The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) is to launch four more sector-specific skills partnerships, including one for repairs and maintenance.
The new sector plans, announced today (22 April) in its 2024/25 business plan, are designed to support employers’ training needs and will cover repairs and maintenance and the commercial, public and industrial sectors, joining existing plans for homebuilding and infrastructure.
Overall, the business plan covers £267m of investment over the coming year, focusing on three key areas — getting more trained people into industry, training provision, and skills development of the existing workforce.
CITB chief executive Tim Balcon said: “We will work in partnership with employers, from the smallest to the largest, so that the training demands of the construction industry can be met with high-quality training provision.
“Changing the skills landscape is not an easy task and not one that can be achieved overnight, but this year’s plan is a significant step forward.”
Among other new measures, the CITB will design, develop and test a new Training Needs Analysis (TNA) service for small businesses.
The New Entrant Support Team (NEST) launched in 2023/24 will be further expanded, along with the board’s Industry Impact Fund, which funds employers to design and test new solutions for talent recruitment and retention challenges.
CITB’s Go Construct platform will continue to provide free-to-access, self-service digital careers information, with the aim of inspiring new entrants to consider a career in construction and the built environment.
By 2025, CITB aims to increase the number of employers it supports to train and upskill their workforce by 14 per cent and boost the number of individuals supported by 13 per cent.
The business plan also sets out how CITB will invest £30m in buildings, infrastructure, and a plan at the National Construction College’s three sites.
More analysis to come…
