B101/102 - Training and Development Plan
While training individuals in your workplace is essential, it's important to bear in mind how you can improve your business as a whole. We can help you develop and deliver a Training and Development Plan and guide you towards Investors in People (IiP) achievement.
Putting a Training and Development Plan in place allows you to claim grants for construction related training or training in other subjects of use to your business, such as computer skills, administration and sustainability. A Training and Development Plan helps you to map out your needs for the year ahead.
Choose a link below for more information about grants available to support Training and Development Plans:
What is a Training and Development Plan?
What is the status of trainees supported?
What else might I be able to claim?
What is a Training and Development Plan?
Training and Development Plans are designed to encourage employers to adopt and implement a structured approach to training and development by evaluating all the activities undertaken by a company. Plans should conform to the Principles of Sound Training.
Your Plan should be based on your entire business training and development needs and can therefore include:
- training for all staff, not just construction staff
- training in all subjects, not just construction-related subjects
- training with a minimum of 30 minutes duration.
Some areas of training and development are not funded. These include, but are not limited to:
- training that is specifically supported by grants prefixed with an A, as these are claimed under different areas of the Grants Scheme
- time spent on non-training activities, such as course registration, induction, domestic arrangements, all break times, external assessments and examinations
- full-time courses held at public educational establishments.
Training and Development Plan grant is available if:
- you have completed a 2008 Levy Return
- the plan has been submitted to us and is approved during the CITB-ConstructionSkills Grants Scheme year
- the training and development meets the definition of training within this grant
- your Plan must show that some training will take place.
There are two grants which can be claimed:
- a grant for producing the Training and Development Plan (grant B101) of £500 minimum
- a grant for each day's training (grant B102) of £27.50 per day.
Training and Development Plans are not compulsory. You can claim Training and Development Plan grants in addition to grants pre-fixed with an A; but you cannot claim for Short Duration off-the-job training (B201/202) at the same time as your Plan is in force.
If you have any questions please contact your local ConstructionSkills office to arrange for a Company Development Advisor (CDA) to visit you and talk through the Training and Development Plan route.
What training is supported?
Attendance on any plant training irrespective of the previous experience of the plant operator.
Construction training that is not grant aided elsewhere in the CITB-ConstructionSkills Grants Scheme.
Environmental and sustainability training.
Evening courses including Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) evening courses. CIOB modules attended by day-release, or by half-day and evening courses are supported by grant A27.
Necessary and appropriate off-the-job training for registered apprentices that is not included in the individual's apprenticeship framework, where the cost of the training is met by the employer (e.g. first aid, confined spaces training). This is not available to Programme Led Apprentices (PLAs).
NVQ/SVQ evening-only courses in non-construction related subjects. Grant is only available for construction-related NVQ/SVQs on a day release or block release basis through grants A01 to A07 and A08.
Off-the-job training in a non-construction-related subject, which does not lead to an NVQ/SVQ.
5 day New Roads and Street Works Act (NRSWA) training courses which are predominantly assessment based will be paid at a rate of 3.5 days per delegate. Where the course is a different duration, the assessment element will not be grant aided and grant eligibility will be calculated on an individual basis.
Off-the-job additional training to assist in achieving a qualification, where achievement grant is claimed through On-Site Assessment and Training (OSAT).
IT courses.
Management courses.
Administration courses.
Supervisory management courses.
Short training sessions covering health and safety, environmental and technical subjects, lasting at least 30 minutes, delivered by a supervisor or suitably qualified member of staff (for example Health and Safety Officer) and prepared in advance. This may include Toolbox Talks.
Training that is company specific.
'In house' short development courses e.g. one hour IT update training.
Training where the main content relates to the procedures and organisation of a particular firm.
Distance learning and e-learning courses when taken during normal work time.
Training that takes place as part of a meeting, which must be shown on the meeting agenda and recorded in the minutes.
Training under the Construction Industry Scaffolding Record Scheme (CISRS), which is run by accredited training providers including ConstructionSkills/NASC approved off-the-job training courses by the basic or advanced route.
Specialist new entrant training programmes. Specific specialist training courses for new entrants are supported by grant through the Training and Development Plan. For further information please contact the National Specialist Manager (NSM) through your local ConstructionSkills office. You must obtain approval in writing from the NSM for the inclusion of such training in your Training and Development Plan before submission.
A second degree taken on a day-release or part-time day-release basis in a construction-related subject, where the individual's first degree is also in a construction-related subject. Foundation, first degrees and second degrees, where an individual's first degree is in a non-construction-related subject are supported through grants A09 and A25.
Attendance on IOSH and NEBOSH courses may be claimed through the Training and Development Plan route as an alternative to grant A09 if required.
What training is not supported by this grant?
All training that is supported by a grant prefixed with an A.
Apprentice training as this training is supported by grant A02, A03 and A05.
- no other training can be claimed for an apprentice being funded through apprentice grants, except for additional off-the-job training not covered in the apprenticeship framework where the employer pays for the training costs.
- training for apprentice trainees who have been refused grant aid through A02, A03 and A05, due to training provider, employer or apprentice not meeting the grant criteria.
- apprentice/craft grant training where no off-the-job training provision exists for their craft, or where the employer chooses to train the apprentice themselves without any progression towards an NVQ/SVQ Level 2 minimum, or other approved qualification.
Time spent on non-training activities, such as course registration, induction, domestic arrangements, all break times, external assessments and examinations.
Customer and site inductions.
Risk assessment and method statement briefings.
CIOB modules attended by day-release, or half-day and evening courses as grant A27 supports this training.
Job shadowing
Working under supervision in a productive environment.
Coaching and mentoring.
Conferences and seminars.
Courses designed for, or attended by, more than 30 people (irrespective of whether grant is not claimed for the excess numbers).
Distance learning and e-learning where the training takes place out of normal contracted working hours.
Off-the-job courses in the rest of Europe and overseas (unless the course is not available, or could not be held in, Great Britain).
Courses delivered by public educational establishments including:
- Courses for which a Local Education Authority award may be available, such as full-time National and Higher National Diploma courses; the college part of sandwich courses; the courses qualifying for awards from the Economic and Social Research Council and the Science and Engineering Research Council.
- Full-time college or university courses.
- Courses leading to GCSE, A Level or AS examinations for the GCE, NVQ/SVQ Level 1 qualifications; General National Vocational Qualifications (GNVQs); Advanced Vocational Certificates of Education (AVCEs) and General Scottish Vocational Qualifications (GSVQs); apart from those listed as accredited qualifications.
- Courses leading to the Standard and Higher Grades of the Scottish Certificate of Education, except when taken in subjects appropriate to entry onto an approved National Certificate Course.
- Pre-apprenticeship and pre-craft courses (for example NVQ/SVQ Level 1).
You cannot claim for Training and Development Plan and Short Duration off-the-job training grants (B201/202) at the same time, but you can switch to the Training and Development Plan route from Short Duration off-the-job training at any time during the 2008/2009 Grants Scheme year.
If you chose the Training and Development Plan route, you cannot return to claiming Short Duration off-the-job training grant until your Plan has been completed. Once this has happened you must tell us by writing to your local ConstructionSkills office if you wish to revert back to Short Duration off-the-job training grant.
What is the status of trainees supported?
Employees.
Labour-only sub-contractors and agency staff who are under a contract for service with you at the time of the training and for whom you paid the training costs. These staff are supported by B102 only, for training days delivered.
All occupations are supported including for example accounting and customer service staff.
What is the status of trainees not supported?
Grants cannot be claimed for individuals delivering the training, for example instructors or presenters.
How much is the grant?
Grant B101 - you will receive £10 per employee, for producing your Plan based on the number of employees declared in your 2008 Levy Return. There is a £500 minimum payment for each employer.
Grant B102 - you will receive £27.50 per person, for each full training day completed.
The grant is paid in three installments throughout the year.
You will receive an additional 25% supplementary payment automatically if you are eligible.
This rate may be reduced if sufficient Levy funding was not available. This is only likely to take effect in exceptional circumstances.
How do I claim?
Please contact your local ConstructionSkills office for information and advice on producing a Training and Development Plan.
A Company Development Advisor (CDA) will provide you with a Plan Pack, which includes the standard claim forms, and will visit you to help you complete this.
There are two basic forms:
- The TP1 identifies the number of days training you plan to do over the next year, so we can calculate the grant payments
- The TP1A lists the names of your staff and labour-only sub-contractors and identifies what training they require and the duration of the training. You may use a spreadsheet to list these details if more convenient.
ConstructionSkills has produced an Electronic Training Plan (ETP) package that will help you produce your Plan. Your CDA will advise you about this during their visit.
To give a full picture of your training needs, you must identify all training activities being carried out, even if it they are claimed through other grants within the CITB-ConstructionSkills Grants Scheme. List these activities on your Plan, placing zeros in the days and hours columns so that they are not calculated for grant payments.
Individually registered establishments of a parent company can submit separate Plans if the establishment has been included on the 2008 Levy return. You will need to advise your local ConstructionSkills office of the number of PAYE staff employed by the subsidiary when you send in the initial claim (TP1 & TP1A).
You should send the initial claim (TP1 & TP1A) to your local ConstructionSkills office as soon as you have completed it. We will only backdate a claim for a maximum of three months. You will have to submit a shortened Plan if it is not received within three months of its start date. This will require approval by your local ConstructionSkills office.
The local ConstructionSkills office will check your Plan to ensure that it has been correctly calculated, that all training you expect to carry out is grant aided and if you have included any training that can be claimed elsewhere within the Grants Scheme. They will contact you regarding amendments.
What if I need to increase the number of training days after I have submitted my claim?
If after submitting your Plan your employees/LOSC levels significantly increase due to exceptional circumstances, you can apply to raise the number of training days covered in your Plan (e.g. where you take on new contracts unexpectedly or where you take over another construction company). This facility only exists for Training and Development Plans covering a full year. You must apply for approval in writing to your local ConstructionSkills office, before your Plan ends. A maximum of two applications will be considered for each Plan.
If after submitting your Plan, a specialist new entrant training programme is approved by the National Specialist Manager you must obtain approval in writing from the NSM for the inclusion of such training in your Plan. To receive payment please include the actual number of specialist new entrant training days that you have completed in your interim and/or final claim forms.
What about staff turnover, promotions or transferees?
If you're planning to take on new employees, LOSCs or agency staff, but do not yet know who they are, you can include any training that you have already identified that they will need on the Plan. List the names of such persons as 'A N Other'.
You may also include proposed training for unexpected recruitment up to a maximum of an additional 5% of the total number of employees you declared on your 2008 Levy return. List the names of such persons as 'Contingency'.
If you replace members of your workforce whose training is included in your initial claim your new employees may utilise the training days allocated to the previous employees.
How will the grant be paid?
Initial Payment:
There is an initial payment of 25% of the total for both, producing the Training and Development Plan (B101) and recording the number of the training days (B102). This will give you some grant funds up front to fund the initial training planned in the year.
Interim Claim and Payment:
The interim payment will be based on the actual number of training days that you have completed, after six months of the Training and Development Plan.
We will send you an interim claim form after five months, so that you can tell us how many days training you have actually completed at the six month point.
If the number of training days at the six months point is more that the total grant paid in your initial claim, a payment for the difference will be made to you.
If you have been paid too much grant in your initial claim, we will not reclaim any grant as this will be reconciled when you submit your final claim.
At the interim claim stage we may arrange for a Verifier to visit and check that your claim is correct. A letter will be sent to you to advise if this is necessary.
If you do not return the interim claim form no payment will be made.
Final Claim and Payment:
The final payment will be based on the actual number of training days completed during the year of your Training and Development Plan.
Your ConstructionSkills office will send you at TP2 and a TP2A claim form at the 11 month point for you to complete to claim your final payment.
These claim forms:
- identify the number of days training that have actually been completed in the year (TP2)
- list the name of your employees/labour-only sub-contractors and agency staff and identify the training that they have received (TP2A). You may use a spreadsheet to list these details if more convenient.
You should return the final claim to your local ConstructionSkills office as soon as possible after the final date of your Plan has passed. This must be within a maximum of three months. The local ConstructionSkills office will check your claim and arrange for payment as long as it meets the grant criteria.
A final grant payment will usually be made as follows:
- The balance of any grant due for producing your Plan (B101).
- Any additional training days that have not already been paid for in the initial and interim claims (B102).
If you submit a final claim showing that zero training days have been completed we will recover the total grant (both per capita B101 and training days B102) which have been paid to you and no further grant will be available.
So that payment of grant is not delayed, your final payment will usually be made before we carry out an audit of your claim. Any incorrect claim or over-payment will be reconciled when the audit is carried out.
Before submitting your final claim you must also start preparing the next year's Training and Development Plan so that it is ready to submit on time, to ensure continuation of the grant funding.
Non-receipt of Final Claim (TP2 and TP2A)
If we do not receive your final claim within three months after the end date of your Plan you will have to repay the grant that has already been paid to you as follows:
- If you have submitted an interim claim, we may carry out an audit of the number of days that you declared on your Plan. We will inform you if this audit is necessary. If it is not required, we will not recover any of the grant we have already paid you.
- If you did not submit an interim claim, we will recover the total grant (both per capita B101 and training days B102) already paid to you.
You will be advised in writing of any grant that we intend to recover.
You will not receive any future Training and Development Plan grants for the following year until you have completed final claim forms (TP2 and TP2A) for your current Plan. It is therefore important to prepare in advance and complete your final claim forms promptly.
What evidence do I need to keep?
Evidence of training:
Your Training and Development Plan can be audited at any time by a Verifier. You must keep evidence to verify the training for which you have claimed grant.
You will need to retain this evidence for a period of five years.
From the evidence provided, the Verifier should be able to identify the following:
- the type of training being claimed
- the aims of the training
- the date(s) the training took place
- the duration of the training
- the name(s) of attendee(s) and their signature(s)
- the name of the trainer and signature
The type of evidence required to verify a Plan may include one or more of the following documents:
- course attendance certificates
- training achievement certificates
- course attendance registers/lists carrying signatures of all attendees and trainers
- training provider invoices showing the type of training, names of attendees and duration
- time sheets
- short training session attendance lists carrying signatures of all attendees and trainers. The 'Short training sessions attendance sheet' may be useful to record training that has taken place
- agendas and minutes for meetings containing any training
- written details of training programmes for all training including 'in-company' training.
If you have any doubts about the validity of the evidence you are keeping you should contact your local ConstructionSkills office for advice.
Employment evidence for employees and labour-only sub-contractors:
For your own employees your personnel records will act as evidence.
Labour-only sub-contractors (LOSC) evidence will take the form of direct payment to the individuals, invoices for them or company/agency records showing the names of the LOSC and dates of employment.
You must not include training for employees, LOSCs or agency staff if the training is provided, or paid for, by someone else.
What checks will be carried out to confirm the Training and Development Plan claim is correct?
An initial check will be completed by your local ConstructionSkills office. They will contact you if there are any changes necessary at this stage.
A final check will be made when your final claim is submitted for payment. The CITB-ConstructionSkills Levy & Grant Verification Team will arrange a detailed audit if necessary.
If an audit is required on your Plan we will contact you to request copies of documents to prove that the training you have claimed has occurred. If a visit is necessary to inspect your training records, one of our Verifiers will contact you to make a convenient appointment.
If during the audit checks we find that grant has been claimed incorrectly, or there is no evidence to support the training days, or you have claimed for training that should have been claimed elsewhere in the Grants Scheme, we will recover the grant that has already been paid to you. The Verifier will produce a report at the end of their visit which will detail the reasons for this.
If during the audit we find that grant has been under claimed, the additional days will be allowed if evidence exists to support the training and the increased claim is still within the original training day total declared on your TP1 Claim form.
If there are unreasonable delays in returning information to us, or we are unable to gain access for auditing, we reserve the right to block the payment of all other grants to you and may recover any grant paid to you under your Plan.
ConstructionSkills will take legal action if necessary, to recover payments made if the audit discloses evidence of false claims.
Is there a closing date?
Initial claim - the deadline for receipt of your initial claim is within three months after the start date of your Plan. After your Plan has started, the earlier you send us your claim the sooner we can arrange payment.
Interim claim - if we do not receive your interim claim no grant will be paid at this stage.
Final claim - we must receive this within three months from the end date of your Plan; otherwise you will have to repay some of all of the grant that has already been paid to you. After your Plan has ended, the earlier you send us your claim the sooner we can arrange payment.
What else might I be able to claim?
There are no other grants directly relevant to Training and Development Plan, however you may be able to claim grants for your employees and labour-only sub-contractors/agency staff elsewhere in the Grants Scheme. Please refer to the individual grant reference for further information.