The RHA has warned that England’s heavy vehicle technician training network has shrunk sharply, just as trucks are becoming more technically demanding. According to the association, more than 100 providers offered Heavy Vehicle Service and Maintenance Technician apprenticeships in England in 2010. Today, that number has fallen to fewer than 40.
The warning comes as the government reviews apprenticeship funding bands — a process that could decide whether training providers can afford to keep delivering some of the most expensive technical courses.
For road transport, the issue goes far beyond apprenticeships. Fleets are being asked to modernise, cut emissions and prepare for electric vehicles. But electric trucks do not only need charging infrastructure and purchase incentives. They also need trained technicians, specialist equipment and workshops capable of handling high-voltage systems safely.
That is where the RHA says the current funding model is failing.
The association has welcomed the government’s review, saying apprenticeship funding has not kept pace with the real cost of delivery. It argues that Heavy Vehicle Service and Maintenance Technician apprenticeships are especially difficult to provide because colleges and training providers need expensive specialist equipment.
That challenge is becoming more serious as vehicle technology moves on. Modern HGVs already rely on advanced diagnostics, sensors, emissions systems and electronic safety technology. Battery-electric trucks add another layer: high-voltage batteries, electric drivetrains, charging systems and new safety procedures.
In other words, the trucks are getting more complicated — while the training network needed to support them is getting smaller.
The RHA says the sector already faces a shortage of thousands of heavy vehicle technicians. If fewer providers are able to deliver the apprenticeship, that shortage risks becoming harder to solve.
As for the timing: the government wants more young people to start apprenticeships and has asked Skills England to advise which standards should be prioritised for funding band reviews. Ministers say funding should support the skills needed for growth, green technology and the future economy.
Will the future economy still depend on people in workshops?
A fleet may be able to buy an electric tractor unit. It may be able to install chargers, plan routes and calculate total cost of ownership. But if the vehicle is off the road and there are not enough trained technicians to diagnose, repair and maintain it, the transition becomes a much harder sell.
That is why the apprenticeship funding review could become a bigger transport story than it first appears. The RHA has also warned against attaching tighter age restrictions to any funding increase, arguing that existing workers must also be able to upskill as vehicle technology changes.
The technicians who will maintain the next generation of trucks are not all sitting in classrooms waiting to enter the industry. Many are already working in depots, dealer workshops and independent garages. They will need new training as fleets move from diesel-only operations to mixed fleets that include electric, gas, hydrogen-ready or digitally connected vehicles.
If the funding does not reflect the real cost of that training, providers may continue to walk away from the course. That would leave hauliers facing a painful contradiction: pressure to decarbonise on one side, and a shrinking skills pipeline on the other.
The government review will not attract the same attention as a new electric truck launch or a major charging project. But it may prove just as important.
