CPA Bulletin

www.cpa.uk.net CPA Bulletin > May 2020 39 TRAINING: 2 demolition, rail and small plant and tool sectors. Ed Hudson of Liebherr Great Britain Ltd and Rob Allen of Clee Hill Plant Ltd agreed to act as joint-Chairs. The group originally proposed to develop two standards - a Mechanic role at Level two and Technician role at Level three and made numerous submissions since late 2016 to the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE). However, the IfATE perceived that it overlapped a number of existing trailblazers and although the working group initially considered adopting the land-based version, the content and assessment criteria did not meet the needs of construction employers and could not be altered sufficiently to meet employers’ needs. Since then, the joint-Chairs carried out a great deal of work convincing the IfATE that the Construction Equipment Mechanic and Technician were unique occupations. It was decided that the group would focus on the Mechanic standard at Level 2 over a 24 month period and submitted the proposed standard - the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours (KSBs) - which eventually received approval from the IfATE in July 2019. The group subsequently worked on the assessment plan - how the KSB’s should be assessed for the standard and further - needed to determine the costs of training for funding purposes. In principal, the assessment process comprises of three parts; a number of practical activities which involves the removal, dismantling, inspection, repair and re-assembly of a number of plant-based components; a multi- choice theory test and a professional discussion based on logbook entries made by the apprentice during their time in the workplace. The group further had to devise a grading criterion for which pass and distinctions level thresholds were agreed on. Along with the costs of training supplied by a number of Plant Mechanic Colleges, the assessment plan was submitted in late February 2020. As of early April 2020, the IfATE’s Engineering and Manufacturing Approvals Panel approved the assessment plan, meaning that the final stage of development has been passed. The working group is now preparing the Level 2 apprenticeship for delivery to employers, however the allocated funding band - the maximum amount the employer can spend on the apprenticeship - is considerably less than the submitted training cost quotes. The joint Chairs are appealing against the decision which may delay the launch. Ed Hudson, joint Chair of the working group said: “Both Rob Allen and myself are delighted that we’ve been given final approval by the Institute after many years of hard work by the working group to get the apprenticeship development work completed, suffering continual disappointments and knock-backs over the years. “Both Rob and I would like to thank the working group for their continual support and efforts in what has been a very hard and frustrating journey in getting the Mechanic Trailblazer completed and now we need to start work on getting the Level 3 Technician version approved.” TOWER CRANES UK LIMITED www.towercranesuk.co.uk 2-3 Little Burrow, Welwyn Garden City, AL7 4SP 020 8238 7000 info@towercranesuk.co.uk