Our Industry
Our vision is for a sustainable, profitable, diverse and innovative construction sector that benefits all of Scotland.
Delivering change through collaboration & data insights
Our construction industry is important for more than its contribution to the economy and jobs. It is the creator and maintainer of our infrastructure, homes and the wider built environment, which is all around us and plays a key role in how we live, work, learn and play.
The industry will play a pivotal role in how Scotland delivers its net-zero commitments and deliver energy efficient buildings across the whole of our built environment.
How we improve our construction sector will be driven with a focus on people, collaboration and data insights.
The Construction Industry Data Dashboard
There are many sources of data that can provide insight into different areas of the construction industry.
In October 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the CLF published the Construction Industry Recovery Plan that set out a short term action to consolidate and develop new insight in the construction sector through a Data Dashboard.
In response to this recommendation, Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST) in partnership with the public sector and industry, developed and published the Scottish Construction Industry Data Dashboard to provide improved transparency and co-ordination on the data we hold for the construction sector.
This dashboard seeks to combine various sources and display key information in an accessible format, whilst still allowing the user to interrogate individual datasets.
The dashboard provides insight into the following sections of the industry:
The data used in these sections are pre-defined as “Construction” (or similar) at source, however the CLF recognises the industry as being further reaching than these standard, pre-defined categories currently account for.
As such, we have also included a section on Construction Industry Reach, and where data is available at such a level, we have “re-classified” it to meet the CLF definition of the industry.
Fair work
Embedding a fair work culture and upskilling the workforce is key to delivering a decarbonised built environment and the CLF is committed to ensuring fair work principles and values are embedded in its outcomes.
In March 2020, the Fair Work Convention established a Construction Industry Inquiry Group (CIIG) to look at the key challenges to delivering fair work in the industry in Scotland. The CIIG brought together a range of stakeholders from construction businesses, trade bodies, trade unions, local authorities and the Fair Work Convention.
The Fair Work in the Construction Sector Report was published on 7 April 2022. All recommendations from the Inquiry are set out in full in the Executive Summary which also summarises the findings of the main sections of the report.
Equity and Inclusion Plan
Recognising the challenges faced by the construction sector, the CLF developed a National Construction Equity and Inclusion Plan in collaboration with its industry partners to support wider efforts to address inequality and promote greater diversity within the sector.
The plan is a route map to achieving greater diversity and inclusion within the Scottish construction sector. It was developed as a means of integrating the 14 equalities-related actions within the recovery plan into a single, cohesive strategy for progress.
The plan is sponsored by the Skills and Workforce sub-group of the Construction Leadership Forum, delivered through a collaboration between Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST), Genanalytics, and a selection of passionate industry stakeholders who have supported the process.
Got a question, thought or comment? Contact us.
Feedback, comments and questions are welcome from anyone who shares the CLF's interest in the health and success of the construction industry in Scotland.