Led by Donaldson Timber Systems in partnership with Edinburgh Napier University, NMITE, the Structural Timber Association, Timber Development UK and BE-ST, the Timber in Construction Skills programme is designed to tackle a growing skills gap by building confidence and technical capability in designing, specifying and building with timber.

The initiative will offer 15+ fully funded training modules for construction and built environment professionals, apprentices and college students, spanning introductory through to advanced technical content. Courses target roles across the sector, with particular emphasis on installers through to construction project management.

The launch took place at Futurebuild, the annual built environment conference at Excel London, where BE-ST hosted one of the event's largest physical exhibits. The centrepiece was a new practical training rig developed at the BE-ST Innovation Campus in Scotland and transported to London for the exhibition.

The bespoke rig demonstrates the full assembly and disassembly of multiple structural timber systems, including timber frame, Cross Laminated Timber (CLT), Glued Laminated Timber (glulam) and Nail Laminated Timber (NLT). It has been designed to support hands-on training and help build confidence and technical understanding among site operatives and construction professionals working with offsite manufactured timber systems. Following the event, the rig will move back to BE-ST's Innovation Campus where it will be used for training delivery.

-- Advertisement --

The practical rig forms part of a wider package of 15+ new training courses being developed by BE-ST, Edinburgh Napier University and NMITE, with sector support from Donaldson Timber Systems, the Structural Timber Association and Timber Development UK.

The training is intended to help those in or entering the sector to increase technical knowledge in timber construction; stay current with regulation, specification and material developments; solve live project and delivery challenges; gain meaningful CPD relevant to their role; and access trusted expertise and peer learning opportunities.

Alex Goodfellow, CEO at Donaldson Offsite said: "Structural timber has a critical role to play in supporting the UK to overcome the housing crisis and build more sustainable, low carbon homes. I believe that the use of structural timber is the only way we can achieve the volume of homes needed to the high quality and performance standards expected.

"However, the industry's ability to meet that demand depends on our ability to attract new people to construction and develop the right skills, knowledge and confidence to build using structural timber. The Timber in Construction Roadmap of which this CITB funded project derived, plays an important part in supporting change and growing the use of timber in construction.

"This project plays a critical role by developing robust, accredited training pathways that support new entrants, apprentices and existing construction workers to improve understanding and capability of structural timber systems and best practice. We want to attract more people into the sector, support long-term industry growth and ensure the UK has the skilled workforce needed to deliver the next generation of homes and we're pleased to lead this project, to deliver those goals."

Following the launch, Timber Development UK will lead a new webinar series titled Timber in Construction 101, beginning in June 2026 and running till March 2027. The six-part series will cover key themes including Material Intelligence, Specifying Timber, Offsite Manufacturing, Onsite Excellence, Navigating Compliance and Constructing Carbon.

Professionals and educators can register for the first webinar, focused on material intelligence. Alongside the training rollout, the partners are also seeking a cohort of educators and industry experts to review the courses and provide feedback as the programme develops, with educators able to register their interest through BE-ST.