After one of the most dramatic years any of us can remember we have now entered a third lockdown in England, and the pressure on all areas of business is significant.
But for all the challenges the pandemic has presented, it has also created opportunity and inspired innovation and as an organisation, like many others in industry, we have been proactive in adapting much of what we do to be accessible online and remotely so that people can continue to learn and develop their skills.
Often this is ‘live’ face to face through any one of the now widely recognised platforms; via video streaming; or through remote online learning allowing people to access the knowledge they want in their own time.
The appetite for learning has never been greater, driven in part by people wanting to improve their knowledge and skills whilst working from home, or being furloughed.
It is my view that 2021 will see further innovation to deliver learning and qualifications, and more uptake from all sectors of industry, including those in hands on and site roles.
For GQA, as a leading awarding body, it is something we are delighted to see, and it is fantastic that that desire for self-improvement is also leading people to think about more formal achievement in the form of qualifications or taking accredited courses.
Our core ethos remains to enable people to raise their skills and attain qualifications in their chosen fields. It is only the methods that have changed.
We live in a country where the education system is and has always been geared towards qualifications, not simply attendance, and it is something we believe should naturally follow through to the world of work. The desire for qualifications is clearly there and that is all the encouragement we need to bring further offerings to market, and to partner with major organisations in industry that have the same view.
It was great to work with the Council for Aluminium in Buildings (CAB) over recent months and to see them launch their own CSCS Card for window and door installers working with Aluminium, and we are working with others now who have a desire to achieve the same. As the only issuer of CSCS Cards for the Fenestration and Glass Industries and an issuer of cards for the Construction sector it is really encouraging to see the value that is being attached to accessing the relevant knowledge needed to achieve the health and safety qualification that underpins obtaining a CSCS card.
We are excited to see the Building Our Skills Academy, part of the Building Our Skills – Making Fenestration a Career of Choice campaign launch its first practical training courses for window and door installation, with many more courses to be launched throughout the year, and to be the body accrediting these courses which can then lead to a full qualification later.
We are also working with Building Our Skills to accredit their ‘Inspiring Talent Academy’ programme for youngsters in industry. We know that that age group attaches importance to a formal recognition for their achievements, something they can carry with them throughout their career.
We are also delighted to see Building Our Skills appointed by BEIS as a specialist training provider under the Green Homes voucher scheme with the aim to train the next generation of trades people to carry out upgrading and updating measures to the country’s older properties.
Attendees to grant funded training programme at the Building Our Skills academy building in Sheffield will undergo three days of training, at the end of which they will have the knowledge and skills to be able fit windows and doors, glaze and re-glaze existing windows and doors, and have a full understanding of the site requirements and building regulations that impact the trade. On successful completion of the training and on achieving a set standard they will be formally accredited and receive a skills card containing their achievements.
It is both exciting and rewarding that we are working with a greater number of other leading industry bodies than ever before to try to bring greater consistency to the standard of achievement for those undertaking learning and skills development.
We are expecting a busy year and as always, we are there to support our industry and the people within it.
