From August 1, construction bosses can apply for a slice of an £170 million pie for training.
A record £170million in CITB-ConstructionSkills grants are available to make training staff a more affordable option for construction businesses.

In 2007, £138m was paid out to employers to support staff training.

Employers can also claim a CITB-ConstructionSkills grant for adult training courses and courses in sustainability and innovative methods of construction, as well as for traditional construction, health and safety or apprenticeship training.

The CITB-ConstructionSkills grants scheme gives employers access to grant statements online and visits from 'company development advisors' who give guidance on how to plan training for their business and the funding available.

Debbie Saunders, senior training co-ordinator at Tamdown Ltd in Braintree, Essex, said 'Our ConstructionSkills company development advisor handles a lot of the paperwork involved which is really useful. We would not be able to carry out the amount of training we do if it were not for this financial support.

'We claim CITB-ConstructionSkills grant to help fund training, and as a result, we get well-trained highly able staff - and we retain them too, as they are happy that we are investing in their skills and their careers.'

Construction employers can visit www.cskills.org/grant for details of the grants available.