Qualifying the Construction Industry

Construction industry launches qualifications initiative.

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) are launching a joint initiative to increase the number of qualified workers in the UK construction industry.

The £9million programme called OSAT (On-Site Training and Assessment) has the backing of the UK's 230 largest construction firms and will assess and qualify 10,000 adult construction employees, who have the skills and experience but not the qualifications to back them up, by July 2004. The programme will then be expanded, to train and assess much higher numbers over the next five years in support of the industry's commitment to a have fully qualified workforce on every construction site by 2010.

The partnership combines the specialist knowledge of the CITB's On-site Assessment and Training (OSAT) programme with the training provider infrastructure of the LSCs. It will see the development of a series of local networks that will operate like a 'one stop shop' for employers comprising CITB OSAT Co-ordinators, an extra 275 assessors, local LSCs, local colleges, training providers and employers tasked with delivering on-site assessment and training quickly and effectively. The initiative is a new fast-track version of the CITB's existing OSAT scheme, which has already qualified 10,000 workers.

The initiative will focus on the assessment and training of experienced construction industry employees to NVQ Level 2 or 3, and has been developed in response to the industry's commitment to have a fully qualified workforce by 2010, all of whom are registered with the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS). The CSCS card provides proof that employees are competent at their job and have passed the CITB Health and Safety test. The CITB estimates that in order to meet the industry's target it will be necessary to qualify more than 500,000 experienced workers through On Site Assessment and Training (OSAT) over the next 7 years. The programme will help meet this challenge and inform the LSC approach to supporting the acquisition of qualifications by experienced adults in all sectors in the future.

Sir Michael Latham, Chairman of the CITB commented: "We are delighted to be working in partnership with the Learning and Skills Council in helping to up-skill the industry. We believe the industry will welcome the £9million funding from the LSC for on-site assessment and training. The project forms a key element in the industry's Qualifying the Workforce campaign which aims to improve standards and professionalise the industry."

Bryan Sanderson, Chairman of the Learning and Skills Council said: "We are delighted to have worked with the CITB to develop this ground-breaking initiative. It focuses LSC funding on training adults and delivers a whole industry's ambitions to upskill all its adult workers to minimum skills standard. In effect the project will contribute to a licence to operate for the construction industry - driving out the unqualified or incompetent to the benefit of businesses, individuals and the customer. It is the largest ever investment by the LSC in the skills of adult workers in a particular sector."

The 10 networks cover every region of England and by using a partnership approach that will involve a wide range of training providers they will be flexible and responsive in meeting the varied craft training and assessment needs of local employers. Each network will have a single point of contact for companies who require on-site assessment and training to ensure that enquiries are dealt with efficiently. The project will also test new approaches to improve the effectiveness and delivery of OSAT.

As with the existing OSAT scheme, construction employees will have their skills, job knowledge and experience profiled against the NVQ Standard. Those requiring additional training will be provided with a Training and Assessment Action Plan, and those who only require assessment will be provided with an Assessment Action Plan and assistance with building a portfolio of evidence.

Employers wishing to take advantage of this project should contact their local CITB Office, call the OSAT helpline on 01485 577999, or visit CITB's OSAT website.