PfP Thrive - Training the Whole Sector

A skills shortage with health consequences 

The Construction Skills Network forecasts the UK will need an additional 225,000 workers by 2027. For housing providers, the challenge is sharper still: a growing list of compliance obligations, decarbonisation schemes such as the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, and the need to maintain safe, warm homes for residents. 

The implications for health are clear. Delayed repairs allow damp and mould to persist. Poorly installed ventilation undermines retrofit performance. Missed opportunities to spot safeguarding issues leave residents vulnerable. For Healthy Homes Hub, this is why training is not just a workforce issue, but a public health one. 

Training built around the home visit 

At Thrive’s Derby centre, the approach is tangible. Alongside multi-trade bays, plumbing rigs and electrical testing rooms sits a mocked-up customer home. Every course uses it to practise the essentials of a housing visit: knocking the door, putting on PPE, engaging respectfully, and scanning for risks. 

“It’s about embedding behaviour as much as technical skill,” Arey explains. “Apprentices might learn to fit a kitchen, but not to do it in an occupied flat where the family is still cooking and there’s condensation on the walls. That’s the reality of housing repairs.” 

Sequencing tasks that matter 

Mainstream training often leaves day-to-day jobs until later in the programme. Kitchen fitting, fence repairs and minor plumbing tasks may not appear until year two of an apprenticeship. Thrive has deliberately reversed that sequence so new operatives gain useful, confidence-building skills from the outset. 

“Getting those bread-and-butter tasks in first means fewer repeat visits and more motivation,” Arey says. “It also frees up capacity for complex work.” 

Demodularising for speed 

To meet urgent skills gaps, Thrive has “demodularised” apprenticeships. Units on damp and mould, anti-social behaviour or low-carbon technologies can be lifted out and delivered as short courses. 

This means a housing officer can complete a three-day ASB module instead of waiting for a full qualification cycle, or an operative can upskill in air-source heat pumps almost immediately. 

“The sector doesn’t have the luxury of time,” Arey argues. “Demodularisation allows us to respond quickly to the issues landlords face today.” 

Making better use of the levy 

Apprenticeships are often seen as entry points for school leavers, but Arey stresses their value for existing staff. Through Thrive, levy funds can be redirected into progressing labourers into trades or supporting officers to achieve CIH Level 3–5 qualifications. 

“Too often levy money just sits there,” he says. “We want to help organisations invest it in the skills they urgently need.” 

Designed for sector-wide use 

The defining feature of Thrive is that it is not employer training rebadged. By operating as a main provider, it can work with any housing association, ALMO, local authority or contractor. 

“We want organisations to bring their challenges into the design,” Arey says. “That way training reflects the sector’s priorities — not just our own.” 

Accessibility is built in. Block release makes it viable for learners travelling from outside the Midlands, while Thrive’s skills coaches deliver CIH and management programmes directly on site. Even the classrooms are named after residents — a reminder of who this ultimately serves. 

Healthy Homes Hub view 

From a Healthy Homes Hub perspective, Thrive’s innovation is to treat the doorstep as the frontline of health. Every time an operative enters a home, there is an opportunity to notice condensation, hazards or vulnerabilities. Embedding that awareness in training turns routine repairs into early prevention. 

By sequencing common jobs early and freeing capacity for complex cases, Thrive connects competence to health outcomes. It also reflects a cultural shift: training is not a back-office process but a driver of safe, healthy homes. 

Next steps for providers 

Thrive is inviting the sector not just to use its platform but to shape it. 

• Feed in real challenges: from retrofit to customer service gaps, training modules can be co-designed around sector priorities. 

• Redirect levy funds: invest in upskilling current staff as well as new apprentices. 

• Adopt the doorstep routine: make safeguarding and resident engagement standard practice. 

• Test short courses: meet urgent needs without waiting for full apprenticeship cycles. 

As Arey concludes: “If we want a workforce ready for regulation, retrofit and resident trust, the sector has to design its own training. Thrive exists to make that possible.”