Building standards verification service - workforce strategy: closure report

4.0 Embedding the Changes

4.1 Moving forward

The end of the strategy delivery phase does not mean work to support the profession comes to an end. Activities to embed the changes introduced by the strategy will continue. BSD, LABSS and the Building Standards Hub are taking responsibility for leading tasks that ensure the benefits achieved through the strategy are realised in the future.

It is essential that collective efforts by everyone involved in the strategy remain focused on developing the competence of the workforce, ensuring the profession remains an attractive and rewarding place to work, and verifiers continue to provide a resilient, first-class service. The strategy was the starting point for this work over the last three years and has provided a strong foundation to continue to build upon.

4.2 Continuing activities

At a national level

BSD has an ongoing responsibility to work with LABSS and the Building Standards Hub to ensure the changes delivered through the strategy improve continuously. The annual workforce data collection will continue to monitor the levels of demand for, and supply of, individuals in specific job roles, and be used to track the qualifications held and being studied, the number of apprentices recruited and how many leave the profession. The focus on building competency of the workforce remains a priority, and will continue under the remit of a new competency steering group in 2024.

The online learning platform will be hosted by LABSS with strategic management delivered in partnership with the Building Standards Hub. A Learning and Development Manager will be appointed into the Building Standards Hub to develop a strategic approach to training and provide oversight of the Ambassadors’ Network.

At a local level

It is essential that verifiers continue to use the CAS to assess where individuals have skill gaps and use this information to find appropriate training opportunities. The “grow your own” approach to talent development has been boosted by the introduction of Graduate Apprentices and Modern Apprentices over recent years. Managers should support the professional development of individuals to help them reach their full potential and continue to make the case for recruiting apprentices as an investment in the future of the profession. Building a talent pipeline to support succession planning remains essential for the future of the verification service.

4.3 Next steps

A new Competency Steering Group will be established to develop an approach to independent validation and revalidation of competence for individuals in the building standards profession. This will align with the competency requirements for all professions introduced by the Building Safety Act 2022 in England and Wales. Work will begin in early 2024 with the aim of introducing an assessment scheme by 2026.

Work will also be taken forward to embed the outcomes delivered to fully realise the benefits from the Workforce Strategy. Future work will be led in partnership between BSD, LABSS and the Building Standards Hub.

The main activities that will follow are set out in the table below.

Action

Annual workforce data collection

Monitor levels of demand for, and supply of, people in specific job roles. Track qualifications held and being studied, the number of apprentices recruited and how many people leave the profession.

Lead

BSD

Action

Professional Competency Framework for Verifiers (PCF)

Review of the PCF to ensure it remains fit for purpose and representative of the profession.

Lead

BSD

Action

Competency Assessment System (CAS)

Continued use of the CAS to assess where individuals have skill gaps and use this information to find appropriate training opportunities.

Development of a strategic long-term approach to learning and development based on the skill gaps identified through the CAS process.

Development and implementation of a digital CAS to introduce a more flexible and intuitive system which will replace the current process.

Lead

Verifiers

Building Standards Hub

LABSS

Action

Online learning platform

Implementation and management of the virtual learning environment and learning management system.

Lead

LABSS and Building Standards Hub

Action

Building Standards Ambassadors’ Network

Delivery and oversight of the Building Standards Ambassadors’ Network.

Lead

LABSS and Building Standards Hub

Action

Apprenticeships

Verifiers to build a talent pipeline through continued use of modern and graduate apprenticeships that supports succession planning including recruitment into cohort 3 of the modern apprenticeship.

Lead

Verifiers with coordination by Building Standards Hub

Action

Accredited training and continued professional development

Support the development of a wider range of accredited training courses appropriate to the building standards profession.

Work with construction industry professional institutions to expand the range of continuing professional development opportunities.

Lead

Building Standards Hub

Closing Statement from Local Authority Building Standards Scotland

Local Authority Building Standards Scotland (LABSS) role is to work continually on improving the building standards profession to ensure we all have safe, efficient and accessible places to live, work and socialise in.

LABSS recognised that the inception of the Workforce Strategy in October 2020 marked a particularly significant milestone in a review of the profession, containing as it did forty-three actions across five core projects with the aim of creating a first-class and sustainable verification service for the future.

We are delighted that the strategy actions have been achieved despite the challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic which affected all building standards verifiers and the construction industry. Key to this achievement was the collaborative approach to delivery in partnership with BSD and the many industry partners and individuals we worked with over the last three years. LABSS led the development of the Competency Assessment System to support competency development across the profession, worked with academic partners to deliver building standards learning as part of degree courses and we are currently developing an online training environment to benefit all staff working in the profession. We will continue working with our partners as we move forward to fully implement all of the positive changes delivered through the workforce strategy.

Our approach to delivery was dynamic in terms of maintaining a focus on the future of the building standards profession. There were many emerging issues that were subsumed into the delivery phase and successfully embedded into the outcomes. Through our collective approach, there is now a better understanding and a positive direction of travel towards addressing future challenges to further strengthen the building standards system in Scotland, which is held in high regard by our European and International peers.

Moving onto the next phase, LABSS, alongside local authorities, the Building Standards Hub and BSD, will seek to maximise the outcomes of the strategy and ensure we continue to have a truly world-class building standards service in Scotland.

Local Authority Building Standards Scotland

December 2023