OUR PANEL:


Richard Slater, Lancashire Business View (Chair) Jess Barrow, Woohoo Michael Bates-Tracey, FWP Warren Bennett, James Places Paul Darwin, Anwyl Homes Samuel Knott, Site Surveying Services


Deborah Smith, S&L Planning Consultants Richard Wooldridge, HPA Architects Stephen Bell, Napthens Solicitors (not present)


Lancashire’s vast stock of older housing, alongside increasing government house-building targets, has created a critical construction skills demand. Buildings must now be thermally efficient, aligned with net-zero and sustainability goals, and designed to safeguard health.


Step forward the Lancashire and Cumbria Institute of Technology (IoT), which is working with industry to draw up a green skills curriculum.


Courses are shaped to suit local requirements and ageing housing stock means technical training must encompass retrofitting.


“ Over 20-30 years, some building work has unintentionally led to challenges due to evolving industry knowledge,” says Mark Taylor, head of CSTEM at Preston College, an IoT partner college.


“ For example, incorrectly installed cavity wall insulation can contribute to damp issues, affecting air quality, health and overall energy efficiency. We’ve worked with employers to embed green skills into training, ensuring future work supports sustainability and long-term housing quality.”


The IoT has collaborated with businesses, from engineering consultancy Pettit Singleton Associates to contractor Flitcraft Timber Frame and developers Persimmon Homes and Rowland Homes.


Learners are trained to perform a full diagnosis on existing buildings before remedial work is carried out. For newbuilds, skills ensure the right products are installed correctly.


“ We’ve put time and effort into underpinning what a building needs to become high performing in terms


of energy efficiency and human comfort and welfare,” says Mark. “We’ve collaborated with employers to ensure the skills needed to improve historically problematic buildings are embedded in training.”


Construction learners use 3D scanning equipment to convert physical environments into CAD (Computer-Aided Design) or BIM (Building Information Modelling) models to allow for virtual retrofitting, enabling performance and efficiency modelling for future use.


“ Construction is evolving, driven by advancements in technology and scientific methods,” says Mark. “ We’re equipping the next generation of workers with the adaptability to respond to these changes.”


Visit landciot.ac.uk


LANCASHIREBUSINES SV IEW.CO.UK


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PLANNING


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