RECOVERY has begun for Northern Ireland’s construction sector.
That is according to the Construction Skills Network and CITB-ConstructionSkills, who believe Northern Ireland now needs sustained investment in longer-term projects to secure future growth.
The network predicts that around 1,280 new construction workers will be needed yearly over the next five years in Northern Ireland.
During that period, performance across the local construction industry is expected to show:
Overall annual average output growth of 2.3%, with new work expected to fare better than the repair and maintenance sector.
The industrial sector is expected to see annual average growth of 4%. The private housing sector is expected to be the second strongest at 3.9% annual average.
Infrastructure growth will be in the region of 2.7% a year on average, driven in particular by roads projects, such as upgrades to the A2, A5 and A6.
Construction employment to start rising again from 2014, with an annual average employment growth rate of 1.1% predicted. The annual recruitment requirement of 1,280 will include demand for bricklayers, plasterers, painters & decorators, construction managers and professionals & technical staff.
Chief executive of CITB-ConstructionSkills NI, Barry Neilson, said: “Clarity and certainty of future projects is an important element of a sustained recovery. It gives employers the confidence to train and to plan.
“The CSN report shows that the economy is turning the corner and the NI construction industry will benefit from that. But growth needs to be sustainable; underpinned by long-term infrastructure projects and continued investment.”
Meanwhile, the University of Ulster has been chosen by Student Sport Ireland to lead a pioneering €120k (£100k) cross-border research partnership project examining the participation of third level students in sport and physical activity. The Student Activity and Sport Study for Ireland, the first of its kind in Ireland, will include the first large-scale survey of third-level student participation in sport and physical activity.
The study aims to bridge a gap in knowledge about how the policies and programmes of individual colleges compare with others, or how levels of participation vary across the sector.
Ulster’s partners in the project are Dublin City University, University of Limerick, Waterford IT and the University of Wolverhampton, with funding support from Student Sport Ireland member institutions, the Irish Sports Council and Sport Northern Ireland.
The principal investigator is the University of Ulster’s Professor Marie Murphy, who said: “Student life is a time of transition, when habits of exercise and physical activity are formed that may continue throughout an individual’s adult life. This project will find out the factors which influence students’ decisions to participate in physical activity.”