Today’s apprenticeship figures show a slight increase in starts – at just one per cent higher than this time last year – but if this is trend continues for the remainder of the year, they will still be 13 per cent below pre-pandemic levels. Boosting starts should be a key focus of the new government, to ensure the number of apprenticeships don’t permanently stall. Yesterday’s King’s Speech confirmed the Government’s commitment to ‘get Britain building’. This ambition will only be met if we have enough trained workers to do it. The data shows starts in construction apprenticeships have been higher in the last two years than pre-pandemic, with 22,310 starts so far this academic year. This is encouraging, however a big jump will be needed to fully meet the Government’s aims. These numbers also mask substantial inequalities within construction. Women account for only 10 per cent of starts in construction apprenticeships so far this year, compared to 51 per cent of apprenticeships overall. In addition, this year only 9 per cent of construction starts are by individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds, with particularly big disparities for apprentices from black or Asian backgrounds. The following years therefore present a unique opportunity to not only further boost apprenticeship numbers in the construction sector, but to expand their reach to wider groups. The new Government should work with employers and providers to seize this.