There has been extensive reporting in recent months concerning poorly specified and badly installed insulation, including ITV’s Insulating your Home : How to beat the scammers. In the UK few building trades require qualifications, so there is inherent risk to anyone commissioning building work. There are lots of great builders out there, but also lots of bad ones, and it can be challenging for clients to know who to use. There are clear qualifications for some trades such as electricians (NICEIC) and gas plumbers (GasSafe) that clients can rely on, but when it comes to general building there are no such widely recognised certifications. 

At the Green Register we run an accredited Retrofit Skills qualification, that seeks to address this issue, giving graduates a badge they can share with clients, and clients the confidence that builders with that badge are trained in the foundational knowledge required for a retrofit projects. But this training only covers a limited area of construction, and only to a certain level of detail.

Should all builders require certified training in order to trade? How should clients research which builders to use, and which badges can they trust? To discuss these issues we are delighted to be hosting the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) at our next Twilight Talk on Monday 9th March. Iain Kirtley of the FMB will outline their Licence to Build campaign and we will invite debate from attendees on the issues raised. If you have views on the skills (or lack of) in the industry then this is one for you!