CITB’s New Entrant Support Team helps over 1,500 apprentices join the industry

​​​​​​​The number of apprenticeship starts supported has increased by 61% compared to previous period

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) released its mid-year figures for its New Entrant Support Team (NEST).

The figures show that NEST has already supported 1,521 apprenticeship starts between April and September 2025, an increase from 943 in the same period last year.

The figures also show that in the same period this year, 9,201 employers were engaged to recruit an apprentice into their business, a 48% increase compared to the same period in 2024.

In the last full financial year, 2024-25, CITB’s NEST supported 4,000 apprenticeship starts, almost doubling from the previous financial year, 2023-24, and the team is currently on track to outperform this in the 2025-26 financial year.

NEST helps employers find, recruit, and retain apprentices or new entrants more easily and works closely with them to remove any barriers they may face in employing and retaining new entrants, particularly apprentices.

CITB’s Construction Workforce Outlook report estimates that the UK must recruit 47,860 extra workers each year to meet housing, infrastructure and maintenance demand.

For construction to have the workforce it needs in the future, investment in training that supports people into jobs is crucial. This is at the heart of CITB’s Strategic and Business Plans.

As part of the Government’s £600m investment into construction skills, CITB will invest £32 million to fund over 40,000 industry placements each year for all Level 2 and Level 3 learners, those studying NVQs, BTECs, T Levels and advanced apprenticeships.

CITB will also double the size of its NEST programme to support SMEs in recruiting, engaging, and retaining apprentices.