In the UK we are in the midst of uncertain times. Are we going to stay in the EU? What impact will it have on the trade industry if we leave the EU? Plus other factors including the slowdown in growth of china’s economy and the falling costs in oil prices due to the increase of oil being produced by the US.

There are many theories suggesting that if the UK leaves the EU, then our construction industry will begin struggling because here in the UK, we rely heavily on people from Eastern Europe to come and work on our construction sites. In fact we mentioned in a past blog post that many sites will not be able to meet their deadlines, or even function without Eastern European people.

However, a recent survey conducted by Construction News, states that over 2016 53 per cent of companies who took part in the survey were planning on actually increasing their work force. The remaining 47 per cent said that they were planning on maintaining their current workforce levels. Surprisingly none of the companies that participated in the survey anticipated a reduction in their current workforce.

The current forecast for the construction industry is that there will be steady growth over the next few years. Our government has clearly stayed committed to building new homes, building new developments, and revamping tired looking city centres, coupled with high levels of domestic demand for tradespeople, the future is certainly looking positive for the tradespeople of the UK.

Because we are experiencing a national skills shortage, people will be recruiting more this year to help fill the gap, whether there UK leaves the EU or not.  So, in our minds, and the minds of all of our students here at access training, there has never been a better time to change your career and train to become a Plumber, Electrician, Bricklayer or a Carpenter.

If you are interested in learning more about our trade courses, feel free to contact us today! 

Pros

Cons

According to recent research conducted by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), companies looking to recruit staff with a high level of trade skills are still coming across the same stumbling block - they are at a distinctly short supply.

The report found that more than three quarters of construction related companies surveyed complained of a trade skills shortage.  They stated that the most difficult candidates to recruit were craft and trade skills workers, with a third of respondents admitting they were ‘difficult’ or ‘very difficult’ to find and hire as they are in such a short supply.

The CIOB’s deputy chief executive, Michael Brown, said: “There is still a skills shortage in the industry... no one knows what is around the corner. It will hit the industry twice as hard when we recover from the downturn as there will be a marked shortage of skills, even though we are currently operating at well below capacity.”

Interestingly, apprenticeships are currently struggling to fill the chasm in the trade skills gap. More than a third of those firms consulted during the survey employ apprentices; however, 44% currently do not do so, with 11% declaring their firm would be cutting back on the amount of people they were putting through trades training due to the testing economic conditions. However, the overall conclusion was that a third of respondents believed craft and skilled trades people were difficult to hire.

One comment made by a contributor elaborated thus: “We do not have problems attracting [apprenticeship] candidates, but unfortunately not everybody applying is of the required standard. Part of the problem is that the careers advice currently on offer seems to portray construction as a one level industry.” It seems that the best quality of candidate is not always attracted into the trades. Indeed, of the firms that do hire apprentices, 30% believed the number of individuals attracted into the industry had decreased.

This is very interesting news for adult learners and those looking into trades training as a career option. The message is loud and clear; there remains a huge skills gap with widespread opportunities available. Employers currently cannot attract the desired quality of individual, and apprenticeships are failing to fill the gap.

Here at Access Training, we teach a comprehensive range of industry recognised trade skills, which will help you secure a more lucrative and rewarding career. Contact Access Training today on 0800 345 7492.

Source: The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) and www.Voltimum.co.uk

There are expected to be in the region of 230,000 disappointed young people missing out on a university place this year, damaging their hopes for a rewarding job, and in their view, affecting their future earning ability.

But is this truly the case? What about the wealth of vocational training options available which can lead to an extremely rewarding and lucrative career?

Vocational courses lead to higher-paying jobs

The median salary for graduates is £23,000*, which compares poorly to the average salary for an electrician in the UK, which currently sits at £31,701*.

Vocational courses cost less than university courses

At time of writing, university fees stand at £3290 per year, rising to £9000 in a year’s time. That’s £27,000 for a three year course (without the inclusion of living expenses).

For that price you could gain dozens of industry-recognised vocational qualifications, including plumbing and electrical awards, as well as becoming Gas Safe qualified and registered, with bags of money remaining to buy your first van and all your tools!

There aren't enough university places to go around

To add to the strain for university places, these potential students are also coming under pressure from competition for places from the EU, with applications for places rising by 8% already this year. It stands to reason that with the much vilified 2012 rise in fees, many more applications are being received per place as an attempt to beat the price hike, but to what end?

The surge in applicants shows a further increase on the quarter of a million that applied for a university position last year, with one in three unable to gain a place.

However, this needn’t be the end of the world; in fact it can be the start of a whole new successful chapter of an individual’s life. Vocational alternatives such as plumbing, electrical and gas courses are readily available. The Government recently announced their intention to set up 40 new university technical colleges (UTCs); however, this news was lost amongst the furore of the tuition fee protests. Such careers are extremely worthy alternatives to a university education, especially given the current skills gap in the country (which has existed for decades).    

Even EAL, the organisation which awards vocational qualifications across sectors including plumbing, electrical and gas, has called for an end to what it rightly describes as snobbery against vocational courses.

Sally Hunt, General Secretary of the University and College Union, has said:

"Our Government seems intent on ignoring the global trend of increasing access to university, which will see thousands of applicants denied the chance to fulfil their potential."

However, Hunt doesn’t acknowledge that an individual’s potential can still be fulfilled through vocational courses.

So if you want to save your money, study for less time, and develop the technical ability and skill to earn many times what a graduate would expect to earn, all without the vast huge amounts of debt, a vocational course may be the way to go. We offer a variety of vocational courses here at Access Training - browse our latest training packages here.

*Sources: www.salarytrack.co.uk and www.mysalary.co.uk

According to recent reports, Australia is suffering from a distinct lack of plumbers. So much so they are looking for skilled plumbers from the UK to travel down under to help them fill this skills gap. But why are there shortages in a trade which is so well paid?

The BBC website has briefly touched upon the subject, but in our eyes may have missed the main point. It quotes Peter Wright, an associate Professor of economics at Nottingham University, who alluded to the shortage of plumbers in the UK being down to to the rapid expansion of higher education opportunities. The government has positively encouraged virtually everyone to undertake a university degree course. This policy enticed individuals away from skilled trades such as plumbing. He added that Australia is in fact in a very similar situation, with not many people becoming a plumber. 

It is now the responsibility of private companies, such as Access Training, to try and fill the void. Our plumbing training courses are producing highly skilled individuals, which countries such as Australia and Canada are attempting to entice with lucrative offers.

How Can You Become a Plumber in Australia or Canada? 

One point the BBC missed is just how difficult it is to become a plumber in Australia. The opportunities to train and be recognised as a qualified plumber are very different from the UK. Various licenses and certificates need to be issued prior to practicing as a plumber, which makes a British plumber extremely attractive as they already hold recognised international qualifications such as a City & Guilds in plumbing or an NVQ2 in plumbing.

There is also the problem of how the plumbing industry is perceived in countries like Australia and Canada. It seems the UK appreciates the fact above all others that plumbing is a well valued and highly respected profession. In Australia and other countries, this is not the case. It is thought that they believe the quality of the work plumbers produce may not be as high as in the UK. Here's an example from a Canadian Forum: 

‘Here in Canada, trades [such as plumbing] are in serious trouble and are seen as un-glamorous amongst career ambitious people. It seems that getting your hands dirty as a tradesperson is un-trendy when the reality is the opposite. I shy away from hiring trades because the chance of getting the job done properly is about 20%. I have expelled tradesmen and refused to pay because of shoddy work and normally end up completing the job myself to be sure it is done properly.

Just watching Holmes on Homes (I am sure it airs in the UK) confirms this problem. I have personally become a very proficient plumber, electrician, carpenter, bricklayer, plasterer, decorator, cook, and bottle-washer as well as being an electronics engineer by trade. There is REALLY good money to be earned out there as a competent tradesperson!'

Here at Access Training, we provide courses which will provide you with your plumbing qualifications in no time at all. These qualifications can then be used to become a plumber in Australia and Canada.

So if you have aspirations to work abroad as a plumber either now or in the future, get in contact with Access Training. Our beginner's training course in domestic plumbing will put you on your way to finding well-paid work in no time at all.

Speaking after her inauguration as the first female President of the ECA (Electrical Contractors Association), Diane Johnson gave a stark warning about the skills shortage in the UK:

We are sitting on a ticking time bomb. If we don't act now, we will not have the home-grown talent needed to fulfil this country's potential. The consequences of that will be more far reaching than most people realise.

All too often the valuable role of our tradespeople is ignored. When we are no longer able to call on a qualified electrician, plumber or joiner, for example, to carry out essential work in our homes and businesses, because they are in such short supply, it will be too late.

I worry about what the landscape will look like in 10 years and who will be teaching our future captains of industry. For too long now the emphasis in the UK has been on University education rather than on-the-job skills training, with the craft route often seen as a lesser option. But I have young graduates knocking on my door with increasing regularity asking for the chance to learn a trade as their degree has proved almost worthless in the job market. This is particularly alarming as the cost of a degree is causing more and more graduates to leave with quite a scary level of debt, before they've even entered the "real" world, and with limited prospects.

What people often forget is that qualified tradespeople will often go on to set up their own businesses and become employers themselves. Without this natural pattern of events taking place the future looks very bleak. Critically, the UK is fast falling behind other countries, such as Germany, which still recognise the need for craftsmen and women and have continued to train much higher numbers of apprentices. This will affect our young people's long term chances of employment as foreign companies undertaking contracts in the UK will be forced to bring in their own skilled labour because we will not have the skilled labour to compete for those jobs. Our industry is still climbing out of a very tough recession and we recognize the Government has to take tough measures to help aid the Nation's recovery.

However, we must not lose sight of the fact that we still need to train people to carry out these essential skills in years to come. If we don't value our trades and the Government doesn't properly incentivise employers to take on apprentices, it's only a matter of time before the bomb will explode.