North Somerset is in a race against time to find space for the thousands of homes it needs to meet its housing target – but is warning there may not be enough construction workers to build them. The Labour government has set North Somerset Council a mandatory target of building 23,895 homes by 2040.
Now, the council is considering creating space for hundreds more homes around Nailsea and Backwell, as well as allowing Bristol to expand into the green belt. However, even if the council secures the land, there may not be sufficient construction workers in the area to build the 1,593 homes per year needed to meet the target.
Councillor Mark Canniford, North Somerset Council’s executive member for spatial planning, noted that the most houses built in the area in a single year was about 900 in 2018, which he described as a “booming year.”
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he said: “Due to various reasons – particularly Brexit – we don’t have the constriction staff in the UK.”
He further noted that the significant construction work required for the Gravity “gigafactory” and Hinkley Point C has added “further pressure” on construction jobs in the South West. He added: “We will rise to the challenge – but delivering this is extremely challenging.”
The government’s ambition is to see 1.5 million homes built across the UK within the next five years.
However, the Considerate Constructors Scheme, a representative body for builders, informed The Independent that the construction sector “simply doesn’t have the workforce.”
A consultation regarding the location of new homes needed for North Somerset to meet its housing target will run until Friday, March 21. More details about the plans can be found on the council website.
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