THE Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has released new figures, which reveal the organisation provided almost £130 million in grant support for construction employers during the financial year 2024-25.
Of the total grant support from CITB, over £3.2 million was provided to the plant sector.
£71.4 million was provided through CITB’s various apprenticeship grants, supporting over 30,000 learners and more than 10,000 employers, with the majority of these being small and micro construction firms.
CITB also provided £7.7 million to employers through the Travel to Train scheme, a grant to help pay for apprentices’ travel costs, as well as accommodation costs required for overnight stays. CITB supported over 3,500 learners and more than 1,300 employers through the initiative.
More than £50 million was provided to employers via other grants, including £20 million for Qualification Grants and £30.5 million for Short Course Grants.
The figures follow the recent publication of CITB’s Strategic Plan 2025-29, in which the organisation has committed over £860 million to attract new learners into the industry and support employers to train and develop their workforce.
CITB’s New Entrant Support Team (NEST) supported over 4,000 new apprenticeship starts in the last financial year. NEST provides free support to help employers recruit apprentices, and CITB revealed it will be doubling the size of its NEST programme to support SMEs in recruiting, engaging, and retaining apprentices.
Additionally, in its second full year of operation, CITB’s Employer Networks supported 50,966 learners – an increase from 11,468 the previous, inaugural year. Employer Networks are an initiative set up and funded by CITB that offer bespoke training and financial support for employers.
Adrian Beckingham, strategy and policy director at CITB, said, “We want to provide timely, effective support for construction firms of all shapes and sizes. The uptake of our Grants Scheme is excellent to see – our apprenticeships grant support is 14% over our target last FY.
“The fact that 90% of firms receiving our apprenticeship grant support are small and micro businesses is even more heartening – over two-thirds of apprenticeship starts in the construction industry are employed by companies of fewer than 50 employees. The health of smaller construction firms is vital for the wider industry to prosper.
“The amazing performances of our NEST and Employer Network teams is also very encouraging. There’s plenty of support available, so if you’re interested in pursuing an apprenticeship or hiring an apprentice, I urge you to get in contact with CITB to find out how we can support you.”
