Skip to content

On-site

Building site inspector Green Job

Building site inspectors check the quality and safety of construction work.

Annual Salary

£21,000 to £50,000

Average UK salary in 2022 was £33,200
(source Office for National Statistics)

Working hours

41 to 43 a week

You could work: evenings / weekends; occasionally

2.4%
Future employment

There will be 2.4% more Building site inspector jobs in 2027.

Day to day tasks

In this role you will:

  • inspect construction sites
  • check that work is following building regulations
  • make sure that work is following project plans
  • measure and sample building materials to check their quality
  • find defects and recommend ways to fix them
  • monitor work progress
  • write reports for construction managers and clients

Working environment

You may need to wear protective clothing.

You could work in an office or on a construction site.

Your working environment may be outdoors some of the time.

You can get into this job through:

  • a university course
  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • working towards this role
  • applying directly
University

You could do a foundation degree, higher national diploma or degree in:

  • building studies
  • construction
  • civil engineering
  • surveying

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 1 or 2 A levels, or equivalent, for a foundation degree or higher national diploma
  • 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
For more information
College

Once you have some construction experience, you could complete a college course to help you progress to site supervisor and inspector roles.

Courses include:

  • Level 3 Diploma in Construction Site Supervisory Studies
  • Level 4 Diploma in Construction Site Supervision
  • Level 4 Certificate or Diploma in Construction Site Management

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
  • 1 or 2 A levels, a level 3 diploma or relevant experience for a level 4 or level 5 course
For more information
Apprenticeship

Apprenticeships relevant to this role include:

  • construction site supervisor higher apprenticeship
  • construction site engineering technician higher apprenticeship
  • construction site management degree apprenticeship

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a higher or degree apprenticeship
For more information
Work

You could work as a site tradesperson, building technician or surveying assistant and move up to become a site inspector through on-the-job training.

Direct application

You could apply directly to work as a building site inspector. To do this, you'll need several years' construction experience. Qualifications in health and safety will also be useful.

More information

Professional and industry bodies

You could join the Institute of Clerks of Works and Construction Inspectorate. They offer professional development and technical advice to people working in the building industry.

Further information

You'll find more advice on how to become a building site inspector from Go Construct.

Showing jobs in:
View all vacancies in this region

With experience, you could move into site management, building surveying, civil engineering or construction management.

You could also set up your own site inspection business and work as a consultant, or move into training.

You may need to become a member of the Institute of Clerks of Works and Construction Inspectorate (ICWCI).

Skills required and how your skills match up

What skills are required?

You'll need:

  • knowledge of building and construction
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • customer service skills
  • the ability to use your initiative
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • maths knowledge
  • analytical thinking skills
  • the ability to analyse quality or performance
  • knowledge of English language
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
My top 5 skills
Please sign in to compare your skills to this job. Sign in

To save or view your choices and results you must sign in or register (takes 1 minute).

Sign in Register