A
£9m joint-venture learning initiative will train and assess more than 10,000
workers in a bid to increase the number of qualified staff in the construction
sector.
The
Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has teamed up with the Learning and
Skills Council (LSC) to offer training as part of the drive to have a fully
qualified workforce by 2010.
The
scheme will develop a series of local training networks where assessors will
visit staff in the workplace to deliver the training.
Workers
will be assessed to NVQ level 2 or 3 standard and then added to the
Construction Skills Certification Scheme as proof of competence and safety
awareness.
As
well as providing essential skills, the scheme is seen as a way of improving
the construction industry’s health and safety record – in 2001, the sector
accounted for 79 of the 249 workplace fatalities.
If
the initiative proves successful, the LSC may take the same approach to
improving skills in other industries.
