Ambitious trades held back by skills shortage and rising costs, research finds

The UK’s 900,000 tradespeople, including electricians, plumbers, painters and decorators, are struggling to expand their businesses because of growing costs, the burden of bureaucracy and major hiring pressures, a new report finds. 

New research from Checkatrade shows British tradespeople are optimistic about the future of their businesses (72%). Indeed, tradespeople have shown they are among the UK’s most entrepreneurial workers, with nine-in-every-ten (90%) stating they either want to set up their own business or co-own their firm. 

But the study reveals major barriers are preventing the UK’s 900,000 plumbers, roofers, and carpenters from growing their businesses.

Seven in ten (71%) tradespeople say that skills shortages are stopping them from expanding, while eight in ten (79%) struggle to grow as a result of the rising costs of materials and tools. 

Based on data from 850 people working in the trade industry across the UK, Checkatrade’s Trade Nation report reveals British trades are eager to contribute to the Government’s growth agenda but key challenges are preventing them from doing so.  

The report reveals tradespeople to be among the most hungry and ambitious sectors of the British workforce. Seven in ten (72%) tradespeople are confident about their future, compared with just 7% who feel pessimistic about what lies ahead. This contrasts with the business sector more broadly, which is less positive than tradespeople. According to recent analysis by the British Chambers of Commerce, just over half (56%) of businesses surveyed believe there is untapped potential in the UK economy.

Moreover, despite challenging conditions, a remarkable nine in ten (90%) have ambitions to own a business or co-own a firm.

Rising costs of materials and tools, particularly in the midsts of concerns around increasingly high levels of tool theft across the country, are preventing growth for four-fifths (79%) of tradespeople, growing to nearly nine in ten (89%) among the smallest businesses.

And rising taxes, like the increase in employer National Insurance Contributions, are identified by seven in every ten (69%) trades as a block on their business growth. 

Expansion for trade businesses, which contribute £138bn to the economy each year, is also being cut back because of major skills shortages facing the industry. 

Seven in ten (71%) tradespeople say skills gaps are causing major challenges for their company, and the issue is most pronounced in high-growth sectors, such as home decarbonisation and retrofit technologies, where nearly nine in ten (88%) tradespeople are affected.

As the number of new apprentices stalls nationally, tradespeople like carpenters, roofers and electricians who once relied on apprenticeships to get into the industry now say traditional training routes aren’t working anymore.

Nearly half (47%) of trades say they have never hired an apprentice and have no plans to do so, with the costs associated as the main concern. 

Checkatrade, the UK’s leading home improvement platform, which represents more than 100,000 British tradespeople, has set out recommendations to help combat these challenges. These include urging the Government to introduce tax relief for trades when they take on an apprentice for the first time, aimed at encouraging more young people into the profession; calling for a review of the business tax regime to drive growth and make it easier for trades to expand amid the pressure of rising costs and inflation; and advocating for stricter regulation to put an end to late payments. 

See the Trade Nation report in full here