CITB has invested £10m into the construction industry today – to provide financial help for recession hit construction employers struggling to develop key skills that could lead the industry out of recession and back to growth.
CITB writes:
Available to all employers registered with CITB, the decision to introduce a wave of funding was reached after research showed significant skills gaps in the industry, which could hamper growth.
These included:
· An understanding of green issues (43%)
· Inability to identify new business opportunities (39%)
· Not having sufficient IT skills (43%)
· A third (32%) expressed concerns about their ability to keep up with the latest innovations, products and techniques
· And, a further 32% stated that their management team’s ability to identify the training needs of staff was an area that needed improvement.
Speaking at an event to launch the CITB Growth Fund 2013-14, Deputy Chairman, Judy Lowe said: ‘Construction is an industry as big as the financial services sector and we need to ensure that we equip our workforce with the skills to lead our industry out of recession and back to growth. The Growth Fund that we have launched today is one of the ways that CITB can support industry, over and above the current CITB Grants Scheme.’
The first wave of funding for the Growth Fund was released in 2011 and since then, CITB has supported 161 projects with the combined value of £6.7m.
Judy Lowe added: ‘The Growth Fund has had a positive impact on over 8,000 construction organisations in just eighteen months and has helped more than 2,000 individuals to access accredited training.’
The phase 1 Growth Fund has already delivered results across the industry, ranging from specialist SMEs to major contractors. For example, The National Federation of Roofing Contractors received Growth Fund support to develop management and supervisory training to enable a new concept in roofing, relating to photovoltaic and solar thermal work, which has resulted in 400 supervisors being trained.
The Supply Chain Sustainability School, a joint bid led by Skanska, has provided a range of practical and free support ;including an online self-assessment and action planning tool, an online resource library, and the provision of face to face sustainability training. The school has over 2,000 registered members from over 1,000 unique companies.
Applications to the Growth Fund are invited from groups of in-scope companies (including contractor/supply chain groupings), individual or multiple construction industry federations, trade bodies and training groups. These are assessed against set Growth Fund criteria agreed by the CITB Training Committee’.
If you would like more information about the Growth Fund and how to apply, please contact david.plummer@citb.co.uk
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