Opinion LGV Drivers
New drive for drivers
Dr Ross Moloney, CEO of Skills for Logistics believes the new Certifi cate to Work will help employers attract and retain high-quality drivers.
There has been plenty of discussion surrounding the driver shortage and
“The logistics sector faces many challenges, but logistics is all about overcoming challenges and the sector is good at it”
the large number of older drivers – who make up a signifi cant proportion of the sector – leaving our sector or retiring in the wake of Driver CPC. It has been estimated that our sector will need 149,000 new drivers over a 10-year period leading up to 2020. The need to attract new and young recruits to the sector is becoming more acute and calls for positive action. They are out there – the young, inexperienced NEETS (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) as well as those who are experienced but are either changing careers – for example, moving from the warehouse to ‘wheels’ – or hail from the MOD but have not previously used their Cat C or Cat C+E licence. To successfully attract these groups of people, our sector must break down barriers that might cause recruits to think twice about becoming drivers. So in partnership with learning company Pearson, Skills for Logistics is launching the Certifi cate to Work. Having achieved the Certifi cate to Work, employers will know the learner has everything they need to be a LGV Driver. Such a straightforward process will ensure that candidates come out of it fully trained and ready for the world of work in our sector.
54 March 2014
New recruits also become Logistics Guild members, thus gaining access to the Logistics Guild Credit Union, which offers fi nance for new learners.
SETTING NEW STANDARD The selection and preparation phase ensures that the right people are selected to work in our sector to improve outcomes for organisations and individuals. To be eligible for the Certifi cate, the learner will have to have held their Cat B licence for a period of two years with no points. They will go through an initial assessment with the employer who will ascertain what the learner needs to achieve to become a fully trained LGV Driver. The learner will also have to pass a medical and will apply for their provisional LGV licence. Next comes the groundwork where the learner is moving towards a career they will understand and value. During this phase the learner will take their LGV theory test and start their functional skills. They will also experience a day in the life of a truck driver to see what it is really like. Candidates will then be trained to gain their Cat C or Cat C+E licence and complete their Initial Driver CPC. Once achieved, they will go on a short work placement to begin learning the knowledge and skills required to be a safe, competent driver. Basic Training follows where candidates bolster their
www.shdlogistics.com
theoretical knowledge with classroom training that may also count as periodic Driver CPC. Candidates then take
everything they have learnt into the world of work, when they are given a 6-8 week work placement by the employer, who then completes the process ‘on the job’ with their work based assessors. Formal qualifi cations surrounding this process provide evidence of the learner’s knowledge and competence of LGV driving. The logistics sector faces many challenges, but logistics is all about overcoming challenges and the sector is good at it. This is a solution to a crucial challenge that affects our sector right now – even when we are in the existing positive economic cycle. The certifi cate’s title does a lot of the description of what this is. I am confi dent that the new Certifi cate to Work will mean that new LGV drivers will be of a high standard and will have the knowledge, competence and skills to work safely in the sector and to achieve long-term careers. ■
www.edexcel.com/quals/ctw http://logisticsguild.com/
www.skillsforlogistics.org
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