A voluntary agreement has been reached between UK Woodchain (UKW) and the government’s Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) which puts fixed-plant sawmilling and downstream processing firmly in the manufacturing sector.
The agreement ends a dispute between UKW and LANTRA, the land-based industries sector skills council, about which organisation should represent sawmilling in skills and training development. It also frees up a £42,000 grant which will enable UKW’s trade associations and member companies to play a part in a mapping exercise to assess timber industry training.
Mike Marchant of non-profit development body Treeline said work to define all the jobs and tasks found in the wood-based manufacturing sector can begin very soon. This, he said, will complete the picture of the sector and mark the start of initiatives designed to improve its ability to raise its performance in an aggressive, international arena.
Mr Marchant said the arrangement, which will come into effect immediately, has been welcomed by employers from across the sector, including fixed-plant sawmillers, timber treatment specialists and manufacturers of pallets, decking, joinery and sheet materials.
UK Forest Products Association executive director David Sulman said: “The latest strategic plan from the SSDA shows that our industry has some ground to make up in terms of qualifications and productivity, even though the woodworking sector in Britain has grown 1% annually for the past decade.
“This study will provide the industry and government departments with the kind of detailed information needed for growth and productivity to increase even more through the strategic supply of training, qualifications and other career opportunities.”
