CPA Bulletin

www.cpa.uk.net CPA Bulletin > May 2020 7 FROM THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE FROM THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE I sincerely hope that you, your families and your colleagues are all safe and well. No organisation is in a ‘business as usual’ position right now, but I assure you that the CPA team is fully available and on hand to support you. You can get in touch with your usual contact (see page 16) or email us at enquiries@cpa.uk.net There is a lot of information about business under coronavirus available from a range of sources, and we are therefore trying to provide simple and direct routes for you to find what you need. We have set up a dedicated CPA web page which provides government information for businesses and employers. This can be found on the CPA website at www.cpa.uk.net/cpalinkscoronaviruslatest/ We have also started holding regular on-line Members’ briefing meetings, using Zoom. These have been successful and well received, with over 60 Members joining in. Please watch out for emails which give you details of date and ‘location’. Stars of the Future and NewApprenticeships We have had to adapt many of our plans for this year, including those for our annual Stars of the Future apprentice awards event. We fully appreciate that it is crucial to maintain the recognition of outstanding apprentices in these challenging times, including as a mark of the support and dedication that their employers have given to each of the nominees. Although we are unable to hold the one day awards ceremony, we are working on devising a suitable alternative means of announcing and awarding trophies and prizes to the various winners. You can read more about this on page 13. In April, some great news came through from the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education: in essence, the new Plant Operative and Construction Equipment Mechanic ‘Trailblazer’ Apprenticeships were finally approved. My thanks go to the group chairs, Members who supported the working groups, and the CPA team, who all persevered even after many rule changes and setbacks. You can read about this on page 38. TimWatson In early April, we heard the sad news that our friend and colleague TimWatson had died on Friday 3 April. Tim - who has been CPA’s Technical Consultant for many years - had been undergoing treatment for cancer. Tim’s contribution to the safety of construction plant is almost immeasurable. For over 20 years he worked closely with CPA and the Special Interest Groups, and his clear thinking and professionalism has led to many major improvements in engineering and good practice, which will continue to benefit us for many years. Our thoughts are with Tim’s wife Judy and their family. Please turn to page 8 for an appreciation of Tim’s life and work.