Sector skills initiative wants input from consultants to help fine-tune training programmes

The objective of the new three-year sector skills agreement (SSA) is to ensure that schools, colleges and universities understand what employers need so they can fine-tune their programmes accordingly.

Another target of the SSA is to improve young people’s perception and understanding of building services, including teenagers now embarking on the governent’s new diploma programme for 14- to 19-year-olds.

“We’ve been working with the diploma programme to ensure contextualisaton of subjects,” said Keith Marshall, chief executive of SummitSkills.

“This means students will visit consultants so they can see what maths can mean in the built environment context. It’s a practical application of maths.”

Marshall said consultants should get in touch with SummitSkills to join a regional or national implementation group. These meet quarterly, bringing together employers and training providers, with funding, regional development and government agencies. Skills and issues examined range from labour-level to complete design of services.

Nine regional groups in England are planned, and those in the West Midlands and East of England are lready running. Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales will each have a national group, he said.

At the university level, it is important that the institutions fully understand what the sector needs, he said. “But too often entry into building services has not been a clear route, and when it has been there have not been many options. Consultants are needed in the programme to let the universities know what skills are needed.”

Activities for the first year of the SSA include improving careers guidance and active marketing to establish the sector as an aspirational career choice for high achievers. Students thinking about such a career should be aware of renewables and environmental technologies and these subjects should be integrated with careers strategies and apprenticeship training frameworks by trainers and employers, Marshall said.