The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has named the organisations selected for its Specialist Upskilling Fund, following a strong response to its call for applications earlier this year. The fund is designed to remove obstacles to training in specialist construction disciplines such as roofing, plant hire and heritage.

Successful partners will help employers access high-quality, cost-effective competence training and support the uptake of sector-specific NVQ achievements.

The funded partners are:

- Civils, infrastructure and highways (England and Wales) – Jones HSEPM Ltd

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- Civils, infrastructure and highways (Scotland) – Scottish Civils Training Group (SCTG)

- Fit out, dry lining and plastering – Finishes and Interiors Sector (FIS)

- Heritage, including stone masonry and oak framing – CraftGate

- Plant hire – Hire Association Europe (HAE)

- RMI and retrofit – Dry Lining and Plastering Training Forum

- Roofing – SIMIAN

- Shopfitting – National Association of Shopfitters (NAS)

- Tunnelling and drilling – TunnelSkills

- Wood occupations – British Woodworking Federation (BWF)

- Other – Contract Flooring Association (CFA)

Each organisation will now begin providing training support and guidance within its sector to help address recognised skills shortages, including in heritage crafts and retrofit.

Julia Stevens, Director of Industry Delivery at CITB, said: "We're pleased to share the successful applicants that have been awarded funding through our Specialist Upskilling Fund.

"We remain committed to providing sector-specific skills investment to ensure that support is available to construction employers to help develop their businesses and train their teams."