CITB Grants & Funding 

The CITB offer support to the industry through grants and funding. Grants help to cover day to day construction training and The Skills & Training Fund aims to cover the cost of specific training projects.

Support is available to construction companies who are CITB registered employers who pay into the levy (unless otherwise exempt).

What is the levy?

The levy applies to all employers ‘engaged wholly or mainly in construction industry activities’ e.g. when construction activities take up more than half of your total employees’ time.

How much levy you pay is based on your total wage bill. If your total wage bill (payroll and Net CIS) is under £120,000, your organisation won’t have to pay the levy. This is known as the Small Business Levy Exemption. You must still complete a Levy Return even if you don’t need to pay the Levy as it is a statutory requirement.

CITB Grant Scheme

The CITB Grant Scheme contributes towards day-to-day construction training and qualifications. Grants cannot be paid to individual employees. Speak with your employer and if they are registered with CITB they may be eligible for a grant to cover the cost of your training.

Employers apply for the grant on completion of the training/NVQ and they must apply within 3 months. For training, the contribution is determined by the duration and content of the course:

Tier 1 – £30

Tier 2 – £70

Tier 3 – £120

For qualifications you can apply for £600 per achievement and applications are made through your CITB Approved Training Organisation. To view the full list of NVQs eligible for a grant click here.

Grant money is usually paid within four weeks of submitting an application if it is successful. Employers must keep and maintain for 3 years from the end of the tax year to which they relate, full and accurate records of grant applications. This must include:

– Proof the employer identified the need for training, organised the training and accepted the cost of the training and proof of payment for the training (where applicable)

– Payroll records for all employees including relevant Full Payment Submissions (FPS), P60s, P11s

– Payment records for all subcontractors including relevant CIS300 documentation, online contractor monthly returns and invoices

– Evidence of training which has taken or is taking place (e.g. attendance records and certificates of achievement)

Skills and Training Funding

The CITB can provide funding for specific training projects. This is more substantial than the grant scheme and aims to cover entire training programmes to meet more complex needs. It must be construction specific or management training.

The Skills and Training Fund is an extra incentive for companies and can be applied for in addition to grants. You can apply for funding once per year and funding is dependent on the number of staff you employ.

To apply, employers must complete a Skills & Training application form.

After the funding payment has been approved you can start your training activity. Ensure you keep evidence of all invoices as you will need to submit these to the CITB to demonstrate that the training has taken place.  As your project approaches its expected completion date you will receive a reminder e-mail from CITB requesting evidence of expenditure.

For more information on how you can access grants and funding, please call us on 01622 768400 or email info@primenvq.com