Industry Training Update

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Additional £500 Apprenticeship Support Grant Now Available

CITB are now offering an additional £500 apprenticeship support grant for employers who have a combined PAYE and Net CIS sub-contractor wage bill of below £400,000 (as declared on their 2019 Levy Return). 

Employers will be able to claim this grant for apprentices who started their course after 1st August 2019.

For further information click here.

CSCS Withdraw Grandfather Rights - 1st January 2020

From 1st January 2020, all cards renewed under ‘Grandfather Rights’, also known as Industry Accreditation, will expire on 31st December 2024. CSCS will stop issuing the card from 30th June 2024.
Current cardholders must ensure that they hold a recognised qualification specific to their occupation, (such as an NVQ), before their cards expire in 2024.
For more information on this withdrawal click here.

Health, Safety & Environment Touch Screen Test Changes

CITB are making changes to the HSE touch screen test. These changes came into place on the 26th June 2019.
Each category of test has been reviewed and updated, so that it is in line with current legislation. The changes are particularly substantial in the operatives test, CITB have advised that there will be a mixture of easy, medium and hard questions and that the revised questions make it a ‘level playing field’.
For more information on the test changes click here.

CITB sets out solutions to “Big Six” skills challenges for the construction industry

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has set out its plans to help the industry meet critical skills challenges and secure its future workforce.

CITB’s business plan for 2019-2021 responds to industry’s demands for it to become more strategic and better focused.

The plan outlines the ‘Big Six’ skills challenges, based on research and insight from construction employers across Great Britain.

They include:

• making construction an attractive career to a broader range of recruits
• developing a ‘site-ready’ workforce
• getting more construction learners to join the industry
• growing the number and diversity of apprentices
• helping smaller firms invest in the training that can transform their business
• boosting the number of assessors for vocational qualifications.

For more information click here.