Without modern methods of construction UK housebuilders will need nearly 200,000 additional workers to meet the government’s mid-2020s target of building 300,000 new homes a year, according to new research.

Analysis by the Construction Industry Training Board and consultant Whole Life found that if housebuilding activity were to reach the levels currently being set by the government without any increase in the use of MMC, the industry would need to ramp up the number of workers by 195,000 over the next seven years.

The CITB’s report, The Impact of Modern Methods of Construction on Skills Requirements for Housing, focused on changes to workforce levels based on using panelised and volumetric offsite housebuilding.