Two key scaffolding bodies have asked ministers to add scaffolders to the UK’s shortage occupation list for immigration.
The National Access and Scaffolding Confederation (NASC) and Construction Industry Scaffolders Record Scheme (CISRS) have warned the government that its ambitions for housing, infrastructure and energy are at risk due to skills shortages in the sector.
The bodies have written to prime minister Keir Starmer, chancellor Rachel Reeves and Migration Advisory Committee chair Brian Bell calling for an easing of immigration rules to make it easier to recruit scaffolders from abroad.
A letter to Reeves from NASC chief executive Clive Dickin on behalf of both organisations, seen by Construction News, said: “The scaffolding and access sector is confronting a significant skills shortage that threatens progress on essential infrastructure and housing projects – areas critical to your economic strategy and broader fiscal objectives.”
It said the trade body was investing in training new domestic talent and upskilling the existing workforce through a number of schemes but that these will take time to bear fruit.
“To bridge the immediate skills gap, overseas recruitment remains a vital short-term solution,” Dickin added.
“With over 1,200 current vacancies nationwide and the potential for 18 per cent sector growth among NASC members, your support for this recommendation will be instrumental in unlocking the sector’s economic potential.”
He asked for Reeves to support the Migration Advisory Committee adding scaffolders to the shortage occupation list, now called the immigration salary list, which allows for easier recruitment from overseas for specific jobs.
The letter to Starmer was similar. Bell, whose committee recommends roles to be added to the list was asked to “recognise scaffolding as a critical sector by including scaffolding and access roles, particularly those requiring Level 2 and below qualifications, on the shortage occupation list for a five-year period”.
The letter to Bell also asked his committee to acknowledge that skilled scaffolders play an essential role in “advancing national priorities, from infrastructure expansion to achieving net-zero targets”.
Dickin told CN: “We see the challenges of the talent shortage being a major barrier to achieving good growth within the UK economy, and it is really important we see [the government] afford change in the short term that allows the shortage occupation list to be amended so we can get talent into the UK.”
Many construction roles currently feature on the shortage occupation list, including bricklayers, carpenters, plasterers and roofers.
Several of them were added following a push from the Construction Leadership Council in 2023 when the umbrella trade body produced a report arguing the occupations were essential to the delivery of national priority projects.
A government spokesperson said: “Under our Plan for Change, we will restore order by linking our immigration, skills, and visa systems so we can grow our domestic workforce, end the reliance on overseas labour and boost economic growth.
“We also announced a £140m investment from industries to create 32 new Homebuilding Skills Hubs, which will enable us to recruit thousands more construction apprentices. Establishing Skills England will also create a reformed Growth and Skills Levy to find and fill gaps across our country.”
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Ian Weinfass