Celebrating SPV Construction Trainees Apprenticeship Progression

SPV GROUP IS CELEBRATING after its first cohort of trainees completed its newly-established Construction level one course, with all set to progress to employment or an apprenticeship.

The company launched its own training facility in July in conjunction with Juniper Training, with students gaining a CSCS Card, Level 1 Introduction to Construction, Manual Handling and Asbestos Awareness qualifications.

If required, students are able to study for GCSE retakes and English and Maths Functional Skills qualifications to develop their wider skills.

The Construction course, which is backed by the Midlands Roof Training Group, was completed by 14 of the 18 starters, with students gaining an insight into cladding and different aspects of roofing, as well as other construction roles.

Commercial Director at SPV Group Kate Whatley said: “All of our trainees are going to progress in the industry as they really enjoy it, our tutors have done a really good job in engaging and enthusing them.

“The practical tutors are all SPV Group employees. They’ve been training on-site for years, but not formally, so they’ve now got training qualifications of their own.

“They’ve seen the trainees’ progression in the past 24 weeks, and are all really proud of how far the students have come.

“They love it as they’re passing on their skills and knowledge, like they were doing on-site but now more formally. That model is working really well – it’s not a random assessor, but professionals, still working on-site so their knowledge is second to none.”

Progression into the industry

A second cohort are set to start their training at SPV this month, with a number already recruited for the third intake in August.

There have been very few changes to the material for the second intake, which Kate believes is an endorsement of the course as a whole.

And its real proof of success is that the first intake are now about to start apprenticeships, employment and work experience placements to gain further roofing skills.

Kate continued, “A lot of the students that started with us had no background in roofing. For a lot of people in the industry at the moment it’s someone in the family or someone in the pub that says there’s a job up in roofing. But for these students, there’s an opportunity to come into an industry that can often be a little bit closed.

“For a lot of them, it’s been the first time in their life someone’s said, ‘you’re good at this’, and it’s really given them a boost.

“They achieved all their manual handling, asbestos awareness, working at height and fire safety qualifications in the first few weeks before they started the practical element, and they were really pleased to get their certificates. I do feel proud of them!

“We’ve been collaborating with local employers who have skills gaps, holding an Interview Day here last week. Seven employers came, and the students could show them their portfolios and what they’ve been doing.

“Some of the employers expressed an interest in certain individuals, so next week a lot will be happening to arrange work experience with potential employers.”