Horticulture skills shortage to impact garden supply chain, says HTA

by | Nov 15, 2022 | News | 0 comments

The UK body for garden businesses has warned of risks to the availability of supplies for home and professional gardeners in Scotland, due to a worsening shortage of staff in the environmental horticulture sector.

The warning comes from the Horticultural Trades Association ahead of a major careers event in Edinburgh on Wednesday.

James Barnes, chairman of the HTA says: “It takes skill to grow, nurture and manage the wide range of plants and other products that millions of gardeners and landscapers rely on in Scotland and beyond. As we look forward to meeting the next generation of horticulturists in Edinburgh this week, it is against the backdrop of a skills shortage that was first identified in 2019 – and which has only been exacerbated by Brexit and the pandemic, with a large proportion of the sector’s labour historically having come from the European Union. Many of our members have indicated that they are already feeling the effects of the shortage.

“Our sector has huge potential to contribute to UK growth through green jobs. If we are to reach that potential, industry and government must work collaboratively to find solutions to these challenges.”

Horticulture and landscaping contributed £1.4bn towards GDP and employed 42,000 people in Scotland in 2019. There are around 1.1 million regular gardeners in Scotland.

The Chartered Institute of Horticulture’s annual Grow Careers Scotland event will see those interested in either starting a career, or further developing their career in horticulture, gather to hear from leading horticulturists about the opportunities available in the sector.

more latest news ➡

12,000 lost apprenticeship positions in retail

12,000 lost apprenticeship places in retail

Retailers could have offered 12,000 more apprenticeships over the past year if it was not for the Government’s failure to reform the Apprenticeship Levy, according to a survey by the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The industry took on approximately 17,000...

GIMA awards 2023

Just four weeks until the GIMA Awards 2023

The garden retail sector is abuzz as the GIMA Awards are set to return in just four weeks!  Taking place at the Celtic Manor resort in Newport, South Wales, the event will once again be a hotbed of celebration and networking, with 17 coveted awards up for grabs. ...

QR Code use in retail

The Rise of the QR Code 

From occasional use to becoming part of our daily lives over the last two years, the QR could continue to prove useful to retailers. For some companies, the pandemic was arguably a gamechanger. A number of technologies which had previously been overlooked then shot...

Read GCR's latest edition!

Subscribe ToThe Wednesday Word

Subscribe To
The Wednesday Word

 

Get all the latest news, events & more straight to your inbox every Wednesday.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This