The UK government has announced £70 million in new funding to address shortages in building safety professions, with the aim of strengthening the workforce needed to deliver 1.5 million new homes safely. The investment is designed to expand capacity in building control and fire engineering, two sectors facing significant shortages of qualified professionals. These workforce gaps have been identified as barriers to housing delivery and were also highlighted as a major concern in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
The funding is expected to increase the number of Registered Building Inspectors by up to 700 over the next three years, including inspectors qualified to assess High-Risk Buildings. It will also support the growth of the fire engineering profession by increasing the number of trained fire engineers, expanding higher education opportunities, and improving academic and research capacity in the field. The government says this will help ensure that new homes are approved more efficiently while maintaining strong safety standards.
Of the total package, £55 million will be allocated to building control and £15 million to fire engineering. In building control, the funding will support local authority teams in England to recruit and train new Registered Building Inspectors to the required standard, while also helping existing inspectors gain higher-level qualifications, including the ability to inspect high-risk buildings. It will also support the training of new entrants in Registered Building Control Approvers and local authority systems.
In fire engineering, the funding will be used to expand higher education provision, including postgraduate bursaries, as well as strengthen research and academic development. The three-year programme responds to recommendations from the House of Lords regulatory committee, the Fire Engineers Advisory Panel, and the Building Control Independent Panel, all of which stressed the urgent need for more suitably qualified professionals in these safety-critical sectors. Further details on how to apply for the funding are expected to be released in the coming months.
