About 26,000 construction jobs could be created in the South West over the next five years, according to figures from the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

CITB’s Construction Skills Network (CSN) report said sector employment could reach more than 257,000 by 2020.

The Hinckley Point C nuclear power station will drive growth with a 14.2 per cent expansion in infrastructure projects.

To support the growth, CITB has joined forces with the construction industry to expand Go Construct, a web portal that provides information on construction career opportunities.

Roger Stone, CITB sector strategy manager for the South West, said: “We can’t build the Britain we want without apprenticeships and the careers they lead to. That’s why we want these new statistics, showing solid, sustained growth, to inspire more people across the South West to start apprenticeships, and more construction firms to take them on.”