CPA Bulletin

www.cpa.uk.net CPA Bulletin > May 2020 19 GATEWAY INTOCONSTRUCTION: 2 carried out, but such is the success that some of our trainees who were previously on day release from prison are now Supervisors on major projects such as HS2. If offenders have the opportunity to go to work on a daily basis then return to prison at night, at the point of their final release, they are acclimatised to work and less likely to re-offend. “Our stronghold in the market is re- habilitating both ex-offenders and current offenders, but we specialise in the harder to reach areas such as the long-term unemployed and those not in education. Some of our trainees may have previously had tickets that have expired or have fallen on hard times, for one reason or another. We’re providing people from disadvantaged backgrounds with multiple tickets that will give them a gateway into construction. Every qualification we deliver or ticket we produce is nationally recognised throughout the UK. We deal with all the awarding bodies such as CITB, NOCN and City & Guilds,” he continued. Generally trainees follow a four week (20 day) training programme at the RMF Construction Training Academy in Birmingham and the 22 acre Houndsfield Lane site in Wythall. The RMF Fresh Start programme offers mutual benefits for both trainees and clients seeking trained labour for the projects they are working on. Jobs are advertised on the Fresh Start website and trainees are given guidance and support when making job applications. Dara estimates that 90% of the labour provided through RMF’s labour supply division has come through a RMF Fresh Start initiative. For instance, of the 700 ex- offenders who have been trained by RMF either at the RMF Construction Training Academy or in prison, 220 of the 400 individuals who have gained employment into the construction sector have been employed through RMF Construction Services. RMF now has a total of 18 trainers, including an ex-offender and several trainers who were previously employed by HM Prison Service. The RMF team includes Darryl Jones, who was previously Head of Learning, Skills & Employment for the Prison Service for over 15 years before he joined RMF. Dara added: “We’re massively helping to resolve skills shortages within the industry and helping to try and find the next generation of construction workers. Our overall aim is to create a pathway for people to go straight into employment but also give clients a one-stop shop whereby we can provide individuals who are trained to the highest of standards. Our clients have the assurance that our trainees have competed inductions, they’ve completed drugs and alcohol testing and they have a massive desire to work. Nobody sets foot into the RMF Construction Training Academy until they’ve successfully completed Level 1 Health and Safety under CSCS. We have our own CSCS test centre at our Birmingham office where that’s carried out before they come to the 22 acre Houndsfield Lane site. “When individuals come to the RMF Construction Training Academy, we offer training on a wide range of plant machinery including Rollers, Dumpers, Tracked Dumpers, Articulated Dump Trucks and 360° machines. We also offer CPCS Slinger Training, Traffic Marshalling courses and Groundworks qualifications. There can be six different courses taking place on the site at any one point. “Everybody wants to get on the biggest items of construction plant first but we always evaluate an individual’s previous experience first and we don’t set them up to fail. We look at transferable skills. For example, someone may have previously been a HGV Driver or worked in demolition before they received a prison sentence. For those with no experience we generally start training on a Forward Tipping Dumper or a Ride-on Roller. A lot of people come to the Training Academy who have never worked before. LEFT: An ex-offender (right) employed by J. Murphy & Sons Limited now working on the HS2 project. ABOVE: Pictured left to right at the HS2 site in Curzon Street are Rob Lynch, Director of Lynch Plant Hire, Anna-Maria McAuliffe, Director of McAuliffe Group, Julie Nugent, WMCA Director of Productivity and Skills, Mark Poole and Akiel Treasure, who were both homeless before landing jobs at Lynch Plant Hire, and Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands.