Apprentices are vital tool to tackling construction industry skills shortages

Bloor Homes is celebrating National Apprenticeship Week, recognising apprenticeships across the UK and the positive impact they have on individuals, employers and the economy.

The national house builder launched its own apprenticeship scheme in 2014. Today, some 99 apprentices are employed across the company’s seven regions, in roles including carpentry and bricklaying. In fact, apprentices make up 10% of Bloor Homes’ employed workforce.

With a commitment to tackling the skills shortage in the construction industry and the ambitious house building targets set out by the government, Bloor Homes acknowledges that attracting new talent to the sector has never been more important. 

If we are to achieve the Government’s ambitious target of building 300,000 homes a year by the mid 2020’s, we need to address the skills shortage that is facing our industry.
The number of jobs in construction is likely to increase so we need to invest in our workforce and attract and retain new talent to the sector. Apprenticeships are a valuable route to develop new talent and build the workforce of the future and we are proud to be providing places apprentices across our regions.  

Bloor Homes’ apprentices split their time between working on the company’s developments gaining valuable hands-on training and experience, with attending their local college. The apprentices are a vital part of the on-site teams, learning their trade under the watchful supervision of apprentice masters.


A unique approach in the industry, Bloor Homes’ apprentices are mentored by a team of 18 apprentice masters, whose role it is to oversee their recruits and get the best from them.
The apprentice masters scheme is unparalleled in the housebuilding industry. Solely overseeing the apprentices means they have more time to spend with them, and offering additional support when they need it.

Over the course of their three-year programmes, the apprentices learn their trade, before finally graduating at the company’s annual graduation ceremony. Many of the apprentices continue their careers with Bloor Homes, either in their chosen trade or embarking on its site management trainee scheme.

Bloor Homes is also a proud supporter of women in construction, with a number of female employees in senior positions across the company, as well as two female bricklaying apprentices at sites in its Southern and Western regions.