Here at AB Glass, we have always invested in bringing new talent into the construction industry and advocated the fantastic career path the sector can offer young people.
Therefore, we were delighted to see new plans unveiled by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) designed to make it easier for employers to encourage tens of thousands of new apprentices and other new entrants into the industry.
The CITB Strategic Plan, launched at the end of September, is designed to make it easier to recruit workers into the industry and to access training. The pandemic created huge challenges but also the opportunity to attract workers who will see other routes into work blocked off.
The plan aims to support 28,000 taster experiences of construction and in Go Construct to help potential new entrants understand the opportunities in construction and how to access them.
It wants to give 19,000 people onsite experience to prepare them to start work in construction through onsite hubs as well as creating a new pathway between Further Education and employment available to 8,000 learners, including 1,600 apprenticeship starts as well as more learners starting jobs in construction
Other goals include helping employers to invest in training initially to rebuild after the pandemic but increasingly to modernise and raise productivity through the Grants Scheme and other funding. This will see over £500m (77% of levy) of funding to employers.
Alan Brayley, our Managing Director, said: “As we look to the future and economic recovery, we will be keen to invest in new talent and we welcome this new plan from the CITB. We hope it will encourage more good people to join construction from a much wider range of backgrounds.”
Sarah Beale, CITB Chief Executive, said at the time of the launch: “The recovery presents construction with big challenges but also major opportunities to do things differently and bring a wider range of new workers into the industry.
“Our Strategic Plan will support employers to realise these opportunities by helping fix the system that brings people into work and supporting them to do the training they need.
“We will focus on a small number of areas such as providing new entrants with information and experiences, creating a new pathway from Further Education into apprenticeships and a job, and boosting the numbers of apprentices completing their programmes.
“We will also help employers to train by addressing gaps in provision, making training accessible and targeting funding where it’s needed, including through the Grants Scheme.
“Over time, a greater share of this will support employers to modernise and raise productivity.”