Building a Competent, Confident and Compliant Workforce
Practical support for building workforce competence, training matrices and refresher training for construction, engineering, manufacturing and maintenance SMEs.
Helping organisations build safer, more competent and more confident workforces
Building workforce competence goes beyond sending employees on training courses.
It means ensuring your people have the right knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours to carry out their roles safely, effectively and confidently.
We help organisations take a structured approach to workforce competence – from identifying role-specific training requirements and creating training matrices, through to refresher training, practical competence assessment and ongoing development.
Our approach brings together HR, Health & Safety, Environmental, Training and Learning & Development, supported by the Craven Learning Hub to help you manage, track and evidence workforce learning and competence in one place.
People. Safety. Environment. Success
Practical Guidance
Clear, actionable advice you can put into practice.
Competent People
Supporting you to build capable, confident workforces.
Compliance Focused
Helping you meet legal requirements and manage risk effectively.
Better Performance
Competence drives safety, quality and business success.
What is Workforce Competence, and Why It Matters
Workforce competence is the ability of an individual to consistently apply the appropriate knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours to carry out their role safely and effectively.
Competence is developed through a combination of learning, practical experience, supervision, coaching and ongoing assessment. Training certificates alone do not demonstrate competence.
A competent workforce helps organisations reduce accidents, improve productivity, meet legal duties and build confidence with clients, contractors and employees alike.
Maintaining accurate competence records also supports pre-qualification questionnaires (PQQs), contractor accreditation schemes such as CHAS, SafeContractor, Constructionline and Achilles, as well as client audits and tender submissions. Effective competence management also supports organisations working towards recognised standards such as ISO 45001, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.
What happens when competence isn’t maintained?
Poor workforce competence can contribute to:
Accidents and ill health
Enforcement action
Higher insurance costs
Poor quality workmanship
Reputational damage
Reduced client confidence
Your Legal Duties: Mandatory vs Statutory Training
The terms mandatory and statutory training are often used interchangeably, but they have different meanings. Understanding the distinction will help you identify the right training for your workforce and demonstrate a structured approach to competence.
Statutory training relates to legal duties placed on employers and the training required to ensure employees can carry out their work safely.
Mandatory training is determined by your organisation. It includes the training you decide employees must complete based on their role, workplace risks, company procedures and client requirements.
In practice, many health and safety courses are both mandatory within an organisation and support employers in meeting their statutory duties.
| Mandatory Training | Statutory Training |
|---|---|
|
Set by your organisation |
Required to help meet legal duties |
|
Based on your own risk assessments |
Based on legislation and workplace risks |
|
May vary between businesses |
Depends on the work being carried out |
|
Supports company procedures |
Supports compliance with health and safety law |
Remember: Training requirements should always be determined by your risk assessments, work activities, legal duties, environmental responsibilities, client requirements and the competence required for each role. There is no universal list of mandatory courses for every business.
Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, employers have a legal duty to provide employees with the information, instruction, training and supervision necessary to enable them to work safely. The exact training required will depend on your organisation’s activities, risk assessments, equipment, work environment and the competence of individual employees. There is no single list of courses that every employer must provide.
Turn Your Training Matrix into Action with the Craven Learning Hub
Identifying what training your workforce needs is only the beginning. The Craven Learning Hub gives you a simple, central place to manage learning across your organisation.
Use the Learning Hub to:
✓ Assign role-specific learning
✓ Monitor completion and refresher dates
✓ Maintain accurate training records
✓ Evidence learning for audits, clients, PQQs and accreditations
Online learning is one part of workforce competence, alongside practical training, supervision, coaching and workplace assessment.
Need Help Developing Your Workforce?
Craven Consultancy Services can help you identify the training and competence your workforce needs, address skills gaps and develop a structured approach to learning and development.
From training matrices and annual training plans to practical training, competence assessment and ongoing development, we’ll help you build a capable, confident and compliant workforce.
How Do You Decide What Training Is Required?
Every business is different. The training your employees need will depend on:
- The type of work being undertaken
- The hazards identified within your risk assessments
- The employee’s role and responsibilities
- The equipment, machinery or substances being used
- The findings of your First Aid Needs Assessment
- Client or contractual requirements
- Refresher training requirements
- Changes to legislation or industry guidance
A one-size-fits-all approach rarely works. Training should always reflect the level of risk and the competence required for each role.
Once your training needs are identified, the Craven Learning Hub can help you assign learning, monitor completion, manage refresher dates and maintain clear training records.
How robust is your approach to workforce competence? Use the checklist below to identify potential gaps?
☐ Have you identified the training and competence requirements for each role?
☐ Are training requirements linked to your risk assessments and work activities?
☐ Does your induction programme include the mandatory learning required for each role?
☐ Do employees receive appropriate role-specific and practical training?
☐ Do supervisors check that employees can apply their learning safely and effectively in practice?
☐ Are competency assessments or workplace observations carried out where appropriate?
☐ Are training records and competence records kept up to date?
☐ Are refresher dates monitored and training arranged before it becomes overdue?
☐ Is training reviewed when roles, equipment, processes, risks or legislation change?
☐ Do supervisors and managers receive appropriate leadership and management development?
☐ Can you provide evidence of workforce competence for clients, audits, PQQs or accreditations?
☐ Do you regularly review your training matrix to identify gaps and future learning priorities?
Download Your Free Workforce Competence Guide
This guide will help you understand your legal responsibilities, identify the training your workforce needs, build a practical training matrix, manage refresher training, and choose the most effective way to deliver and manage learning.
- Understand your legal responsibilities
- Build a practical training matrix
- Identify the training your workforce needs
- Manage refresher training
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