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Contact | Mar 12 News

MEMBERSHIP POLL Can CPD plug the skills gap? Survey says yes

Latest research among CIOB Members shows that 80% feel CPD is an essential ingredient in their career development, particularly with newer issues such as BIM

Almost 80% of construction professionals believe that up-to-date CPD can alleviate skills gaps in the industry, according to a CIOB survey on current CPD provision which attracted more than 1,500 respondents. “Professional bodies have long been the ambassadors for CPD; it’s what sets a professional qualification apart from an academic one and certainly within our membership there is a real appetite and culture of CPD. It could be argued that the role of CPD has been undervalued,” said Michael Brown, deputy chief executive at the CIOB. “But if we look at topics like the rise of Building Information Modelling combined with the shortfall of industry training funds then it might well be left to CPD providers to plug the skills gap,” he added. Eight out of 10 respondents felt that CPD was

an important, very important or essential ingredient for their career development, with 46% seeing an improvement in their own performance as a result of CPD. For 44% of respondents, CPD had improved their ability to cope with change. In the past 12 months 30% of respondents said taking part in CPD had improved their own employability and just under half suggested that their employers had remained committed to providing and/ or supporting CPD during 2011. The vast majority – 80% – felt that CPD can

improve the technical knowledge of construction graduates, bridging the gap between academic qualifications and work ready skills. Asked whether respondents valued CPD at the

same level as the previous year (2010) the majority (70%) regarded it of the same importance (important/

very important/essential), with a further 17% suggesting it had become more important. “From what we see in this survey there is an

increasing trend towards online CPD provision rather than the more traditional formal training methods,” said Brown. “That won’t come as a surprise for most of us; the convenience of distance learning is an attractive proposition. “What we have to be mindful of, as we have to with all education and training programmes, is that the CPD on offer is actually valuable and relevant and not just a money making machine. We can’t expect to tackle the big issues with poorly conceived training,” Brown concluded.

A full copy of the survey results can be found at www.ciob.org.uk/resources/research

Scrapping BREEAM for schools is a mistake, says Institute

The CIOB is backing a campaign, which has been launched by the UK Green Building Council and Aldersgate Group, to retain the

BREEAM requirement in schools construction. The Department for Education

is proposing the scrapping of BREEAM requirements for new and

refurbished schools as part of its drive to streamline procurement and reduce costs in the process, outlined last year in the James Review. Alan Crane, CIOB President

(pictured left), stated: “This is a misguided move that contradicts the coalition’s statement that they aim to be the ‘greenest government ever’. Crane continued: “Designing,

building and operating to BREEAM standards yields hugely beneficial energy savings for minimal capital cost, reducing both operational expenditure and carbon emissions.” Meanwhile, the UK-GBC and Aldersgate Group stated: “We think this is incredibly short-sighted. BREEAM, like all standards/tools, may not be perfect, but to scrap its use entirely would have deeply

concerning implications not just for the quality of the nation’s schools, but for the construction and property sector more widely.”

The CIOB is serious about reducing carbon from the built environment, having recently launched its free, interactive online action plan CarbonAction2050.com. Visit www.carbonaction2050.com/ toolkit for more information