As the trade association and training body for the safety netting and temporary safety systems industry, FASET aims to keep right up to date with the latest news from around the construction industry. We are pleased to share the following from the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.
The SHE technician apprenticeship equips young OSH entrants with practical skills and builds professional competence. Nearly four years on from its launch, there has been a significant uptake in the level 3 qualification.
From 7 to 13 February, the Education and Skills Funding Agency hosts the 15th annual National Apprenticeship Week, a high-profile event that underlines the importance of apprenticeships to businesses across England.
Despite the pandemic presenting practical challenges for course providers of the safety, health and environment (SHE) technician apprenticeship, the latest statistics from the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IATE) show there has been more than a 50% increase on the previous year’s intake (see SHE technician apprenticeship uptake, below).
Since opening in April 2018, just over 900 SHE technicians (up to June 2021) have started the two-year, level 3 qualification.
As the second anniversary of Anna Gaughey becoming the first person to complete the IOSH-accredited course approaches, a growing number of young people are choosing this career pathway.
One of the course strengths is that it ticks multiple boxes. To start with, it is attracting a significant number of younger people (aged under-19 to 24), who are looking for a step onto the OSH career ladder. At the other end, it also supports managers who have OSH as part of their responsibilities.
More than 70% of the starters to date are 25 years or older, an indication that many are pursuing OSH as a second career or looking to upskill. People like Aimee Hitchen, office services assistant at Pricecheck, who is 12 months into her apprenticeship and hopes to work in health and safety administration when she completes the course.
‘It has made me realise what direction I want to go in,’ she says. ‘I knew I wanted to work in health and safety and I’d like to go round sites and audit them. I tell myself that if I can be one of those people who can stop accidents and injuries from happening, that is my main reason for doing this.’
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