Ofsted has confirmed that the Construction Industry Training Board's (CITB) National Construction College (NCC) is making "significant progress" towards providing high-quality training for people in the construction industry.

This is welcome news for the industry, which is seen as the driving force behind recent economic growth in the UK and is expecting an increase in demand for skilled construction workers due to the new Labour Government prioritising housebuilding.

Last year, NCC was labelled as "requiring improvement" following an inspection from Ofsted, highlighting six areas for improvement across four themes:

1. Subcontracting and apprenticeship development coaches

2. Marked work and feedback

3. English and mathematic

4. Careers information, advice, and guidance (CIAG).

The recent monitoring visit found that the first three of these themes have seen "significant progress", with the final theme seeing "reasonable progress".

Welcoming the news, Kirsty Evans, Executive Principal of CITB's NCC, said: "The college has embarked on a journey of improvement and development over the past year and this tremendous outcome is testimony to the efforts of the whole team and reflects the extent to which a quality culture has been embedded in our practices. Our focus now is to build on these improvements for the benefit of our learners, our employers and the industry."

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The transformation is already having a positive impact on learners – learner retention rates have increased to over 80%, with qualification achievement rates already significantly above the sector average.

These results are particularly important to support the Government's housebuilding plans – to meet Labour's 1.5 million new homes target, an additional 152,000 workers are required in England alone. Colleges and independent training providers, like NCC, delivering high-quality apprenticeship and skills training will play a vital role in developing the workforce required to deliver the new homes target.

Kirsty continued: "A core focus in our improvement programme has been to revitalise the experience for apprentices and provide them with clearer guidance for career pathways and progression in the construction industry.

"A strong pipeline of apprentices and skilled construction workers is required to build the millions of homes we need. We have ambitious plans to continue growing our apprenticeship and commercial provision to meet demand from employers and to support the construction industry to have the skills it needs to grow and prosper in what is an exciting time for the industry."

Paul Rawsterne, Apprentice Development Engineer at Watling JCB Limited, shared his thoughts on the experience of his company's apprentices at NCC: "Watling JCB are delighted to be working with NCC again – they support our apprentices throughout their programme, going above and beyond to give them the best experience possible.

"Our apprentices form close relationships with expert instructors and feel that learning is personal to them. The wellbeing of our apprentices is very important to us, and at NCC, we know they are in good hands with a dedicated Welfare Team.

"We also value the immersive block training weeks. The structure helps us be involved with the apprentices' development and we have a clear understanding of what is required from us to further their development. Our apprentices return from NCC enthusiastic and ready to implement what they've learnt and to demonstrate their new knowledge and skills.

"The constant investment in facilities, equipment and staff has positively benefited our apprentices and makes us excited for the future."