'At some point we will have no one coming into the construction industry'

Apprenticeships need reform not just targets if chasm between sector's need for skilled workers and its record on training is to be bridged

Abby Shorter is beaming. She has been fitting radiators all morning in a block of new flats in south London and it is going well. "I like to see a project grow and progress. It is very rewarding," says the 24-year-old.

Shorter is a rare thing in construction: a skilled young recruit at the end of a plumbing apprenticeship.

This job is all plastic but the next job is all copper. With copper there is more of an art to it

Construction has fragmented: people making the investment are a long, long way from people building the building