The New Roofing Accreditation Scheme Explained

In our regular monthly roofing news roundup last week, we reported on the accreditation scheme announced at the recent annual National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC) Suppliers’ Conference and promised that we would cover the subject in more detail this week.

The scheme was announced by James Talman, Chief Executive of the NFRC who described it as a “major landmark for the NFRC and UK roofing sector”.  The scheme is the result of collaboration between the NFRC and the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and its main aims are as follows:

• To improve efficiency
• To upskill the current workforce
• To encourage the use of new technology in roofing
• To attract new talent into the industry and make it a more attractive career option for youngsters.

With the UK roofing industry facing an ageing workforce and a burgeoning skills shortage, the scheme will hopefully address some of these issues and ensure that roofing contractors have the support necessary to operate efficiently in the future.

The programme of delivery for the accreditation scheme will be chaired by Jon Vanstone who currently chair of the Competent Person Forum and Trade Association Forum.  He’s had experience of working on accreditation schemes in the past in a number of different sectors, most recently with the glazing sector.  Vanstone sees this development as an exciting step forward for the industry as a whole and hopes that it will change the perception of a career in roofing and attract more youngsters into the industry.

The accreditation will focus on engaging with existing and potential contractors in order to create a distinct career learning programme to inspire and motivate future roofing contractors.  It’s hoped that it will also create a sustainable demand for professional roofers in the built environment and ensure that both employers and clients reap the benefits of an accredited workforce which inspires trust within the sector.

There are already several different Roofing Accreditation schemes in the UK which we’ll take a closer look at over the coming weeks.  They include:

• The National Federation of Roofing Contractors Competent Person roofing scheme
• The Confederation of Roofing Contractors (CORC) Scheme
• SIG Design and Technology Accredited Contractor Scheme
• Competent Roofer  Competent Person Accreditation Scheme

Potential clients who are on the lookout for a roofing contractor are encouraged to use a member of one of the UK’s Professional Roofing Associations in order to be sure that the company they choose is competent and will perform the work to the highest standards.  All of these schemes are designed to offer protection and peace of mind to consumers while ensuring that professional roofing contractors uphold a level of professional standards throughout the UK.  For consumers, the peace of mind they get from knowing the roofing contractor they’ve hired to work on their premises has been inspected and audited delivers a degree of confidence that is worth its weight in gold.