Integrated Tripartite Leadership across Clients, Government and Industry

At the heart of these recommendations is the need to establish a new 'tripartite covenant' between the construction industry, its end clients and government which leads to mutual benefit for all parties. The aim is to bring about a step-change in investment in skills and technology across the industry, helping to maintain current capabilities and skills while building new capacity through new business models that embrace pre-manufactured techniques. The current separation that exists between private clients, industry at large and government needs to be fundamentally overcome if there is to be any chance of changing the way in which construction is commissioned and executed such that it enables modernisation and better outcomes for all parties.

The goal of such industry transformation must be owned at the highest level. The sector strategy (Construction 2025) developed by the CLC is a good starting point from which to take stock and establish detailed road maps for change which can be injected into real world application across industry. The actions needed to modernise the sector correspond to several elements of the CLC's current work plan, in particular its focus on business models, skills and innovation. As a senior forum for the industry, bringing together representatives from the supply chain, the consultancy sector, elements of the client sector and central government, it represents the logical choice of platform from which a longer-term dedicated executive and fully integrated leadership vehicle may possibly evolve.

It is recommended that there should be a balanced focus in the CLC between major infrastructure and building construction matters and also that major private clients should be better represented as part of the CLC to underpin the tripartite covenant principle set out above. There may also be a need for a more explicit link to the newly formed National Housing Taskforce (NHT) to drive a coordinated action plan in the wider housing sector (not just representing housebuilders) as well as securing, via the All Party Parliamentary Group for Housing & Planning's sponsorship of the NHT, cross party political alignment on an industrial strategy that is likely to span multiple parliamentary terms.

Whilst CLC can guide at a strategic level and report and make recommendations to Ministers, it is not a delivery body equipped to drive change on the ground. There is a need in any possible emerging integrated leadership model for sufficient resource and focus on how the implementation road maps being developed by CLC can be connected to industry at scale. CLC will need to create followship as far as possible across the supply chain, all types of private clients and government. This can only really be achieved by suitable balanced representation around the table.

The key mechanism by which leadership decisions can have the desired impact and implemented across the industry at large is dealt with in more detail below.