Climate Change Minister Greg Barker has launched a partnership to ensure the UK has the right skills to implement the Green Deal, the government’s flagship policy to improve the energy efficiency of buildings.

The Green Deal aims to enable private firms to offer consumers energy improvements to their homes, communities and businesses at no upfront cost and to recoup payments as a charge in instalments on the energy bill.

The Green Deal Skills Alliance (GDSA), officially launched by the Minister, is working to create new training and accreditation for the energy assessment, advice and installation workforce – the people who will carry out the improvements. The GDSA is made up of three Sector Skills Councils which include Asset Skills, ConstructionSkills and SummitSkills.

The right skills

Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said: “The success of the Green Deal will, in part, come down to having people who have the right skills and knowledge to instil trust. The Green Deal Skills Alliance will help industry face the challenges ahead so that people get the right training and qualifications they will need in order to gain work under the Green Deal.”

The Green Deal is due to launch in October and could see uptake within 14 million homes throughout the UK and create 65,000 jobs by 2015.

Chief Executive Designate of Asset Skills, Sarah Bentley, said: “The new skills programmes we are introducing as part of the GDSA are important for the UK to meet its targets on cutting carbon. The partnership is running a series of Green Deal Connections events to raise awareness that only those with the right qualifications will be able to secure work from the Green Deal.”

Keith Marshall, OBE, Chief Executive of SummitSkills, said: “There has been so much talk about Green Deal that not surprisingly many employers tell us they are unsure of where to start to prepare their people to support and take advantage of the initiative. The Green Deal Connections events will guide visitors through the mass of information towards exactly what potential installers of environmental technologies need to know.”