The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has published an independent evaluation of the social value delivered through the Mind the Gap programme.
The programme was designed to open new pathways into construction for ex-offenders, helping to address the sector’s skills shortage while supporting social mobility.
The independent social valuation suggests that Mind the Gap created more than £3.5m of social value between 2017 and 2020 by helping prison leavers into jobs and reducing reoffending.
According to the report, over the three-year period, an investment of £720,000 created positive service interventions and support for employers, the criminal justice system, serving prisoners and ex-offenders across England.
Mind the Gap has engaged with 400 employers and 795 candidates, resulting in 172 job opportunities and 75 sustained employment outcomes.
People employed through the programme reported a range of changes they had experienced, including improved personal wellbeing, relationships, and technical skills.
Employees specifically identified the development of work skills, financial literacy training, and provision of support networks as key elements of the Mind the Gap programme that helped them into employment.
Jessica Mellor-Clark, head of BeOnsite, said: “The power of collaboration was the secret to Mind the Gap’s success. We’re proud to have brought together government, business, statutory bodies and third sector organisations to create lasting change.”
Construction skills shortage
Mind the Gap has also helped lay the groundwork for the Ministry of Justice’s New Futures Network, which launched in 2018 to connect prisons with employers and fill local skills gaps.
CITB’s Construction Workforce Outlook 2025-29, published in June, revealed that the industry requires an additional 47,860 workers per year to meet forecasted demand.
Adrian Beckingham, strategy and policy director at CITB, said: “The construction industry has an array of opportunities for people from all sorts of backgrounds.
“By creating new routes into the industry for people with convictions, we’re not only helping individuals rebuild their lives – we’re also helping employers access untapped talent.”
Beckingham added: “Mind the Gap is a powerful example of the multitude of solutions we need to consider to address the skills shortage while improving people’s lives, and it will help inform other projects we work on and, in turn, government policy.
“With almost a third of construction employers citing skills shortages as a key challenge, it’s vital we broaden our recruitment horizons and build a workforce that reflects the diversity of our society.”
