Health And Safety Within A Construction Environment

Last week saw Worcestershire-based training provider, InterLearn, launch their first classroom delivery since lockdown measures were enforced in March, benefitting local residents who find themselves out of work as a result of Covid19, by providing much-needed construction skills.

Delivering a fully funded, 10-day accredited award in Health and Safety within a Construction Environment, the programme has been greeted with open arms by unemployed people in the Worcestershire area. The course couldn’t be timelier, as the latest statistics for the region show massive increases in claimant counts, but particularly among young people aged 18 to 24. Overall the claimant count for both young people and adults is up, to 3,810, a rise of 1,389 over last year, or 174 per cent.

InterLearn’s fully funded training programme, being delivered at the HR Employment Bureau in Redditch, is designed to support anyone aged 16 and over who is currently unemployed and claiming benefits. It is a contract secured through ESF Funding and is officially known as ‘Skills Support for the Unemployed.’ After successfully completing 10 days on the course and the following test, the result is a Construction Skills Certificate Scheme (CSCS) green card, essential for anyone wanting to work on a construction site.

As we see a rise in local unemployment figures, but also a demand for construction workers in the local area, this course offers the opportunity to upskill the unemployed in the hope it betters their chance of securing employment. The programme covers the fundamentals of health and safety risk assessment on a construction site, on-site working practices, equipment safety and safe manual handling. It is a great route for anyone looking to get into construction as well as for those who have previously worked in the industry and need to refresh their knowledge.

Speaking of the training, InterLearn’s programme lead, Donna Frost said, ‘It has been great to see people back in the classroom giving them the opportunity to learn new skills and consider the possibility of a new career. We are working with recruitment agencies with connections in the construction sector to try and get them in the workplace once the course is complete, which again, is a great thing to witness.’

If you or anyone you know would benefit from the Level 1 Health and Safety within a Construction Environment and would like to know more about it visit https://www.interlearn.co.uk/switch-on-award-health-safety-construction-environment/ or ring 01527 407140.