This includes addressing the skills shortage in construction, which continues to hamper output in the SME housing sector. Our House Builders’ Survey confirmed that we will need more qualified construction managers to oversee the build process and ensure that the work was done to the revised standards. But construction managers are in short supply, with 41 per cent of my members struggling to recruit into this position pre-pandemic.
GREEN JOBS TASKFORCE Without a plan to plug the skills gaps in construction, we will not have the people we need to deliver low carbon homes at scale. The FMB is calling on the Government to use its Green Jobs Taskforce to develop a nationwide train- ing programme that will upskill the
these inquiries, and builders can get on with delivering green homes.
existing workforce and encourage young people into the building industry through high quality apprenticeships.
Elsewhere, planning is still a problem. It is not uncommon for my members to tell me that they are waiting one year for a determination on a non-controversial site. This not only causes frustration and lost income for builders, but it will make it harder for the Government to reach its housebuilding targets. Greater investment in local authority planning departments is needed so that under-pressure councils have the resources they need to manage
BIODIVERSITY REQUIREMENTS Achieving biodiversity net gain will be much more difficult on smaller sites, especially the brownfield sites that SMEs will typically build out, and policy makers need to understand this. While we know there are many small-scale measures that can make a difference, like bat boxes, lifting fences and planting trees, large-scale measures like sustainable drainage systems and wildflower meadows are not viable on sites of five units. If SMEs are to play a role in fixing the housing crisis, net gain should not become just another tax on development that prices out local builders.
EXISTING HOMES
A focus on future homes shouldn’t forget Britain’s 28 million existing homes, many of which are energy inefficient, and 85 per cent of which will still be in use in 2050. To set up the UK for success in achieving our net zero targets, a national retrofit strategy that tackles carbon emissions from these buildings should be brought forward.
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