PSRO and CITB Joint Industry Forums

Plant Training and Competency – Ensuring Skills and Safety for the Plant Sector

In order to promote the training and competency for plant occupations, the Plant Sector Representative Organisation (PSRO) and the CITB are to jointly holding a series of interactive forums with employers to openly discuss how proper and effective training supports industry competency requirements for ensuring a safe and efficient sector.

A series of events specifically for CITB registered employers, we want to hear from and openly discuss with them, training and competency requirements in the plant sector, including the benefits and particularly the barriers to attaining a fully-trained and competent workforce. Additional topics will include the Super Sector Competency Framework programme and Apprenticeships development.

A number of event dates have now been identified in early 2025 within the following areas of the UK:

  • Wednesday 22nd January – South (Reading Football Club)
  • Tuesday 28th January – Midlands (Heart of England Conference Centre)
  • Tuesday 11th February – North (Leeds – Headingley)
  • Tuesday 18th February – Scotland (Stirling).

Each forum will commence from 10am until 1pm. A buffet lunch will be provided at the end, providing a chance to network with other attendees.

For employers based in Wales, we will hold a webinar-based forum on Thursday 6th March 2025.

Registration is free and can be made via www.psro.org.uk

Due to limited space in order to ensure full debate, registration will regretfully need to be on a first-come basis and limited to CITB registered employers.

PSRO Dedicated Website

The PSRO-dedicated website can be viewed at https://www.psro.org.uk/

What is the Plant Sector Representative Organisation?

The Plant Sector Representative Organisation (PSRO)* is an employer-led body comprising of representatives from construction-focussed employers and their Federations, Associations and other bodies that have a valid interest including from allied sectors. Note – The term “employer” is used to include those who have significant and direct control over the work activity of a relevant worker [as per HSWA] and the term ‘certification body’ includes card schemes and awarding organisations.

The PSRO supports the planning and actioning for a sufficient supply of plant operatives and associated occupations; that possess a level of competence that optimises risk management and total cost; who are trained and assessed against an agreed PRSO-devised competency framework that is well defined and understood by employers; which has been arrived at in the most efficient and sustainable way.

The principal aim of the PSRO is to act as the Sector Representative Organisation (SRO) for the construction plant sector and advise industry, relevant authoritative bodies including the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) and other relevant parties over the necessary standards required for plant occupational-related training, assessment and certification activities.

Constitution of the PSRO

In fulfilling the role, the PSRO has formed a Board comprising of representatives encompassing major stakeholders as listed below and is hosting both permanent standing and ad-hoc sub-groups to allow meetings of these stakeholders where required through industry initiatives and changes. The PSRO will further consider feedback through various methods from employers, employer representative bodies and other relevant organisations to ensure that industry needs are identified.

The Membership of the PSRO Board will ensure a balanced composition for the representation of both SME and large employers but be limited to major associations or federations representing construction-linked employers directly involved in plant operations including:

  • Build UK,
  • Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA),
  • Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA),
  • Federation Piling Specialists (FPS),
  • Home Builders Federation (HBF),
  • National Federation Demolition Contractors (NFDC)
  • Scottish Plant Owners Association (SPOA).

The scope of activities under the PSRO Board will be confined to;

  • Operation of construction-based plant, equipment and accessories;
  • Lifting Operations within the context of construction;
  • Installation, maintenance, examination and inspection operations;
  • Other relevant hire and supply activities that relate to the safe and efficient use of plant.

The PSRO Board Terms of Reference can be downloaded from the downloads page at https://www.psro.org.uk/

Objectives of the PSRO

The objectives of the PSRO include:

  • Identify employer needs against plant-based operational practices, including any barriers relating to certification, delivery and skills identification;
  • Make recommendations over industry requirements for training, assessment and certification to the CLC Skills Plan and relevant Standard Setting Bodies (SSB);
  • Define, in liaison with standard setting bodies and others, frameworks for competency that relate to plant occupation-based standards and certification, including apprenticeships;
  • Determine the impact on employers of certification body delivery activities against Government and construction industry initiatives, legislative and national requirements;
  • Review and report on certification body and national training and assessment standards against construction industry operational and safety initiatives, legislative requirements, new equipment and changed working methods;
  • Provide industry-agreed competency frameworks to guide the development of certification body standards and delivery methods including apprenticeships;
  • Advise relevant standard setting bodies and funding agencies on grant and payment support strategy policies for plant-related training, assessment and apprenticeship activities;
  • Provide guidance and advice in the event of any compliance issues arising around certification bodies interpretation of PRSO-derived competency frameworks and the practices and standards contained within.

Sub Groups

Permanent-standing Stakeholder sub-groups have been formed to represent the various interests of the construction sector, including a Technical Review Group and a Certification Bodies Group.

The aim of the Technical Review Group is to:

  • devise and maintain a competency framework that encompasses the key principles of the CLC Skills Plan and other competency-based publications;
  • provide direction, guidance and clarity for employers both to the journey-to-competence' and certification requirements;
  • provide a complaince specification for certificating bodies to ensure clarity, transparency and consistency for card schemes bearing the CSCS logo;
  • map applicant schemes seeking CSCS logo approval against the framework and other industry-derived requirements.

The certification bodies sub-group provides a platform and voice to the PSRO Board and encourages schemes to work with employers in a bid to support and enhance the skills landscape.

PSRO Competency Framework

This framework has been devised by the PSRO to be the principal method of ensuring that skills, knowledge and experience which benchmark competency are properly recognised by certificating bodies that operate within the construction sector. It further provides guidance to employers on competency requirements. The primary aim of the framework is to review and map applications from certificating bodies seeking to bear or maintain the CSCS logo so that they are compliant as a minimum with the CLC requirement, along with any additional standards required by the plant sector.

The framework only provides any additional requirements over and above the CLC card schemes in construction publication. The framework was benchmarked against a number of industry-devised and regulatory requirements where plant-based competence forms a key component or subject matter and comprises of four parts:

  • Part A outlines the principles of competency;
  • Part B denotes the principles for certification and details the learning-journey stages and compliance requirements by both employers and certificating bodies;
  • Part C is a specification for compliance by certification bodies;
  • Part D is a guidance specification for employers.

For employers, this framework not only provides them with what card schemes should be complying with but also how they, the employers, should be managing the attainment and maintaining of competence for plant-based occupations and roles.

The PSRO Competency Framework can be downloaded free of charge from the downloads section at www.psro.org.uk

PSRO and SCSS Eco-operations Training Delivery Framework

The PSRO and the Supply Chain Sustainability School’s (SCSS) Plant Group have worked together to develop a new Eco-operations National Training Delivery Framework. The construction plant sector is providing initiatives and solutions for the country’s path to Net Zero, with machine usage identified as a contributor to carbon-based emissions. The long-term aim of the sector is to replace all carbon-emitting equipment with zero or low emission-powered versions, however in the short-term, the aim is to reduce as far as practicable, engine-derived emissions through both minimising engine run time and efficient use of that equipment.

This requires an education programme for both owners, operators and users of such equipment and from which eco-operation courses, either in-house with an employer or through externally certified courses from established awarding organisations, are bringing vital learning for this subject. To ensure industry's approach in meeting its obligations, there is a need for an overarching criteria that promotes consistency and standardisation for eco-operations, therefore the PSRO and the SCSS Plant Group worked collaboratively to develop and launch the new training delivery framework.

It sets out the parameters for consistent delivery and identifies and provides guidance on areas such as core and optional learning outcomes, delivery content and methodologies, assessment strategies and course durations. As the learning content can vary for a number of occupations, the framework further identifies individual course content and delivery factors for Plant Operatives, Supervisors, Plant and Site Managers, Planners, Plant Procurers, Maintenance Personnel, etc.

The aim is that on completion of a course based on this framework, delegates should have attained a required level of understanding on the principles of reducing machine-based carbon emissions, enabling them to recognise and apply learnt reduction techniques, operational processes and emerging machine technologies with a desired outcome that each delegate takes personal ownership of the need to reduce emissions.

The framework is divided into three parts with part 1 outlining the aims and principles of the framework, part 2 identifying the delivery aspects for the relevant occupations and part 3 specifying the learning outcomes and training specification.

The framework can be downloaded free of charge at: www.psro.org.uk