A group of major contractors including Kier, Balfour Beatty and Willmott Dixon are planning new collaborative training courses for their staff and supply chains after securing government funding in a new two-year pilot programme.
The Employer Ownership Pilot means that government will provide matching funding for courses planned by the group and commissioned from colleges, universities or private training providers.
The Construction Employers group – which also includes Costain, Galliford Try, Lend Lease, Lovell, Vinci and Wates Group – was one of 34 successful bidders from 269 applications, who are expected to share £67m in the first year of the scheme.
Ian Dickerson, head of new entrants and funding at Kier, welcomed this week’s news from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills as an overdue reform.
“We get calls every week from training providers who’ve been given some money from central government to put on training courses that just don’t meet our needs. It all sounds great, but when you look into it you discover that they’re offering courses in cross-stitch!
“This pilot is about targeting the funding from government to where it’s actually needed. It’s an opportunity for the major contractors to work together, and it will benefit not just us but the wider supply chain.”
At Willmott Dixon, group chief human resources director Rick Lee said: “It’s great news, and a welcome boost for our industry, for those who’re in employment, and those who’re thinking of it. We’ll be able to increase our apprenticeship activity, our work on the green agenda and the training that needs to be done around BIM.”
The group put together a wish list of £18m worth of training projects, although funding will be released on a project-by-project basis. Planned projects cover every aspect of training, from pre-employment courses for young people, to technical training on BIM or sustainable building and MBA-level management training.
The group came together in February this year under the aegis of CITB-ConstructionSkills, which will also help to manage the new training courses.
Kier’s Dickerson also raised the prospect of developing courses with qualifications that would be recognised throughout the industry, meaning that individuals who move employer would not have to duplicate training.
“We can be a lot sharper and more streamlined. We already have the [CITB-accredited] Site Safety Plus courses, that’s acceptable if you move to Kier from somewhere else. So on BIM, let’s develop something together that meets all our needs, no matter who you work for,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rick Lee suggested that courses could be delivered as online “webinars”.
