The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has named the organisations that will deliver its new Specialist Upskilling Fund, designed to tackle training barriers and skills shortages across some of construction’s specialist occupations.
The successful applicants will work with employers over the next 12 months to identify skills needs, improve access to specialist training and support workers to achieve sector-specific NVQs.
The programme is expected to enable access to up to 600 additional specialist NVQs across the supported sectors.
The successful organisations are:
- Civils, infrastructure and highways – England and Wales: Jones HSEPM
- Civils, infrastructure and highways – Scotland: Scottish Civils Training Group
- Fit-out, drylining and plastering: Finishes and Interiors Sector (FIS)
- Heritage, including stone masonry and oak framing: CraftGate
- Plant hire: Hire Association Europe (HAE)
- RMI and retrofit: Dry Lining and Plastering Training Forum
- Roofing: SIMIAN
- Shopfitting: National Association of Shopfitters (NAS)
- Tunnelling and drilling: TunnelSkills
- Wood occupations: British Woodworking Federation (BWF)
- Other: Contract Flooring Association (CFA)
CITB said the fund was created in response to skills challenges in specialist sectors where limited training provision, smaller workforce numbers or the cost and availability of provision can make it difficult for employers to upskill their staff.
Appropriate training providers
The successful organisations will carry out training needs analysis with employers and help them identify appropriate training providers and funding routes. They will also support employers to access specialist NVQs and produce an annual skills report for their sector.
The fund is worth up to £35,000 for each specialist sector, covering the cost of delivering the programme and supporting employers rather than paying directly for the training itself. CITB expects the projects to run from July 2026 to June 2027.
The initiative forms part of CITB’s wider focus on competence and workforce development, with the organisation identifying specialist skills shortages as an area requiring targeted intervention.
Among the areas covered are heritage construction, where CITB has separately identified challenges around maintaining traditional skills, and retrofit, as demand for repair, maintenance and improvement work grows.
Julia Stevens, CITB’s director of industry delivery, said: “We’re pleased to share the successful applicants that have been awarded funding through our Specialist Upskilling Fund.
“We remain committed to providing sector-specific skills investment to ensure that support is available to construction employers to help develop their businesses and train their teams.”
CITB said employers in the relevant sectors will be able to access support from the successful organisations as the programmes get underway.
