Members of the scaffolding trade body the NASC have received more than £50,000 from the NASC’s four training funds during 2020, it has been revealed.
It’s been announced that NASC full members collectively claimed £25,500 in Continual Professional Development (CPD) funding – paying for 204 experienced operatives to complete the two-day refresher course – and £16,500 in CISRS Operatives Training Scheme (COTS) payments – bringing 132 new recruits into the scaffolding industry.
Their members also made 58 applications to receive funding through the NASC’s Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training fund, receiving £7,250 in total.
There were also three £1,000 claims made to the NASC’s Armed Forces training fund, dedicated to the training and upskilling of ex-services personnel.
The figures were announced at the NASC’s annual general meeting that took place online in November 2020.
Robin James, NASC Managing Director, said: “The NASC is passionate about safety, training and recruitment and committed to helping its members succeed in these areas.
“The established CPD and COTS funding pots, through which members can claim payments of £125 for employees at the start of their scaffolding industry career and those renewing their CISRS Scaffolder or Advanced Scaffolder cards, remain extremely popular among members.
“We are delighted to see that members continue to take advantage of the MHFA training fund, making more than a claim per week during 2020 collectively. Mental health and wellbeing is a huge issue in the construction industry, evidenced by the fact that every working day, two construction workers take their own life.
“This fund aims to help break down the stigma surrounding mental health and promote the importance of focusing on employee wellbeing in the workplace, giving members a payment of up to £125 to pay for mental health first aid training.
“The Armed Forces fund, through which NASC members can claim up to £1,000 towards the training of an ex-forces employee or employees, has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. We’re sure that once normality returns, they will make as much use of this fund as they have the other three.”