Much talk is generated by Government departments about the competitiveness and productivity of UK industries, linking these to education and skills levels. So far so good; however, this differentiation between education and skills sends out mixed messages to youngsters leaving secondary education, and to employers seeking new trainees. Dr Mark Brenner, Chief Executive Officer for training services provider Building Engineering Services Training (BEST), takes another perspective.
At BEST, we believe a better gauge of training is competence, which is the combination of skills, knowledge and experience; all of which are obtained through an apprenticeship. Together with a fourth element, attitude, we can establish the full measure of performance.
There has been a great deal of coverage in the media recently about the spate of new courses being offered that promise attendees a quick fix way to a building services qualification. These are offered as alternatives to the traditional apprenticeship scheme; however, without thorough training, the industry’s competence base will be quickly eroded. Indeed many of the captains of our industry began their careers through apprenticeships, which is surely a clear message to both learners and employers of their long-term benefits.
The rebirth of the craft apprenticeship schemes in the mid 90’s with the introduction of Modern Apprenticeships and their development to date, now offer a return to the full framework training and knowledge scheme with work based assessments measuring competence. Many employers have benefited from this with BEST introducing over 7,000 new qualified apprentices into the industry through this period.
The challenge in moving forward is to engage all of our industry in this process and to align the changing governmental funding emphasis to more clearly support this. Working with our strategic partners, HVCA and SummitSkills, BEST has an ambitious programme to tackle the growing skills shortage in our industry now being recognised by Government.
The welcome introduction of the CSCS site skill card scheme will do much to recognise the importance and skilled nature of our industry. New programmes available from SummitSkills for the assessment of current workers (SNAP), allied with Government initiatives to formally recognise competence with qualifications, provides a timely framework for BEST to extend our services to include adult training and NVQ’s. To facilitate this, we are well down the road to developing our national assessment centre for England, Wales and Scotland and plans for a national network of technically competent trade assessors to support site based assessments of learners.
The training and skills issues for our industry are balanced at a critical point and with new ‘joined up thinking’ offers a fascinating opportunity to bring together the aspirations of employers and learners. Interest from young people in entering work based learning programmes in the HVACR and plumbing sectors is seeing a rapid growth. BEST receive over 7,000 applications a year for apprenticeships. However, on the other side of the balance, only half of those eligible will find places with industry employers.
Companies cite several reasons for shying away from offering apprenticeships. Many believe employing an apprentice is too costly, both financially and in time spent recruiting and training. Yet, employers can greatly ameliorate costs by working closely with training providers, like BEST, who can supply a full range of services such as: recruitment and interviewing; financial support; advice; mentoring and ongoing monitoring and management.
Of course, it is necessary to make some financial commitment but training providers are able to maximise funding opportunities. We can also advise on the selection of appropriate courses and colleges.
The time-consuming recruitment process can also be largely delegated to the training provider who will pre-assess candidates to ensure that only those of the highest calibre are referred to the employer for final selection. We can further save employers’ time by undertaking much of the paperwork involved to register apprentices onto courses and deal with on-going documentation. At BEST, we allocate a dedicated training adviser and supporting customer service team to assist with all the ‘red tape’ throughout the apprenticeship programme.
The training adviser’s role, however, extends beyond this to act as mediator throughout the learning and qualification period. They will help co-ordinate college with site work and undertake continuous progress reviews to ensure each apprentice understands their goals and is on target with their course work and practical assignments.
BEST’s theme for the coming year is one of partnership, with employers, colleges, industry bodies and communication groups, to relay the message that the future success of building services depends on the performance of its people. This is a shared responsibility for all in our industry. BEST undertakes to select apprentices based on their attitude to and aptitude for the career they have selected. Our challenge clearly is to balance the aspirations of both learner and employer and work together to ensure we provide apprentices with access to the training and work experience they need to become fully competent and reach their optimum performance.
Case study
“Apprenticeship proves competence”, says Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls, a global leader in building efficiency with over 136,000 employees worldwide, places a high value on apprentice training. At just one of its long-term customer sites, in Harlow, two of its 65 engineers are undertaking an apprenticeship and Johnson Controls will be considering additional trainees later this year.
Gary Huntley, Johnson Controls Engineering Site Manager, was an apprentice 20 years ago with Matthew Hall (now part of AMEC). He has worked at this Essex site for nine years and will only employ engineers who have, like him, followed the apprenticeship route. He believes: “An apprenticeship is a significant commitment for a young person to undertake. To be successful, trainees need to demonstrate dedication and ambition as well as being able to expand their knowledge, develop their skill base and benefit from the work experience. An apprenticeship therefore goes a long way to proving an engineer’s competency and quality. This is crucial for Johnson Controls, not only to our ability to provide an excellent service to our customers, but also in ensuring high levels of health and safety on site.”
“Having completed an apprenticeship myself helps me understand the apprentices’ needs and what they are thinking. This also applies to the other team members who readily take the apprentices under their wing and work with me to train them by the most appropriate method and within manageable timescales.”
Paul Cooper (22) one of Johnson Controls current apprentices and in his fourth year of a Service and Maintenance NVQ3 is a prime example of the way apprenticeships are encouraging more competent operatives in to the industry. Paul has recently won the award for London & South East Senior Service and Maintenance Apprentice of the Year 2005 having excelled at both his course work and on site. “Choosing a career in building services was the best choice I could have made,” he said. “My BEST training adviser has opened my eyes to all the opportunities now available to me and the career prospects are second to none. By taking the apprenticeship route, I am confident that I will be able to consolidate my skills and experience to take full advantage of this.”
