Monday 7 July 2014

CITB Training is of Benefit to New Housing Zones

The government and the Greater London Authority have recently announced plans that will see as many as 50,000 new homes built across London in the next few years. These properties will be part of designated housing zones that will provide much-needed homes for families and provide a boost to the construction industry. As the construction sector demands more skilled workers, those with CITB training could have an advantage.

The proposals were launched by George Osborne, the Chancellor, alongside Boris Johnson, London's Mayor. These plans will be backed up by £200 million of funding and will see up to 20 of these zones created across the capital. This programme of housing development is not just restricted to the capital. There are plans in the pipeline to roll out the scheme to other areas of the country.

As part of this strategy to tackle the issue of shortfalls in the availability of property, local authorities will be able to speed up the planning and construction phases. There will be the removal of some restrictions, enabling councils to make better use of the available land.

Boost for the Construction Sector
The Construction Skills Network report from the CITB highlighted that up to 6,400 roles could be available in the capital by 2018. House building is now at its highest level since 2008, as the economy begins its recovery from the recession. However, there is still a large discrepancy between the demand for good-quality and affordable housing and the number of properties available. These proposals from the government are designed to go some way to alleviating this problem.

These new homes will undoubtedly lead to more roles for skilled workers as well as apprentices. Those employees who have the right level of skills and commitment will be most in demand, and CITB training can give workers an edge over other applicants. CITB training can take various forms from plant maintenance and operation to scaffolding and health and safety courses. Choose courses that are relevant to your particular skills and ensure that you put the CITB training on any application forms or CVs that you produce.

At ACT we offer a range of CITB training courses, covering health and safety awareness, plant manager training and site manager and supervisor training. We have considerable experience of providing these courses and can support you in finding the most appropriate one. Details of all our courses can be found through the site or you can contact us for further information.

Friday 20 June 2014

CITB Training Needed to Stem Skills Shortage

A recent report has highlighted that there has been growth within the construction industry. This can only be good news for companies operating within the market. However, it does bring up issues concerning the availability of appropriate labour (as staff should hold CITB training to ensure they are working safely) and a rise in the cost of materials and labour.

A Construction Products Association report showed that there has been a rapid growth across the construction industry. It is the first time in the last six years that the industry has recorded growth for four quarters in a row. Activity amongst the new-build sector is rising particularly fast and there is strong optimism about the next 12 months.

Along with a rise in activity levels, there has also been an increase in the prices paid through tenders. During the first quarter of 2014, there was an increase in the number of companies that saw rising tender prices: 47% of companies had seen a rise against just 2% for the last quarter of 2013. However, a large proportion of this increase is taken away by the rises in the costs of materials and labour. 50% of companies that took part in the survey reported that there had been an increase in labour costs.

Recruitment Issues
This rapid growth in the market has meant that recruitment levels are struggling to keep up. As more new-build sites begin, there is a growing need for individuals who are readily available and possess the correct skills and experience. In the first quarter of 2014, 61% of companies had problems recruiting bricklayers; this figure was only 41% at the end of 2013.

The construction industry’s Council and Industry Training Board (CITB) works alongside the industry to ensure that all employees are sufficiently qualified and safe. CITB training consists of a number of different courses which can be adapted depending on the requirements of the individual or company.

If the construction industry is to be able to deal with this rise in activity, then they need to focus on having a trained and experienced team behind them. CITB training is one route to achieving this.

At ACT we offer a range of training courses, including CITB training, City and Guilds, NEBOSH and IOSH. Our website provides comprehensive details on our full range, or one of our team will be happy to assist you with your requirements.

Tuesday 17 June 2014

CITB Training Needed to Stem Skills Shortage

A recent report has highlighted that there has been growth within the construction industry. This can only be good news for companies operating within the market. However, it does bring up issues concerning the availability of appropriate labour (as staff should hold CITB training to ensure they are working safely) and a rise in the cost of materials and labour.

A Construction Products Association report showed that there has been a rapid growth across the construction industry. It is the first time in the last six years that the industry has recorded growth for four quarters in a row. Activity amongst the new-build sector is rising particularly fast and there is strong optimism about the next 12 months.

Along with a rise in activity levels, there has also been an increase in the prices paid through tenders. During the first quarter of 2014, there was an increase in the number of companies that saw rising tender prices: 47% of companies had seen a rise against just 2% for the last quarter of 2013. However, a large proportion of this increase is taken away by the rises in the costs of materials and labour. 50% of companies that took part in the survey reported that there had been an increase in labour costs.

Recruitment Issues
This rapid growth in the market has meant that recruitment levels are struggling to keep up. As more new-build sites begin, there is a growing need for individuals who are readily available and possess the correct skills and experience. In the first quarter of 2014, 61% of companies had problems recruiting bricklayers; this figure was only 41% at the end of 2013.

The construction industry’s Council and Industry Training Board (CITB) works alongside the industry to ensure that all employees are sufficiently qualified and safe. CITB training consists of a number of different courses which can be adapted depending on the requirements of the individual or company.

If the construction industry is to be able to deal with this rise in activity, then they need to focus on having a trained and experienced team behind them. CITB training is one route to achieving this.

At ACT we offer a range of training courses, including CITB training, City and Guilds, NEBOSH and IOSH. Our website provides comprehensive details on our full range, or one of our team will be happy to assist you with your requirements.

NEBOSH WINS QUEEN'S AWARD

NEBOSH has won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise 2014 for its “outstanding achievement” in international trade.

The Award recognises its international growth over the three years to the end of March 2013. In that time overseas registrations for NEBOSH examinations more than tripled.

The Awards are announced annually each year on the Queen’s birthday (21 April) to celebrate and encourage excellence in UK Business. NEBOSH was one of only 110 companies to receive the Queen’s Award for International Trade in 2014.

“Health and safety is an export that Britain should be proud of,” said NEBOSH Chair, Sir Bill Callaghan. “It saves lives, prevents serious injuries and protects people’s health in workplaces throughout the world.”

British educational standards have often been admired and followed in other countries,” said NEBOSH Chief Executive, Teresa Budworth. “This is something we have sought to uphold through our vocational qualifications, which have a strong reputation and are seen as a thorough test of health, safety and environmental knowledge and its practical application.

“We are humbled and proud to have been recognised for our contribution to Britain’s international success by this Queen’s Award for Enterprise. The whole team at NEBOSH have contributed to this success, including staff members, our Board of Trustees, Examiners and our network of over 600 accredited course providers.”

For more information on NEBOSH’s success, please visit their website www.nebosh.org.uk or contact the NEBOSH Customer Services Team on +44 (0)116 263 4700

Tuesday 8 April 2014

Classroom taught health and safety training will broaden career horizons

Health and safety courses within schools can generate a new interest which can be pursued in their education. As well as promoting education, it also provides beneficial skills that are extremely valuable to you students’ lives and will broaden their future career horizons. Here at Act Associates, we have a distinct range of courses available for the classroom which are accredited by NEBOSH, IOSH training, IAS, IEMA, ECITB and much more! When it comes to health and safety courses it doesn’t get better than that! Once they are accredited with one of these courses, or complete a diploma, this will really enhance their career possibilities and will leave a positive impression on future employees.
You can rest assure that your pupils will be trained by professionals that have been endorsed by the relevant awarding bodies for such courses. Classroom taught training gives us the opportunity to interact and engage students, to share our passion for these important courses. This is the best way for your pupils to learn, receiving face to face training. They can share their input, raise questions, and work as a team to facilitate their learning. This is much more likely to create interest surrounding the topics and encourage them to achieve the highly respected and widely recognised Nebosh diploma.
Our classroom courses can be tailored towards your schools specific preferences and requirements. Whether it’s a one day course covering essential skills such as risk assessment, or the NEBOSH diploma, we will share our experiences and knowledge with your students in order to inspire their future. Our courses can build your students up to the well-recognised NEBOSH certificate. This is an essential minimum that would be required for future full-time health and safety jobs. Once students advance to the NEBOSH diploma, this opens the doors to many more career opportunities. This is required for health and safety managerial jobs, so once achieved, is a very valuable tool!
These courses and qualifications provide students with an idea of what a career in the health and safety world would require and expect from them. It will really strengthen their future job possibilities as they will be able to demonstrate they are keen to learn and adapt. The certificates also reflect valuable personal skills and attributes, making them more employable. This is by virtue of showing this person is willing to go the extra mile and they can handle challenging situations.
To see what other health and safety oppurtunities we provide, please see our website today.

Thursday 1 August 2013

Heres some articles that ACT Associates Ltd have found this month

Learning Objectives Made Easy with This Simple Tip
If you’re required to list the learning objectives it doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be presented as a list. You’ve probably seen those websites where there’s a top image and underneath it are some buttons to reveal additional images. Why not create something similar for the learning objectives of your elearning course? Instead of listing all of the objectives as bullet points, create a single objective on each screen. Then add a button that allows the person to navigate through the objectives. It satisfies listing the objectives, but it doesn’t force them to a bullet point list

How I would approach creating compliance e-learning
Last week I reported on Towards Maturity's latest study, Reinvigorating Compliance Training. The study showed clearly what a hole we have got ourselves into with e-learning compliance training. More often than not management is coming to us with a requirement for a simple tell-and-test programme that does little more than tick boxes, and it seems that we are only too keen to oblige. In the process we risk irreparable damage to our status as professional designers and perpetuate management's perception that we are mere order takers. It's easy to criticise, much harder to put forward a solution. However, I like a challenge; so, it falls to me to put my reputation on the line by suggesting how I would approach a request for compliance e-learning. I'm going to assume that I've already explored the alternatives and that e-learning stands a reasonable chance of influencing the outcome. So what would I do?

Compliance - e-learning's greatest friend and worst enemy

Universally, lack of employee engagement emerged as the biggest barrier to effectiveness – and is linked strongly to the poor reputation of compliance e-learning. Ask yourself what efforts you are currently making to really engage your audience and make it relevant to them. If you are subjecting your employees to ‘death by PowerPoint’, rolling out the same content year after year to everyone regardless of their job role or risk profile, blinding the learner with irrelevant detail about what the law says rather than what it means to them or failing to engage your line managers in the process, then the chances are you are potentially turning off the very people whose buy-in you need to effectively mitigate your compliance risks.


Online CE and Training Leader RedVector Named 2013 Honoree for the Best of Elearning! Awards

RedVector is being recognized for its premier online training and compliance solution, which delivers, facilitates, and tracks online learning programs targeted to the needs of design and construction professionals and provides comprehensive license management capabilities to ensure compliance with certification requirements.
"This is really something special," says RedVector CEO Tom Wallace. "Knowing that this honour comes directly from our clients who voted for us means we’re really doing something right. Our goal at RedVector has always been to provide the highest-quality online training and education solutions to help industry professionals expand their knowledge and stay compliant, and we will continue to look for new and engaging ways to not only meet but exceed their needs."


OnlineITcourses.com Offers IT Training and E-Learning Facility

A number of IT e-Learning courses from all over the world are offered through this website. Individual students can also learn IT courses online. Networking and Server courses are also offered, which cover the topics, general IT knowledge, network technologies and operating systems. OnlineITcourses.com features a link named Course Catalogue, which includes IT eLearning courses like Microsoft, Linux, Cisco, IT Security and Comp TIA under the title Server and Networking, Java, Programming languages and Microsoft .Net under Software Development, Oracle and Microsoft SQL Server under Databases and finally SAP, Google and Microsoft Office under Desktop and Office. IT training on project management courses covers certain specific methodologies like PMBoK, Prince2 and ITIL. 
http://www.sbwire.com

This news feed was brought to you by ACT Associates Ltd

Monday 22 April 2013

NEBOSH National Diploma exam success January 2013



ACT Associates would like to congratulate all the students who recently passed their NEBOSH National Diploma exams in January 2013. Well done in achieving such excellent results.

Our next NEBOSH National Diploma Unit A course commences 15th July 2013 at our prestigious Midlands venue.

E-learning and blended learning options are available for most NEBOSH awards.