Dr Victoria Hills, Chief Executive at the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) has been appointed the Co-Chair of the newly formed Construction Growth Coalition (CGC).
The Coalition is a new membership organisation that brings construction businesses of every size together, from sole traders to the largest contractors.
Its mission is to help every business in construction thrive by giving the whole industry an equal voice with government, particularly the 99% of construction businesses that are SMEs or micro firms.
It is led by nine founder members drawn from across the industry's institutions, trades and media. Steve Mulholland, CEO of the Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA) has been appointed as the other co-chair alongside Dr Hills.
Dr Victoria Hills said: "As a chartered body, CIOB has a remit to act in the public interest, so supporting the Construction Growth Coalition from the outset was an easy decision considering a large proportion of our members work for SMEs, and most CIOB chartered company members are SMEs. It's only right they have an equal voice with larger companies when decisions that affect the entire industry are being made by government.
"SMEs don’t always have the resources to support extra apprenticeships for example, so when Government is making plans to train up the next generation of construction workers, it's vital their voices can be heard, and their views are listened to by policymakers and parliamentarians. I believe it is possible to achieve the growth government wants to see in a sustainable and accessible way for all - with collaboration and partnership- but this needs the space for open and honest conversations. The Construction Growth Coalition will provide a platform to do just that."
