Heat Decarbonisation

Skills: Demand and Provision - National

Employment in decarbonisation industries in Scotland is growing faster than other industries, but without further growth, the capacity of the current workforce will not meet demand. There is a particular concern that there are not enough skilled workers who can install, maintain and promote low carbon heating products than will be needed to meet future demand. Currently there is a particularly high demand for plumbers and heating and ventilating engineers, as well as carpenters and joiners across Scotland. Shortages in key emerging occupations such as retrofitters (designers, advisers, co-ordinators) could occur as the pace of retrofitting homes and buildings accelerates.

Skills gaps for key trades are anticipated to rise sharply over the next few years – particularly as the sector faces an ageing workforce. In addition, there are competing demands, as jobs vital to heat decarbonisation cut across several industries and, within construction, they cut across multiple work areas.

Clarity of the scale, focus and timelines for investment is critical in understanding the potential job opportunities and consequent skills demands to support decarbonisation of heat in buildings. However, research shows that the uncertainties around the likelihood of progression and the timelines of decarbonisation projects makes it challenging to identify the scale and timing of job opportunities and specific skills demands that will flow from them in the future.

The standards, skills and certification required for installers on Scottish Government schemes can mean substantial (and costly) amount of retraining, which can be challenging for smaller firms. This is further exacerbated a lack of training centres that can deliver the required certification in Scotland.

Skills: Demand and Provision – Shetland

The construction workforce in Shetland is currently stretched and facing labour shortages across a number of key roles (particularly trades roles including heating engineers).

The workforce will need to grow to meet net zero heating targets, particularly given that many within the existing workforce are expected to retire in the next decade. In the medium-term (2022-2025), 200 job openings are expected and 400 are expected in the longer-term (2025-2032). Existing challenges in attracting new talent and retaining existing talent point to the necessity for investment in upskilling and reskilling across the region.

The share of college enrolments aligned to heat decarbonisation industries is higher in Shetland than in Scotland overall (23% compared to 19%) suggesting these courses are popular in the region. In addition, the majority of these enrolments are aligned to architectural and engineering activities, technical testing and analysis industry (78%) and the remaining enrolments are aligned to the construction of buildings industry (22%). This presents an opportunity to grow the architectural and engineering activities workforce which currently makes up only 13% of employment in heat decarbonisation industries in region.

Enrolments aligned to heat decarbonisation occupations are largely aligned to electrical and electronic trades (55%) followed by construction and building trades and science, engineering and production technicians (both 18%). These courses would provide college students with the skills to enter some of the occupations in demand in Shetland, including engineering roles and plumbing and heating engineers.

Challenges in meeting the required skills provision in Shetland include:

• Entry level opportunities are restricted by employer ability and desire to recruit, employ and support apprentices through training. Many of the critical roles within Construction and Engineering rely on Apprenticeships as the sole entry level route.
• Retention of skills within Shetland – many people leave to study elsewhere (and don’t return) or leave for job opportunities elsewhere.
• Employers are unable to source training locally. There is no networked further education offer, resulting in apprentices in related heat decarbonisation occupations (e.g., plumbing), being trained in UHI Inverness or UHI Perth. There being fewer and smaller companies also mean less employment opportunities for apprentices and additional limitations due to a lack of employer opportunities. Employers often have to send apprentices to providers elsewhere in Scotland to access required training.

Agreed actions of SGS Member Organisations

Outreach

Embedding heat decarbonisation learning in current and planned STEM and school activity.

Lead: Developing Young Workforce Shetland and Skills Development Scotland

• Enhancing the delivery of senior phase and/or FT access courses
• Informing the Shetland Campus Redevelopment investment
• Enhancing the delivery of STEM in School

Business Engagement

Sharing intelligence, driving demand, highlighting training and technology, business breakfast, mobile heat training unit.

Lead: HIE Shetland / Shetland Islands Council

• Sharing insight and intelligence
• Driving demand
• Highlighting training and technology
• Understanding employer demand

Further and Higher Education

Carbon literacy, contextualised MA delivery, informing WBL pilots, college estates decarbonisation

Lead: UHI Shetland / SDS

• Modern apprenticeships
• Carbon literacy training
• Training and qualifications

Resources and Links

Decarbonisation of Domestic and Commercial Heating Pilot: Issues and Gap Analysis – Summary Report (link to SDS page or to directly to document?)

Heat in Buildings Strategy – achieving net zero emissions in Scotland’s buildings Scottish Government (2001)

Heat in Buildings Strategy - Quality Assurance: Policy Statement Scottish Government (2022)

Clean Heat and Energy Efficiency Workforce Assessment Report, Climate XCHange (2022)

Pathways to engagement with low carbon heat: An industry perspective

CITB Building Skills for Net Zero in Scotland (CIBT 2021)