Laing O’Rourke’s Alison Lamplough believes that the Richard Review implementation is one way of tackling skills shortages.
The government’s Trailblazer development is proving to be both an exciting and challenging time for industry as a whole and for construction in particular.
The Trailblazer apprenticeship development quite rightly has to be led by employers. This is the only way apprenticeships should be developed as it can only be employers who define and design apprenticeships that are right for their industry.
However, the process could become very onerous if more construction employers do not get involved and work together to create the apprenticeships we need for the future of our industry.
In construction we currently have 140 existing apprenticeship frameworks that, to meet the government’s aims, will need to be developed in line with the Richard Review to meet the Trailblazer standards. This work will need to be completed by 2017 if funding is still to be available for those apprenticeships.
"What better way is there to meet our future skills needs than developing apprenticeships that provide fantastic opportunities for new entrants to our industry and exciting career paths for young people starting work in construction?"
The development process quite rightly sits with employers – we know what skills we need and the best way for those skills to be delivered.
I would encourage as many employers as possible to get involved in the process of reviewing and developing apprenticeships to meet the skills shortages we have in the industry.
What better way is there to meet our future skills needs than developing apprenticeships that provide fantastic opportunities for new entrants to our industry and exciting career paths for young people starting work in construction?
The Phase 3 Apprenticeship Trailblazer, which has just been announced by the government, is a great opportunity for construction employers large and small to work together during the next two years to ensure that our apprenticeships are fit for purpose for today and to provide us with the skills we need for our industry of the future.
Although the work on the Phase 3 Apprenticeship Trailblazer has to be completed by employers, CITB is there to provide support and guidance through the process, and to ensure there is a consistent approach to development and no crossover with other work being undertaken.
The collaboration taking place between employers working through the development of Trailblazer apprenticeships is proving to be invaluable and will ensure that we develop standards that provide new entrants to the industry with the knowledge, skills and behaviours that are going to drive our industry forward.
The number of construction apprentices at present suggests that the apprenticeship frameworks we currently have are not meeting employer needs.
This, therefore, is the industry’s opportunity to do something about that and create the apprenticeships that we do need and is an opportunity not to be missed.
We need as many employers as possible to engage with the development of apprenticeships so that we can continue to deliver the exciting opportunities for young people and ensure we have the skills our industry needs.
Alison Lamplough is head of operational training at Laing O’Rourke and chair of the Construction Trailblazer group. This blog was first published on the CITB website.
