‘National Infrastructure Plan for Skills’ requires contractors to show how they will develop workforce.
Bidders for government infrastructure projects valued at more than £50m will have to provide evidence of their commitment to developing skills, the government has announced.
The new obligation came into force on 1 April and was detailed in a Procurement Policy Notice published by the Cabinet Office. The government has also signalled that it intends to lower the project value threshold below £50m when appropriate.
To be considered for contracts, bidders will have to demonstrate their commitment to upskilling the current and future workforce. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) believes the initiative will be important in ensuring the construction industry has enough skilled workers, citing the creation of up to 224,000 jobs in the construction industry by 2019. More details are due in a National Infrastructure Plan for Skills in the summer.
Meanwhile, the Construction Leadership Council has been tasked with developing a “clear definition of good company skills performance” to help bidding firms demonstrate their performance on skills to procuring clients.
The requirements will be placed in contracts, monitored and may be used to inform future procurement decisions.
HS2 Ltd has welcomed the initiative
The new requirements are aimed at government procurers, including executive agencies and other public bodies, such as the Homes and Communities Agency, and the Education Funding Agency.
HS2 Ltd has welcomed the initiative and has already signed up to incorporate the principles in its next bidding process.
BIS also said it would be used to “open dialogue on skills requirements in procurement in the regulated, privately procured parts of the infrastructure programme”, covering bodies such as Thames Water and energy companies.
Commercial secretary to the Treasury Lord Deighton said the plan was intended to provide a boost to apprenticeship and training opportunities, and help meet skills needs across the country.
“This government was the first to set out a National Infrastructure Plan to provide clarity on the pipeline of investment in major infrastructure construction,” he said. “Our next challenge is to address the immediate need to develop the skills necessary which will deliver this ambitious pipeline.
“That is why the government has committed to develop for the first time a National Infrastructure Plan for Skills.”
Manchester Uni to train unemployed locals to work on £1bn campus expansion
Manchester Uni has set up a “Construction Academy” Photo: Pete Birkinshaw
The University of Manchester is trialling its own innovative client-led approach to training local people in construction skills with the launch of its “Construction Academy”.
Designed to maximise the spin-off benefits of its £1bn campus development programme, the scheme will train previously unemployed local people to enable them to take jobs with the construction companies that win work on the project.
An initial cohort of 13 students will work towards a Construction Skills Certification Scheme “green card”, and a health and safety qualification, as well as literacy and numeracy training. At the end of the initial training phase, they can either seek labouring jobs, or stay on for further training in specific skills.
There are a further 150 would-be students on the waiting list.
The academy is being run by The Works – a joint venture between the University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan University, City South Manchester Housing Trust and Work Solutions.
Construction companies are also expected to support the academy through talks and tutorials.
Steve Grant, assistant director of human resources at the academy, said: “The academy model is unique in higher education capital programmes and fairly unique in any sector.
“The academy is about placing people into real, full-time employment and the campus masterplan could generate more than 1,000 vacancies for unemployed people. We know that there are thousands of unemployed people, some of whom have a back-ground in construction, living within the travel-to-work area who will benefit.”
