CITB Consults on Plans to Formally Recognise On-the-Job Construction Skills

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has launched a consultation on plans to formally recognise on-the-job construction skills, proposing a change to how the current skills system operates.

The organisation is asking for industry feedback on new plans to reform the skills system, which would create clearer and more flexible routes for people to enter construction.

Proposed Plans

New building methods, advancing technology and the greater focus on competence due to the Building Safety Act are reshaping the skills the construction industry needs and how they are demonstrated.

CITB says it is exploring how the competence system can better reflect the skills workers already have, in turn benefitting new entrants, career changers and experienced workers alike, helping the industry attract and keep talent.

Under the proposed new system, skilled individuals could gain recognition for their competence in individual tasks or functions they do at work without having to undertake a whole new qualification. “We call this functional competence,” explains CITB. “It recognises what someone can do within a defined area of work. For example, installing solar panels within roofing.”

The organisation says the new system is designed to reflect the step-by-step nature of learning, where someone may learn how to do a specific task before, after, or without achieving a full qualification. It explains functional competence would not replace existing competence routes, such as NVQs and apprenticeships. Instead, it would work alongside them as another route to competence in specific activities.

Like existing routes, these will be subject to industry-approved and independently reviewed standards.

Consultation Open

The consultation period opens on 12 October 2026 and will close on 15 January 2027. Employers, training providers, awarding bodies, card schemes and others are invited to offer feedback on the proposed system and its feasibility. Take part in the industry consultation here.

Following the consultation, CITB will present recommendations to a suitable industry leadership forum for approval. Pending a final decision to proceed, CITB will begin work to identify Functional Competence requirements per occupation via the Competence Framework Working Groups from April 2027.

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