Skills gaps for place shaping and sustainable communities
The implications of the HCA Skills and Knowledge Action Plan, launched on 16 June at the CIH conference at Harrogate will be presented at The IED Conference in October. The IED is one of the professional partners and will continue to influence progress on delivery and the relevance of a stronger economic development perspective on place shaping and sustainable communities.
Better skills for better places is a landmark plan for action that comes at an important time to ensure delivery the Government’s ambitions for housing and communities in the midst of increasingly difficult market conditions. The ultimate objective is to produce knowledgeable and skilled practitioners who have a combination of technical, specialist and transferable skills who can work effectively together to deliver better more sustainable places.
The need is for the right people with the right skills, working effectively together, to plan, design and manage communities to meet the challenges and aspirations for the 21st century. These range from ensuring projects maintain momentum during the recession and addressing low carbon issues; to providing better designed, affordable housing and encouraging community cohesion.
The vision is to create a co-ordinated learning environment that helps to improve the skills of existing practitioners and encourage new entrants into the sector. The aim is to develop a framework to promote joint learning, encourage greater partnership working, share knowledge and expertise, support continued professional development and persuade more people to take up a career in the homes and communities sector.
The IED is contributing to the 2009 HCA survey of skills gaps in the recession and the implications of the SKAP will be debated at the IED conference in October.