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Steeplejack Qualifications
16 December 2009
Churchill Steeplejacks UK Ltd were recently commissioned by a Blue Chip client to confirm the current industry grading and competence of operatives working in the steeplejack & lightning protection sector, the information below was submitted by Churchills to assist our client at selection stage to enable them to achieve a clearer understanding of what is currently available in relation to competency and accreditation within our sector.
The belief and understanding is commonly held that steeplejacks engaged on site will all meet a basic minimum requirements but the likelihood is that the majority will not be accredited via an NVQ, how can we make such a statement? Employing 1 of only 3 NVQ Level 3 Steeplejacks with City & Guilds in the UK and the only one independently employed outside Construction Skills Churchill Steeplejacks are at the forefront of witnessing a massive failing on behalf of Construction Skills in providing and delivering NVQ qualifications to our sector much to the frustration of ATLAS federated members.
Due to a continued lack of inadequate field assessment available to our industry, steeplejack NVQ Level 2 qualification has always been and remains very difficult to obtain and thus the achievement rates throughout our industry is extremely poor. This sorry state of affairs ultimately results in the likelihood that whilst a site team is headed by a CSCS Gold Card foreman (Accreditation B) his site team members (coal face workers) will at best only have a steeplejack CSCS obtained via grandfather rights with no NVQ to support it and at worst a non industry accredited CSCS workers card. (p.n when the CSCS steeplejack card obtained via grandfathers rights expires – a steeplejack card can only then be issued via the completion of an NVQ).
Please copy and past the link below into your browser to fully appreciate just what an NVQ level 2 steeplejack qualification entails and having read through the list of modules an organisation then needs to seriously consider under what circumstances they would then permit anything other than an NVQ Level 2 CSCS steeplejack (or greater)card holder to work on their sites.
http://www.accreditedqualifications.org.uk/job-roles/qualifications/Steeplejack/10057584/CSkills+Awards+Level+2+NVQ+in+Accessing+Operations+
and+Rigging++qualification.seo.aspx
At procurement stage it needs to be better understood that a CSCS card should never be taken at face value it is your assurance of an individual’s achievement and competency to undertake and safely complete a specific task, unfortunately it is our experience that CSCS cards seldom get thoroughly checked and the individuals competency or lack of it is therefore seldom fully appreciated.
CSCS Steeplejack Cards are Red for Trainee / Apprentice, Blue for Steeplejack NVQ Level 2, Gold Advanced Steeplejack (Accreditation B) and NVQ Level 3, the same system applies also for Lightning Protection Engineers.
To summarise;- as an example because the following qualifications are available you should insist on the following;-
Safety Management/Planning;-
NEBOSH in construction
Contract Management:-
NVQ Level 3
SMSTS qualification
3 Man Site Team;-
1no CSCS Gold Card Foreman with SSSTS & CCNSG
2no CSCS NVQ Level 2 Steeplejack with CCNSG
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