UK launches 2017 nuclear workforce assessment

The UK's nuclear sector will require a workforce of over 100,000 in 2021 - up from 87,560 in 2017 - according to the Nuclear Skills Strategy Group's (NSSG) 2017 Nuclear Workforce Assessment (NWA) which has been launched today.

The NWA is the UK nuclear sector's annual forecast of skills supply and demand across the entire nuclear sector including new build, operations, decommissioning, research and defence activities. Sponsored entirely by NSSG members, it is used to underpin the sector's workforce planning.

Key findings of the 2017 report find a workforce demand of 87,560 will grow to a peak demand of 100,610 in 2021. From 2016 to 2021, it forecasts that the industry will require an annual average inflow of 6830 full-time-equivalent workers - although these would not all necessarily be into long-term appointments.

The assessment is based on a single scenario for the construction of 16 GWe of new nuclear electricity production capacity, together with the ongoing work of the UK's Submarine Enterprise program. The report also considers a potential extension to 30 GWe, through the use of other nuclear technologies such as small modular reactors for which specialist skills need to be developed many years in advance, even though the peak in demand would not occur until 2030-2050.

Over 80% of the nuclear workforce uses skills that are shared with other industries, the report notes. Future pinch points are considered likely in several occupations, including safety case preparation; control and instrumentation; reactor operation; site inspectors; project planning and control; commissioning engineers; electrical engineers; emergency planners; quality assurance staff; and chemists. Steel fixers, concretors, civil engineering operatives and scaffolders are also considered to be areas of concern.

NSSG chairwoman Fiona Rayment, who is also director of the UK National Nuclear Laboratory, said an evidence-based understanding of the skills required by the sector, and by when, was fundamentally important to developing a skills pipeline. "This wide-ranging data supports the NSSG's program of activity, and also supports employer decisions around investment in training and apprenticeships, as well as education providers to plan and build capacity and capability where it is needed," she said.

The NSSG is the industry-led strategic group, comprising employers, government and trade unions representing both the civil and defence sectors. It represents both the civil and defence nuclear sectors and is accountable for developing a nuclear skills strategy for the UK, addressing the skills infrastructure, processes and the training provision needed to secure the required supply of qualified and competent personnel.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News