23rd April 2026
The Highland Council’s Workforce North initiative arrives at a critical moment for the Highlands. On one side, the region is seeing unprecedented levels of investment in renewable energy, infrastructure, and construction. On the other, it faces a shrinking and ageing population that may not be large enough to deliver that growth.
This tension—between opportunity and capacity—is now shaping one of the most important economic questions for the region: who will actually do the work?
Workforce North is the attempt to answer that question before it becomes a constraint.
Growth without people is only half a plan
The Highlands are entering a period of major economic transformation, with over £100 billion in potential investment linked to energy, grid infrastructure, engineering, and associated services.
But the challenge is structural:
Fewer working-age residents
Outmigration of young people
Skills shortages in key sectors
Difficulty attracting external workers at scale
Without intervention, the risk is not a lack of investment—but a lack of people to deliver it.
Workforce North: a coordination strategy, not a single programme
Workforce North is not a standalone funding scheme. Instead, it is a regional partnership framework bringing together Highland Council, Skills Development Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, UHI, employers, and government agencies.
Its aim is to:
Align education with real job demand
Improve recruitment pipelines
Retain young people locally
Attract skilled workers into the region
Support employers in workforce planning
In short, it is about turning investment into long-term, local employment rather than short-term construction activity.
What this means for employers: funding and support
A key strength of Workforce North is that it sits alongside a range of existing funding streams and employer support mechanisms. These are not always widely understood, but they are central to how the strategy is intended to work in practice.
Skills and training grants (upskilling workforce)
Employers in the Highlands can access funding support for:
Workforce training and reskilling
Green skills development
Technical qualifications linked to net zero and infrastructure jobs
For example, previous Highland Council-backed funds have supported employers to:
Train staff in renewable energy installation
Develop EV and low-carbon skills
Expand local training capacity where courses are not otherwise available
Employer-funded training support (co-investment model)
A key direction of Workforce North is encouraging shared investment between public bodies and employers, including:
Co-funded training programmes
Employer-led apprenticeships
“Train the trainer” schemes to build internal capability
Support for creating new internship pathways
This reflects a shift away from purely public-funded training towards shared responsibility for workforce development.
Recruitment and employability support
Employers also gain access to local recruitment infrastructure through the Highland Employability Partnership, including:
Help identifying candidates with relevant skills
Matching unemployed or underemployed residents to vacancies
Support for work experience and placements
Advice on workforce planning and retention
This is designed to reduce recruitment friction in a tight labour market.
Apprenticeships and youth pipelines
Through linked programmes such as “My Highland Future” and DYW partnerships, employers can:
Host apprenticeships
Offer work experience placements
Engage directly with schools and colleges
Help shape training pathways for future workers
This is particularly important for addressing long-term workforce shortages by building the next generation of skilled workers locally.
The bigger picture: investment needs people
The underlying message of Workforce North is simple: capital investment alone is not enough.
Even with strong funding flows into energy and infrastructure, projects will only succeed if:
Skilled workers are available locally
Employers can recruit and retain staff
Training systems respond quickly to demand
Young people see viable careers in the region
Without this alignment, there is a risk that major projects are delivered with limited local benefit.
The risk if coordination fails
If workforce planning does not keep pace with investment, the Highlands could face:
Delayed infrastructure projects
Reliance on imported labour
Weak local economic retention
Continued population decline despite economic growth
In that scenario, the region would generate wealth but not necessarily retain it.
A cautiously optimistic direction
Despite these challenges, Workforce North represents a significant shift in thinking. It recognises that the Highlands are not short of opportunity—they are short of alignment between opportunity and people.
By linking employers, education, and funding support more effectively, the region has a chance to turn large-scale investment into something more sustainable: a locally rooted workforce that grows with the economy rather than lagging behind it.
Workforce North is ultimately about making sure the Highlands are not just a place where projects happen, but a place where careers are built. With the right combination of funding, training, and coordination, the region has the potential to match its economic ambition with a workforce capable of delivering it.
For more details read the full council paper HERE