Meeting the green jobs challenge
Addressing the climate crisis presents an historic economic opportunity. But creating green jobs is only part of the picture – we have to make sure that Britons have the skills required, says Gareth Simkins, senior communications adviser at the trade association Solar Energy UK
The numbers don’t lie. Green jobs are booming.
The Office for National Statistics says that people employed in protecting or restoring the environment, including addressing climate change, stood at 690,000 people in 2023, the latest year for which figures are available.
That’s up from 513,000 in 2015 – an increase of 34.6 per cent. But renewable energy puts that growth rate in the shade, with jobs rising by 154 per cent over the same period, from 28,000 to 71,000 jobs.
The Economic Impact of Solar and Battery Storage, a report launched in the spring by the trade association Solar Energy UK, put the number of people employed in the solar sector alone in 2024 at 13,000, as a full-time equivalent. That’s everyone from installers and engineers to dedicated solar farm ecologists. It estimates that an additional 7,400 jobs were associated with battery energy storage – a sector that is growing at extraordinary pace by charging up with cheap renewable energy and selling it when demand is greatest.
By the end of this year, storage is expected to be able to supply 8 gigawatts of power – 25 per cent more than all our nuclear reactors – while storing 10.5 gigawatt hours of energy. That’s enough to boil 420 billion cups of tea – seven times more than the country drinks each year.
A number of battery energy storage installations expected to be completed within the next few years will be able to supply over a gigawatt of power each.
Powering up
All eyes are on 2030, when the government expects the electricity system to be all but entirely decarbonised – implying both massive and rapid investment. Last year, renewables and nuclear power accounted for 68.2 per cent of our power – implying a rise of 4.5 percentage points each year.
A major part of that increase will be achieved with solar power, which the government expects to hit around 55GW by 2030, up from 20.2GW last year. This year, a mighty 4GW is expected to be deployed, on the ground and on rooftops, representing a growth rate of 19 per cent.
Meanwhile, the action plan expects battery energy storage to reach 23-27GW by the end of the decade, with 5GW of long-duration storage – intended to avoid firing up pricey gas generation in the rare times when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing.
Although these goals may appear to be highly ambitious, they are achievable. “The solar industry persistently smashes through expectations of growth, in the UK and worldwide, and I have no doubt that it will continue to do so in the coming years,” said Chris Hewett, chief executive of Solar Energy UK.
Sunblock
But there is a stumbling block ahead on the road to net zero.
As things stand, the UK simply does not have enough skilled people to do what we need to do – reinforce our ageing electricity networks, install heat pumps, insulate homes, wire up solar panels and so forth. That is not solely a problem for the private sector. Local authorities, the NHS, schools, and other public bodies are under pressure to decarbonise their estates but face the same shortage of workers able to design, construct and maintain the required infrastructure. That in turn has an impact on public finances and economic growth.
Those are not new observations. Going back to 2021, the Government’s Green Jobs Taskforce identified many skills gaps in our current workforce. For example, in 2019 there were only 900 heat pump installers in the UK, with the Construction Industry Training Board projecting a need for 7,500-15,000 installers to be trained each year.
It made the broader point that, “In developing education and skills policy and provision, it is important to note that every job of the future will be directly or indirectly shaped by the transition to net zero,” which means equipping teachers with the resources, training and support they need. Moreover, “Further education providers must also have the capacity to deliver green skills training that is closely aligned with employers’ needs; therefore they must attract, train and retain the best teachers and trainers.”
In a foreword, the two former ministers who helmed the report, the Rt Hon Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP and Gillian Keegan MP, stressed that, “supporting people to develop the right skills to thrive in this transition cannot be the responsibility of government alone. We want to see businesses step up and invest in training the green workforce.”
A report for the University and College Union published in July, The Green Gap, put the energy sector’s need for new workers at 130,000 by 2030 – with current government-sponsored skills programmes falling well short of such demand. It stressed that “promising local initiatives” where councils, colleges and employers collaborate were helping to fill the gap.
Consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers has made the point that as the North Sea oil and gas sector continues to wind down – domestic oil production now being 4.5 times less than its 1999 peak – some of its staffing will be able to transfer their skills to clean energy, particularly offshore wind. But even if all do, it’s still far from enough to meet demand.
Solar Careers UK
So the business world clearly needs to step up. That’s why Solar Energy UK developed Solar Careers UK, fulfilling aspects of the government-industry Solar Roadmap, which sets out a wealth of detailed measures needed to meet solar targets.
The initiative had its formal launch in July, with its website intended to be the central hub for connecting training and education providers, employers and jobseekers across the solar and battery energy storage sectors. It offers a comprehensive destination for career opportunities, training pathways, video interviews from workers across the sector, industry insights and links to job vacancies, via members of the association.
“Our vision is clear: to guide every person possible into solar careers,” said Sturge Mazzocchi, SEUK’s head of Solar Careers Programme. This means fulfilling three key objectives: promoting career opportunities and raising awareness of solar and energy storage careers nationwide; supporting recruitment, helping people into jobs and growing the workforce; and promoting training opportunities and enhancing workforce skills.
Informally, the initiative kicked off with a careers fair, held at South Thames College in Wandsworth in March. Packed with expert talks, interactive exhibits, introductory training and opportunities for attendees to have initial interviews with hiring businesses, 300 people attended. A similar event is planned to be held in Edinburgh early next year.
“The demand and interest in the solar sector were abundantly clear to see, with visitors expressing a strong desire to join the industry,” Mazzocchi added.
We also attend the National Transition Event each year – a careers fair for armed forces leavers. Workers with a military background have proven to be profoundly valuable to our members.
“Solar energy and batteries are among the fastest-growing sectors in the UK – and indeed globally. We need a skilled and diverse workforce to bring this affordable, homegrown energy to UK consumers and businesses. Solar Careers UK is a gateway to a sustainable future — connecting people with the training, insight and real job opportunities they need to thrive in the sector,” said Hewett.
