SKILLcard is one of the first Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) partners to launch an Industry Placement Card in time for the new academic year. It supports students aged 16 and above studying for T levels and qualification programmes requiring longer periods of work experience placements. It can also help learners compete successfully for apprenticeships after gaining meaningful experience in the work environment.
It identifies the holder as taking part in an unpaid work placement in the building engineering services industry and allows them access to CSCS-controlled sites along with their employer to gain on-site work experience. The card is designed to support learners transitioning from the classroom to the workplace and mirrors changes to educational policy in the UK, which have led to an increased focus on vocational training.
T Levels currently covered by the new SKILLcard include heating engineering and ventilation, plumbing and heating engineering, refrigeration engineering and air conditioning engineering. It costs £40 and is valid for three years only.
Applicants must be registered onto a further or higher education qualification or training programme that is not categorised as being ‘occupational competence’ and requires a minimum of 30 days’ work placement. They must also have passed the BESA Academy Health, Safety and Environment Operative test or one of the equivalent approved tests offered by the CITB.
The qualification being undertaken should be recognised as providing a pathway into construction and the built environment via an approved apprenticeship, registration onto an approved occupational competence qualification, which is intended to ultimately lead to a job in construction and the built environment.