Engineering Training & Skills Shortages: Why Now Is the Time to Act
Across the UK, the engineering sector is facing a defining challenge, one that will shape the future of infrastructure, innovation, and sustainability for decades to come.
That challenge is not technology, investment, or even global competition. It’s skills.
The Scale of the Shortage
Recent data from the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) paints a clear picture:
- 76% of engineering employers are struggling to recruit for key roles.
- 35% say their workforce lacks the skills needed for the future.
- In civil engineering alone, hard-to-fill vacancies have increased by 84% in the last two years.
It’s not just a shortage of people, it’s a shortage of the right people, with the right skills, at the right time.
From sustainability and automation to digital integration and data analysis, the skillsets required in modern engineering are evolving faster than traditional training and recruitment systems can keep up.
Where the Gaps Are
The shortages are particularly pronounced in three areas:
- Decarbonisation and sustainability skills – as net zero goals drive new technologies and design principles, many organisations are struggling to find engineers with practical experience in green systems and energy efficiency.
- Automation and digital engineering – as manufacturing and infrastructure move toward Industry 4.0, demand is rising for engineers fluent in robotics, data analytics, and digital design.
- Transferable “soft” skills – employers repeatedly cite gaps in problem-solving, adaptability, and communication, especially among early-career entrants.
Why It Matters
A lack of skills doesn’t just mean unfilled vacancies – it slows project delivery, innovation, and economic growth.
Without a strong skills pipeline, even the best investment strategies or government initiatives will struggle to meet targets for infrastructure, net zero, and productivity.
For employers, the skills shortage often leads to:
- Higher wage competition and recruitment costs
- Increased project delays
- Greater pressure on existing teams
- Reduced innovation and R&D output
For individuals, it can mean missed opportunities – not because talent is lacking, but because training access and pathways aren’t clear or consistent.
How Training Can Close the Gap
The solution is not a mystery but it does require commitment and coordination.
Here’s where progress can happen:
1. Expand Apprenticeships and On-the-Job Learning
Apprenticeships remain one of the most effective ways to develop real, job-ready skills while retaining talent. Flexible, employer-led training programmes create stronger alignment between what’s taught and what’s needed.
2. Strengthen Industry–Education Collaboration
Engineering training must evolve alongside technology. Partnerships between employers, training providers, and colleges ensure that curricula reflect the latest tools, systems, and standards.
3. Invest in Emerging Skills
Automation, AI, data analytics, and sustainability are no longer “future skills” they are now skills. Embedding them into training frameworks ensures new entrants are prepared for the real demands of the sector.
4. Retain Knowledge Before It Retires
With an ageing workforce, many organisations risk losing decades of experience. Structured mentoring, knowledge transfer, and return-to-learn programmes help capture and share that expertise.
A Shared Responsibility
Solving the skills shortage is not the responsibility of any single organisation.
It requires a united effort, employers, educators, government, and training providers to invest in the people who will design, build, and maintain our future.
Every engineer we train today strengthens our industrial resilience tomorrow.
Final Thought
Engineering has always been about solving problems.
Now, our greatest challenge is ensuring we have the people and skills to keep solving them.
The time to act is now.
