Explaining CITB Training Grants & Funding

Grants and funding for training in the construction industry

Within the construction industry, employers must give their workers the right training consistently to support on-site safety. It also, clearly, maximises construction projects’ efficiency and productivity.

To that end, the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has a Skills and Training Fund covering the cost of accredited courses meeting certain standards across a range of categories.

If you’re an employer registered with the CITB and not behind on any of your levy payments, you can apply for funding for training once every year.

The levy is something that all employers ‘engaged wholly or mainly in construction industry activities’ pay. and it varies according to your total wage bill for both payroll staff and subcontractors. If this bill is below a certain amount, the levy won’t apply. But it’s otherwise a legal requirement and, in some cases, you may be able to apply for the 50% Small Business Levy Reduction.

Different sizes of organisation are eligible to apply for CITB funding – from those with up to 99 staff members or medium-sized firms with up 100-249 employees.

The amount of money available increases with the number of workers on the payroll and can be anywhere between £5,000 for a company with between 1 and 49 staff and up to £25,000 if you employ between 200 and 249 people.

What can the money be used for?

The list of eligible courses includes:

• Eligible construction-specific training or that which develops management, leadership or supervisory skills
• Confined Space
• CITB Accredited Training
• Electrical Training Courses
• Street Works (NRSWA)
• Site Safety Plus (Including SMSTS)
• NCO
• SHEA Gas
• SHEA Water
• Working at Height
• Mental Health, First Aid & Health and Safety

How do we go about applying?

You’ll need to send your funding application directly to the CITB – it’s not possible to do it through any external training provider. Approval typically takes around a month, and you’ll receive a lump sum upfront.

CITB training grants

Again, the aim is to encourage training related to the construction sector and encourage the highest standards across the industry.

Grants are for day-to-day training, such as short courses lasting from three hours to 29 days, plus qualifications and apprenticeships. For the latter, the grant is worth £2,500 a year for attendance, £3,500 for achievement.

You can also apply for between £300 and £1,500 for employees to gain Level 2 or higher qualifications which can be completed within a year. (For example, NVQs, Diplomas or the NEBOSH National Certificate in Construction Safety and Health.)

There are other grants available for higher-level qualifications from degrees to HNCs and HNDs, which take longer to do.

Finally, the ‘into work’ grant pays £500 when someone completes the work experience part of a further education course with you, and £1,000 once the same person has worked directly for you for three months.

These grants are for CITB-registered, levy-paying employers – and small employers who don’t pay a levy. The Grants Scheme year runs from 1 April to 31 March the following year. Your can apply once your employee has completed their basic qualification or, for apprentices, as soon as their training begins.

And while each grant has slightly different application rules, typically this money will arrive within a month of submitting your application.

Talk to us

Pragmatic Consulting is a training and assessment provider to the construction and utilities industries, offering an extensive range of courses under various training bodies including the CITB.

We can deliver courses wherever and whenever you need them UK-wide, 24/7 if necessary. Working to timescales to suit your needs, we can draw on experience to ensure the best, most effective results.

Get in touch today to learn more.

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