Workforce 2030: BusinessGreen launches new campaign to tackle looming UK skills gap

BusinessGreen today launches Workforce 2030, a major new campaign to raise awareness of the looming skills crunch facing industries right across the green economy, as the UK strives to deliver on its climate, nature, and energy security goals. 

To support the campaign, a new Workforce 2030 hub launches today on BusinessGreen, which will feature news, analysis, interviews, opinion, and case studies dedicated to exploring skills development efforts across green industries. Meanwhile, a series of events kicks off tomorrow with our interactive Spotlight on Skills webinar, supported by Santander.  

The editorial-led campaign will bang the drum for more ambitious skills policies and funding at local, national, and corporate levels to help equip the workforce of both today and tomorrow with the critical skills needed to further advance the green industrial revolution. 

From electric vehicles, renewable energy, and heat pumps, through to regenerative agriculture, carbon removals, and green finance, the clean tech transition is already well underway, as less efficient and more carbon intensive products and services make way for cleaner alternatives right across the economy. 

But whether it is new industries rapidly springing up as the net zero transition gathers pace, or existing sectors transforming themselves to play a role in the low carbon economy - the UK's skills base remains far from adequately equipped to drive the switch to clean technologies and sustainable business models at the necessary pace and scale. 

The UK green economy is booming, growing three time faster than the rest of the economy last year, generating £83bn in gross value added, and employing around a million people. But in the clean energy sector alone, it has been estimated the UK could face a skills shortfall of more than 200,000 workers by 2050. And given many more sectors - from construction and transport to financial services, nature conservation and beyond - have also warned they are facing skills shortfalls, the overall projected skills gap across the UK economy is almost certainly far higher. 

Moreover, building the domestic skills base is mission critical if the UK is to stand a chance of competing in a global economy that is increasingly dominated by booming Chinese clean tech companies, with the likes of India, Brazil, the EU, and North America also all jostling secure market share in fast-expanding green industries. 

Without action to address the looming skills crunch, the net zero transition is likely to face significant delays and higher costs, which will result in both environmental impacts and reduced competitiveness.  

At the same time, a failure to seize the job opportunities offered by emerging green industries and deliver a 'just transition' for workers in carbon intensive industries, risks a political backlash against decarbonisation policies that could have dire consequences for green businesses and investors.  

Yet at present, skills challenges receive a fraction of the attention granted to other factors that are shaping the net zero transition, such as technology costs, infrastructure investment, or policy frameworks. 

"This is where Workforce 2030 comes in," said BusinessGreen editor Michael Holder. "Our timely new campaign aims to play a proactive role in addressing the skills crunch challenge by highlighting and analysing the policies, solutions, and best practice businesses and workers urgently need to be prepared for the transition ahead."

James Murray, editor in chief at BusinessGreen, said the last BusinessGreen editorial campaign was the 'Net Zero Now' campaign in 2018, which aimed to encourage the UK government to set a 2050 net zero target in law, and for businesses to follow suit. 

"We hope our new Workforce 2030 campaign is similarly successful in emphasising the colossal importance - to both policymakers and businesses alike - of acting now to address the UK's looming green skills shortfall," he said. 

The new campaign was welcomed by Sarah Mukherjee MBE, CEO at the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (ISEP), who said: "Closing the green skills gap is critical to our sustainable future. Without investment in training, clear entry routes into the sector, and embedding green skills into climate and economic policy, we won't meet our climate goals - with serious consequences for jobs, the environment and global stability.

"That's why ISEP is proud to support Workforce 2030 - a vital initiative shining a light on this urgent challenge."

The campaign, which will run through to the next election, will incorporate: 

• A dedicated content hub on BusinessGreen providing frequent news, analysis, interviews and opinion on green skills trends, challenges and proposals. 
• Starting with Spotlight on Skills on Tuesday 14 October, supported by Santander - which you can sign up to for free - a series of webinars featuring experts from across the green economy exploring the UK's evolving workforce needs. 
• A platform to showcase initiatives and policies that successfully provide green skills and training opportunities.  
• A chance to promote green roles to both young people and those looking to re-train to seize opportunities in green industries. 
• A push to collate business-led policy proposals and provide political leaders with a clear sense of why effective skills policies are critical to the net zero transition.  

If you want to take part in the Workforce 2030 campaign or be kept updated on its progress, please get in touch.