The construction sector continues to struggle with severe mental health challenges, despite years of awareness campaigns. Over the past decade, 7,000 UK tradespeople have died by suicide, and the industry’s suicide rate remains more than three times the national average. These numbers signal that existing efforts, while well‑intentioned, have not been enough to reverse the trend. 

To change this trajectory, a newly formed group of senior leaders from major construction organisations is working together on a project aimed at uncovering the root causes of poor mental health and identifying practical steps for improvement. Members include leaders from Turner & Townsend, Mates in Mind, Warwick Medical School, the Crown Estate, Mace, and the Department for Business and Trade. Their shared goal is to fundamentally shift how the industry understands and manages mental health risks. 

David Bucksley, a key figure in the initiative and chair of CIOB’s health, safety and wellbeing panel, notes that although the industry has made progress in talking about mental health, “awareness is great, but it’s not changing the statistics.” He argues that construction must treat mental health the same way it treats physical safety—by identifying hazards early and reducing or eliminating risks before workers are harmed. This approach requires a deeper look at structural pressures, cultural expectations, and environmental triggers unique to the sector. 

According to Bucksley, around two construction workers take their own lives every day, underscoring the urgency for systemic change. While many organisations have developed mental health programs, the data shows these initiatives are not yet reducing suicide numbers at a meaningful rate. Leaders believe this is because the industry has focused too heavily on individual interventions—like signposting workers to support—while neglecting the conditions that drive poor mental health in the first place. 

Bucksley and his colleagues are part of the Tier 1 H&S Leadership Group—an informal network of health and safety directors from major contractors including Kier, Skanska, Mace, Laing O’Rourke, and Balfour Beatty. This group recognises that large contractors have significant influence over industry standards and working conditions. Their aim is to collaboratively develop solutions that can be adopted across the supply chain, ensuring that improvements reach workers at every level, from apprentices to senior staff. 

The leaders involved believe the future of construction mental health lies in preventative strategies:

• Redesigning work environments to reduce stressors
• Addressing long hours and job insecurity
• Training supervisors to recognise early signs of distress
• Creating cultures where vulnerability is accepted, not punished

They argue that supporting workers after they reach crisis point is too late; instead, the industry must change the underlying systems that cause mental health decline in the first place.

Read the full article here: How tier 1 leaders are addressing construction’s mental health crisis