What is ECITB?

The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) is the national body in the UK for training and qualifications in the engineering construction trade, specifically industrial infrastructure work such as power stations, off shore wind farms, water treatment plants and gas storage facilities. The ECITB is the representative, policy influencer and face of the industry, uniting government concerns with that of employers and working to fulfill their needs in terms of workforce competence and fulfilling demand when it comes to developing knowledge and skillset.

What this means for those within the engineering construction industry - or for those aspiring to roles within it - is that there is an active organization that can provide advice and support, and provide a wide range of respected and recognized training programs to cover every job role, and there are even grants available through ECITB for apprenticeships.

A big priority for ECITB at the moment is meeting the shortfall of skilled workers in the trade. The industry is growing as the population of the United Kingdom grows, and demand for energy and resources increase, plus the workforce is gradually aging, with a number of skilled construction engineers retiring each year who need to be replaced. By providing apprenticeships for school leavers, but also increasing existing workers skill set and offering project management training, their aim is to help supply the demand by some 7,5000 people every year.

ECITB provide a whole suite of courses that cover whole career progression into management, but starts with employers' most basic requirements to ensure their entire workforce are qualified and able to carry out day-to-day tasks.

Such courses include the ECITB CCNSG (Client Contractor National Safety Group) which includes the ECITB CCNSG Safety Passport course and ECITB CCNSG Leading A Team Safely course.

Professional training courses allow individuals in the field to develop throughout their working career in accordance with present and future demands, rather than relying solely on initial training before entering the workforce.