Apprentices head to Milton Keynes for CITB's SkillBuild national final in 10 trades

Apprentices and trainees will compete across 10 trades at the SkillBuild National Final at Arena MK in Milton Keynes next week, the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has announced.

The final runs over two days, which CITB's event page gives as 18-19 November. Each competitor must construct a project within 18 hours, with a panel of judges scoring them on working under pressure, technical ability, problem solving, time management and compliance with health and safety requirements.

The trades are bricklaying, carpentry, drylining, furniture and cabinet making, joinery, painting and decorating, plastering, roof slating and tiling, stonemasonry, and wall and floor tiling.

Robert Smith, product manager (careers) at CITB, said: "Reaching the finals is a fantastic achievement and reflects all the hard work and dedication each competitor has shown throughout the competition stages."

The route to the final

CITB said about 700 students took part in 17 regional qualifiers held across the UK between March and June 2026. The first was at York College on 17 March and the last at Coleg Cambria on 4 June, with heats also held in Scotland at Dundee and Angus College and at Historic Environment Scotland in Stirling, and in Northern Ireland at Southern Regional College.

CITB said the top eight scorers in each trade category at the qualifiers progress to the national final. Competitors may enter only one skill at one qualifier, must be at least 16 on 1 September of the previous year, and there is no upper age limit. Tutors and employers can enter apprentices and learners on their behalf.

CITB covers finalists' accommodation and pays a subsistence allowance, but competitors meet their own travel costs.

CITB describes SkillBuild as the largest and longest-running industry skills competition in the UK. Since 2023 the competitions have been delivered and managed solely by CITB under the SkillBuild brand, and the national final is held every year, usually in November.

Careers hub and SEND showcase

Alongside the competition, CITB is running its interactive Construction Showcase, a careers hub where visitors can try construction activities and talk to people from the industry. It is open from 9am to 3pm on both days.

CITB is also staging a non-competitive SEND Learner Showcase, in which learners with a range of special educational needs and disabilities demonstrate skills across several trades. Spectator tickets for the final are free and open to everyone.

Smith said: "With the industry needing to attract and develop its future workforce, events like SkillBuild are an important opportunity to celebrate construction careers and inspire more people to see the range of opportunities the sector has to offer."

The workforce backdrop

CITB's Construction Workforce Outlook for 2026 to 2030 forecasts that the industry will need an average of 41,200 extra workers each year over the period. CITB said that equates to 1.6% of the 2025 workforce, or about 206,000 additional workers over five years, taking the UK construction workforce to about 2.68 million by 2030.

The training board put UK construction output in the latest year of data at £230bn and said it expects activity to remain subdued in 2026 before recovering from 2027 as confidence improves. It said the industry continues to face pressures in recruiting and retaining its workforce, with too few people entering the sector and too many experienced workers leaving.

Sponsors and partners of the 2026 competitions named by CITB include BAL Adhesives, Band of Builders, Brick Development Association, British Gypsum, Careers Wales, CITB NI, Crown Paints, FIS, NFRC, Saint Gobain, Tarmac, Weber and Wienerberger.

CITB said results are announced at the National Final, which its event page dates 18-19 November at Arena MK.