One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved legislation, a new regulator and bans on certain materials have been brought in, and there has been a concerted effort to sharpen skills across the board. One area of effort has been the standardisation of levels of competency.<\/p>\n
The Industry Competence Steering Group (ICSG), known as the Competence Steering Group until 2024, was created in the aftermath of the Grenfell fire in June 2017. Its work was given a greater focus after Dame Judith Hackitt\u2019s review of the construction industry the following year recommended an overhaul of \u201cincoherent\u201d industry competence standards.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of the competence work also needs to be seen in relation to other developments in industry\u201d<\/p>\n
Gill Hancock, ICSG<\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n
More than 1,500 people in the industry have since been involved in voluntary work to devise a set of competency frameworks across the construction sector. The ICSG is now organised into 16 sector-led groups ranging from quantity surveying to clients, with dozens of sub-groups operating below these.<\/p>\n
Yet, nearly a decade on from its inception there is no end-date planned for the programme, and despite the involvement of so many people and more than 60 professional and trade bodies, the development of competency frameworks is not widely known among ordinary construction workers. Yes, this is complex process, but it has left many pondering: why is it taking so long?<\/p>\n
A long process<\/h3>\n
The Building Safety Act 2022 \u2013 the key post-Grenfell legislation enacted to date \u2013 defines competence as relating to \u201cthe skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours of an individual\u201d and \u201cthe capability of a person other than an individual to perform its functions under building regulations\u201d.<\/p>\n
The then Competence Steering Group devised a similar definition in a 2020 report called Setting the Bar<\/em>. A desire to improve safety is the reason several people interviewed by Construction News<\/em> for this feature say they want to be involved in the work to design competence standards.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want the tier one contractor building a commercial mixed-use development to know that those who will buy, rent, live or work in these places will be safe,\u201d says Faye Burnett, programme director of the ICSG\u2019s Sector Led Group 10 (SLG10), which covers installation and maintenance roles. \u201cBut then let\u2019s also take it further \u2013 I want my neighbour to feel that when she gets work done in her own domestic property, she knows that these people are competent to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cChanges in culture and practice take time\u201d<\/p>\n
Sandra Ashcroft, ICC<\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n
SLG10, also known as the Super Sectors, is the largest of the ICSG groupings and is itself divided into five sub-groups. The history of its work gives some idea as to why rolling out competency frameworks across the industry is taking time.<\/p>\n
A pilot project covering installers was launched in the early days of the Competence Steering Group and effectively formed the basis of the rest of its work. Up to May 2022, the project identified gaps in competence among installers. Different trades were found to have varying levels of gaps, Burnett explains, with strategy documents created to explain what would be done and why in relation to each of them.<\/p>\n
Through this process it took a year to devise the ways that skills, knowledge and experience would be validated. Since then, the Super Sectors group has been working with the Construction Industry Training Board on creating national standards and then identifying training modules to deliver them.<\/p>\n
Obtaining funding was also a requirement. In the case of a rainscreen facade installers module, it has come from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government under its cladding remediation programme. New training for rainscreen facade installers is set to be introduced early this year. \u201cIt did take a long time to be honest,\u201d reflects Burnett, \u201cbut we need to do it correctly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Consultation and feedback from other areas of construction are also part of the process, with the hope that people will be able to understand the competency requirements of their role and that of others.<\/p>\n
Bigger than Covid<\/h3>\n
Definitions and frameworks for competence will vary across roles in the hugely fragmented construction industry, as will solutions for filling gaps, reflects Iain McIlwee, chief executive of the Finishes and Interiors Sector, which is involved in the Super Sectors work.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re never going to find a pattern that works for everybody,\u201d he says. \u201cWhat we\u2019ve got to do is say there\u2019s got to be a standard and then we\u2019ve got to work out how we get people to that standard. Some of it will be training that is economic for people to provide, some of it will be stuff that we\u2019re going to have to work out how to do ourselves because there is more on-the-job training than there are apprenticeships.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIlwee says the scale of industry cooperation on the issue has been even bigger than during the Covid pandemic when emergency operating guidelines were repeatedly devised based on shifting legal restrictions. He admits the process of gaining cross-industry consensus has not been easy. This has left him feeling frustrated at times but he believes \u201cwe\u2019re really going to start to reap the rewards of this\u201d in the \u201cnext few months\u201d.<\/p>\n
Will people on the ground notice the ICSG work has been happening? \u201cIn terms of this work, I actually don\u2019t want them to know,\u201d says Burnett, who is Mace\u2019s programme director and government sustainability lead. \u201cI don\u2019t want a carpenter or decorator to have to pick up our framework. I really want it embedded into the systems and structures that allow them to do their work.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says if a role\u2019s competence requirements change it will need to be communicated but that continual professional development (CPD) should be \u201cpart of what they\u2019re doing anyway\u201d. And the new standards should be \u201cembedded into CPD, into apprenticeships, into vocational qualifications [and] college courses\u201d.<\/p>\n
The industry will see a \u201csteady progressive change\u201d rather than a \u201cbig bang effect\u201d, believes ICSG co-chair Gill Hancock, head of technical content at the Association for Project Management. \u201cThere are already examples of where organisations have taken the outputs of the Sector Led Groups of the ICSG and are embedding these internally into their processes to ensure they have competent people working for them,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
New guides and website<\/h3>\n
The Industry Competence Committee (ICC), an arm of the Building Safety Regulator and, since December 2024, the parent organisation of the ICSG, is due to publish documents and practical guidance that will help the industry understand how to manage competence at an organisational level in the coming weeks, Hancock adds. \u201cAll of the competence work also needs to be seen in relation to other developments in industry, including the implementation of the recommendations from the Grenfell Inquiry phase two report,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
In January 2026, a \u201ccentral competence hub\u201d is due to launch on the British Standards Institution\u2019s website. It is designed to be a central space for professionals to access the latest completed competence frameworks, standards and practical guidance, bringing together much of the work done by the ICSG so far, along with other resources.<\/p>\n
\u201cChanges in culture and practice take time,\u201d says ICC vice chair Sandra Ashcroft, who is also head of competence and culture change at the Health and Safety Executive. \u201cThey require changes in individual behaviour and organisational approaches. I think when individual workers feel more comfortable in speaking up, asking questions about their own competence, whether they have the right competence to do the job they are being asked to and what they can do to make sure they have, we will be in a better place.\u201d<\/p>\n
She encourages industry leaders to support that behaviour and ensure organisational structures allow managers to properly understand and manage the competence of those working for them.<\/p>\n
Unpopular?<\/h3>\n
However, the prospect of having to prove competence is not always universally welcomed on the ground. In 2023, the Construction Skills Certification Scheme announced the end of Industry Accreditation cards, also known as \u2018grandfather rights\u2019, which were issued after employer recommendations rather than through obtaining a qualification.<\/p>\n
It was part of what was said to be a move, initiated by the Construction Leadership Council in 2015, to ensure that all workers could demonstrate they were competent. Some experienced workers complained they were being asked to pay to be assessed to do the job they had been doing for decades, and thousands did not sign up to the new card before the deadline of 31 December 2024, opting to not be allowed on construction sites instead.<\/p>\n
The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) is also involved in ICSG working groups and wants another layer of accreditation to be brought in for businesses. It is calling for all building companies to require a licence to operate. Asked whether experienced individuals having to display their competence and small companies having to go through a licensing process might upset people, FMB chief executive Brian Berry says he understands some might be concerned about the processes involved. \u201cWe\u2019re very much sensitive to that but we are moving into a different landscape where we need to demonstrate competence right across the sector. If you\u2019re going to have a competent workforce, you do need to be able to demonstrate that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
FMB research in 2025 estimated that consumers lost \u00a314.3bn over five years to rogue traders. \u201cThat undermines the reputation of builders, but I would argue that it undermines the reputation of the whole construction sector because the public\u2019s perception of building is typically the builder who goes into their house,\u201d Berry says. \u201cWe are trying to drive up standards in the building industry so that consumers are protected and our industry\u2019s got a good name \u2013 and so we don\u2019t get another Grenfell.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nA question of time<\/h3>\n
When the government started developing plans to shorten the length of time required to complete an apprenticeship in England from a year to eight months and reduce the amount of assessment needed to become qualified, it put construction front and centre.<\/p>\n
Carpentry and joinery was selected as an \u201capprenticeship trailblazer\u201d, one of the first handful of courses designated to be run under the new format. But things did not go to plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cSkills England [was] not prepared for the tsunami of pushback they were going to get,\u201d says Helen Hewitt, chief executive of the British Woodworking Federation, who had been invited onto a panel to review the changes. In her view, the reforms would have created a fast-track system prioritising speed over competence.<\/p>\n
However, concerns raised about this last summer were not heeded by Skills England, Hewitt says, and there were \u201cdeep concerns\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got one government department forging ahead with regulation and competence requirements, and you\u2019ve got another government department swiping the legs from below us to try and get as many apprenticeships through as possible,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
What followed last October was a strongly worded open letter signed by 22 trade bodies and the Unite union, warning that the reforms would be a \u201cdisaster\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Skills England continues down this path, we risk another Grenfell on the 1.5 million homes [pledged to be delivered this parliament], sending the message from the government that construction needs to concentrate on cost cutting over skills,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n
By late November, Skills England announced it had paused the plans, citing \u201cfeedback from the construction sector\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved legislation, a new regulator and bans on certain materials have been brought in, and there has been a concerted effort to sharpen skills across the board. One area of effort has …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43915,"featured_media":536086,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[79553,559,575],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-536080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-long-reads","category-skills"],"yoast_head":"\n
Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence? | Construction News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Construction News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CN.community\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"620\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"414\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ian Weinfass\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@CNplus\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@CNplus\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ian Weinfass\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ian Weinfass\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a\"},\"headline\":\"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\"},\"wordCount\":1914,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Features\",\"Long reads\",\"Skills\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\",\"name\":\"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence? | Construction News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a\"},\"description\":\"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":683},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"Construction News\",\"description\":\"Read UK Construction Industry News, Analysis, Opinion and data\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a\",\"name\":\"Ian Weinfass\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/b97665f54ea944a3f51f604c47f83c3a\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccf1ea1c6999e8c1aa3bf7ae5b18577f55840b6d3a5b20770f0b74322c887cbf?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccf1ea1c6999e8c1aa3bf7ae5b18577f55840b6d3a5b20770f0b74322c887cbf?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ian Weinfass\"},\"description\":\"Ian is a regular contributor of news and features to Construction News and former deputy editor on the title. A British Journalism Awards finalist 2016 and 2023, Ian won the Feature Writer of the Year category at the International Building Press awards in 2023.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/author\/ian-weinfass\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence? | Construction News","description":"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?","og_description":"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved","og_url":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/","og_site_name":"Construction News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CN.community","article_published_time":"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp","width":620,"height":414,"type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Ian Weinfass","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@CNplus","twitter_site":"@CNplus","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ian Weinfass","Estimated reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/"},"author":{"name":"Ian Weinfass","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a"},"headline":"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?","datePublished":"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/"},"wordCount":1914,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp","articleSection":["Features","Long reads","Skills"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/","url":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/","name":"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence? | Construction News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp","datePublished":"2026-02-05T12:28:46+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-06T14:29:09+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a"},"description":"One of the greatest tasks construction has faced since the Grenfell Tower tragedy has been the rebuilding of public trust in the industry. Improved","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cdn.ca.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2026\/01\/competence_shutterstock_1993887380.webp","width":1024,"height":683},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/sections\/long-reads\/features\/can-the-construction-industry-meet-the-challenge-of-competence-05-02-2026\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Can the construction industry meet the challenge of competence?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/","name":"Construction News","description":"Read UK Construction Industry News, Analysis, Opinion and data","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d6199e963b3c9f48fbde9a4b6ee1f14a","name":"Ian Weinfass","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/b97665f54ea944a3f51f604c47f83c3a","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccf1ea1c6999e8c1aa3bf7ae5b18577f55840b6d3a5b20770f0b74322c887cbf?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ccf1ea1c6999e8c1aa3bf7ae5b18577f55840b6d3a5b20770f0b74322c887cbf?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ian Weinfass"},"description":"Ian is a regular contributor of news and features to Construction News and former deputy editor on the title. A British Journalism Awards finalist 2016 and 2023, Ian won the Feature Writer of the Year category at the International Building Press awards in 2023.","url":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/author\/ian-weinfass\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43915"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=536080"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536080\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":537722,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536080\/revisions\/537722"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/536086"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=536080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=536080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=536080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}