Small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) within the construction industry have been advised to improve their green skills so as not to miss out on business opportunities that may arise from the low carbon economy.

The training board and sector skills council CITB Construction Skills says that ‘urgent steps’ are needed in order to improve green skills within the industry.

The Government’s energy efficiency policy, the Green Deal, is due to be launched in October and will see billions of pounds lent every year to businesses and homeowners who wish to undertake energy efficient improvements such as cavity wall insulation, draught proofing, insulation and lagging. Companies wishing to be involved in the assessment and installation of energy efficient measures will have to prove that their staff have been suitably trained.

A lack of green skills within construction sector SMEs has been identified as a barrier to the success of the Green Deal scheme. CITB Construction Skills has formed the Green Deal Skills Alliance (GDSA) which was awarded £3m by the Government last month for delivery of Green Deal training.

For more information about training, please see –

http://www.assetskills.org/GreenSkills/GreenDealSkillsAlliance.aspx

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