Page 125 – FIS

Deadline approaching to claim £3000 for hiring an apprentice

by Clair Mooney | 12 Nov, 2021 | Skills

Employers who hired an apprentice between 1 April and 30 September 2021 could be eligible for an incentive payment of £3,000 for each new apprentice. Employers need to apply before midnight on 30 November 2021 to claim the incentive. To receive the payment, employers must submit an application for each eligible apprentice using their apprenticeship service account.

Apprentices must have an employment start date from 1 April to 30 September 2021. They must also have an apprenticeship start date from 1 April to 30 November 2021. The Education and Skills Funding Agency how to video provides a step-by-step guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUg0AVLLAHQ

Employers are not able to apply for apprentices they have hired from 1 October 2021 to 31 January 2022 until applications open on 11 January 2022. These apprentices must also have an apprenticeship start date from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022. Review the guidance to find out more.

FIS Skills and Funding Clinics

Take advantage of one-to-one Skills Funding Clinics to review funding claims and ensure you get back the money you are entitled and find out more about discounts and specialist training available to FIS Members.

Find out more

Consultation on Building Standards compliance and enforcement

by Clair Mooney | 12 Nov, 2021 | Building Safety Act, Technical

Building Standards Division (BSD), is developing a national Compliance Plan approach to provide greater assurance that compliance with building regulations is achieved from design to completion.

This consultation seeks to obtain the views on the development of a new Compliance Plan Manager role within the building standards system which will apply to specific High Risk Building (HRB) types, the definition of these HRBs and the level of fines where work is not carried out in accordance with the regulations.

This consultation forms part of the work undertaken by the Compliance Plan Working Group, which is one of seven work streams, being directed by the Building Standards Futures Board. The consultation will gather opinions from stakeholders on a review of the building standards system relating to the way in which compliance with the building regulations is assured and enforced to help ensure the health, safety and welfare of people in and around Scotland’s buildings and to further the conservation of fuel and power and further the achievement of sustainable development.

The consultation covers four main areas, as follows:

- Creation of a new Compliance Plan Manager (CPM) oversight role on High Risk Building types on behalf of the Relevant Person (normally the owner or developer);
- The definition of High Risk Buildings requiring a CPM;
- Fines and penalties; and
- Impact assessments.

The proposed changes outlined in the consultation aim to:

Require applicants (building owners and developers) to evidence and document how compliance with the building regulations has been approached from a ‘pre-application meeting’ (initial) stage through to completion of the building project. The intention is to strengthen compliance across all building types with the new Compliance Plan approach and also to introduce a requirement for independent professional oversight – a Compliance Plan Manager – on high risk buildings to manage the compliance process from start to finish. Initial considerations have concentrated on application to High Risk Buildings (high rise residential, high public value – schools, healthcare facilities) and also housing sites. But this may be extended, in the future, to apply to a wider range of buildings types if there is evidence to support this. The consultation also seeks views on the definition of buildings classed as ‘High Risk Building Types’ (HRBs).

You can read the consultation paper here.

Members are encouraged to read the consultation and feed back their comments to FIS Technical Director Joe Cilia via email joecilia@thefis.org

A Focus on Construction at COP26

by Iain McIlwee | 12 Nov, 2021 | Main News Feed

At COP26 the Construction Leadership Council hosted a dedicated session at the COP 26 conference looking at the role of construction, current focus and positive examples and how our supply chain needs to evolve.

The event kicked off showcasing a feature developed with ITN Productions. This was followed by a number of focussed sessions, bringing forward representatives from across the supply chain.

The session was co-chaired by Andy Mitchell (Construction Leadership Council co-chair) and Sarah Linnell (an inspiring young industry professional from Cundall) and feature a range of Construct Zero Partners and Business Champions.

It really is a must watch session for all in the sector who wants to maximise your impact in reaching Net Zero. Familiar faces to those in the finishes and interiors sector include Mike Chaldecott, CEO of Saint Gobain who talked about decarbonisation of the construction products manufacturing sector, including the plasterboard and their work to produce their first net zero plasterboard plant by 2023.

Favourite fact – a design decision on an aluminium frame commercial building to switch to Aluminium clad timber windows is equivalent in impact terms to 900 years worth of a plant based diet.

FIS Members wishing to update or develop your own carbon reduction plan can visit the FIS Sustainability Hub for resources and ideas or contact FIS Sustainability Champion, Flavie Lowres to discuss ideas and options.

CLC and ITN Launch Co-production ‘Building a Greener Britain’

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Sustainability

The construction industry is playing its part in transforming its working practices and leadership models to contribute to the global ambition for a net zero future. The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) has partnered with ITN Productions Industry News to produce ‘Building a Greener Britain’, a programme exploring some of the new pathways and sustainable methods the sector is adopting, alongside initiatives such as the Construct Zero programme, CLC’s response to the climate emergency.

Anchored by presenter Clare Nasir, Building A Greener Britain, features experts from within the construction industry along with informative interviews, news items and sponsored editorial profiles, filmed in the ITN Productions Industry News London studio and remotely on location. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders, joins Clare Nasir to represent the CLC Steering Coordination Group and discuss how the sector is meeting the challenge.

The feature focusses in on some of the Business Champions who are demonstrating the sector’s commitment towards reducing carbon emissions. These include

Construction company and property consultancy, Rider Levett Bucknall, is making sustainability an integral part of the conversation at the outset of projects to help achieve greener results.

At the University Hospitals of Leicester, NHS Trust, where the company is reconfiguring the estate with new construction alongside repurposing existing buildings, Andrew Reynolds, Chief Executive of Rider Levett Bucknall, talks about the role of the CLC in meeting sustainable development goals.

The Active Building Centre in Gloucester, created as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Transforming Construction Challenge, which is demonstrating how future builds can be both labour and energy efficient.

A familiar face to many in the finishes and interiors sector Mike Chaldecott, CEO, Saint-Gobain, UK & Ireland, outlines the company’s long-term sustainability strategy.The programme goes to the plant in Yorkshire where Saint-Gobain has invested £30m to produce glass using less energy with higher levels of recycling and more innovation.

Find out more about Construct Zero here

To help start or continue your net zero journey, visit the FIS Sustainabilty Hub here.

Measuring your carbon footprint in the finishes and interiors sector

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Sustainability

FIS and the Supply Chain Sustainability School are collaborating to help deliver Net Zero in the finishes and interiors sector through a new virtual training portal hosted on the Supply Chain Sustainability School website.

This sustainability training hub is another output of the FIS Sustainability Working Group, which has been established within the FIS community to support a focus on individual change, collective focus and supply chain engagement. The working group has five core objectives:

Increasing knowledge and understanding within the supply chain
Setting targets and standardisation (including monitoring and measuring impact)
Providing an active network and encouraging collaboration
Highlighting individuals and approaches that help inspire and inform change
Informing design and encouraging better asset management

At our COP26 webinar this week, FIS Sustainability Champion Flavie Lowres introduced how the tool can be used to support training on Net Zero and wider sustainability matters in our businesses and the School’s tool for measuring the carbon impact of your business available via the Supply Chain Sustainability School’s Finishes and Interiors hub here.

You can listen again to the webinar here.

FIS Sustainability Hub

FIS is committed to taking a pro-active lead, not just in supporting the UK ambition to net zero carbon by 2050, but delivering profound transformation within our supply chain on all aspects of ethical and environmental sustainability. We have created this hub to bring together resources and information that will support your journey to net zero.

Find out more

Consultation on Plastic Packaging Tax (General) Regulations 2021

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Sustainability, Technical

The Plastics Packaging Tax is due for introduction on 1 April 2022 and HMRC is looking for businesses’ views on the technical application of the regulation. The consultation closes on 1 December 2021 and details are available here.

The Primary legislation establishing the tax was included as part of the Finance Act 2021. The aim is to provide economic incentives for businesses to use recycled plastic in the manufacture of plastic packaging which will stimulate increased levels of recycling of plastic waste. This instrument sets out the detailed administrative requirements for the tax. It establishes when a plastic packaging compound is finished for the purposes of the tax and when it becomes chargeable to tax. It also details the evidence that businesses will need to keep, how to weigh packaging and determine the recycled plastic content as well as setting out the obligations with reference to the administration of the tax including registration and returns.

To view the new information visit https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/technical-consultation-on-plastic-packaging-tax-general-regulations-2021

Changes to reservations for apprenticeship funding

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Skills

From 1 November 2021, the reservation period for employers who do not pay the Apprenticeship Levy will be reduced from six months to three months. While the Education and Skills Funding Agency had previously extended the reservation window to six months, they found that very few employers needed to reserve funds more than three months ahead.

Employers can still plan ahead when recruiting apprentices. Employers can reserve funding three months before an apprentice’s expected start date and have a further two months after the planned reservation month to start their apprentice. As is the case now, if no commitment is made on the apprenticeship service by then, the reservation will expire.

Any reservations made before 1 November 2021 will not be affected. For more details including a six minute video please see: How to reserve apprenticeship funding

Leaseholder loan scheme paused

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Building Safety Act

Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, attended his first meeting of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee this week, where he confirmed that the development of the leaseholder loan scheme to fund remediation work on buildings outside the scope of the Building Safety Fund has been ‘paused’. The Government is now considering alternative ways to fund cladding remediation work that do not pose an ‘excessive burden’ on leaseholders, although the scheme will not be cancelled outright until an alternative has been identified.

Gove also confirmed that, following the Written Ministerial Statement which clarified that EWS1 forms should not be required on buildings below 18 metres, the Government will remove the consolidated advice note before Christmas.

Government Mandates Carbon Reduction Plans

by Clair Mooney | 11 Nov, 2021 | Sustainability

Contractors bidding for central Government contracts worth more than £5 million a year are now required to provide a Carbon Reduction Plan. Plans must be updated at least once a year and meet the standard set out in Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 06/21, which includes a template for contractors to use.

The CLC CO₂nstruct Zero programme is bringing the construction supply chain together to drive carbon out of the sector. Businesses across the industry are being encouraged to align their own commitments to one or more of the nine priorities and sign up as a ‘Business Champion’.

Businesses that wish to can make a formal commitment to reaching net zero by signing up to the Carbon Reduction Code for the Built Environment. Signatories to the code commit to meeting net zero by 2045, with an interim target to reduce net direct and indirect carbon emissions by 2030, and to publishing annual reports on progress towards their goal.

FIS Members wishing to update or develop a Carbon Reduction Plan can visit the FIS Sustainability Hub for resources and ideas or contact FIS Sustainability Champion, Flavie Lowres to discuss ideas and options.