I read with interest the recent findings from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), which revealed that 53% of its members were having problems finding the right skills.

Last year ConstructionSkills provided a CITB-ConstructionSkills Grant to support members of the FMB in training almost 6,000 apprentices and help ease the skills shortage – and it’s not too late to take on an apprentice this year.

Apprentices have a key role to play in meeting industry output and as the FMB’s research indicates, the biggest challenge is giving young people the opportunity to learn the trade. In 2006 we placed nearly 9,000 apprentices throughout the UK and our completion rates are above 70%. Yet figures released last week show that we currently have nearly 4,000 eligible candidates unable to find an employer to take them on.

We urge the government to take the lead by allocating adequate financial resources to ensure we can continue to support enough apprentices, but the real challenge is ensuring employers commit to training young people.

ConstructionSkills is committed to developing solutions to support employers to train their workforce. For example, Programme Led Apprenticeships (PLAs), by changing the structure of the employer training commitment, offer a flexible alternative route to traditional apprenticeships. Furthermore, ConstructionSkills Apprenticeships has a team which works closely with both employers and apprentices to provide support and advice throughout the training period, including up to £9,400 for registered employers.

Through these approaches we are confident we can drive up apprenticeship numbers.

Max Hamps, ConstructionSkills Apprenticeships director, Bircham Newton

Source

Construction Manager