Planning and programming in construction

Duration

Minimum one day of 6 learning hours

Purpose/scope

The purpose of this course standard is to give candidates an understanding of planning and programming and provide a practical introduction to the concepts and practice of project management

The scope of this standard covers:

• project overview (needs, data collection, project planning)
• CDM Regulations: implications
• key concepts: critical path, dependencies, float, lead times, Gantt charts
• the design programme and information release schedules
• the contractor's master programme; scheduling construction activities
• key considerations: e.g. long-lead items, pre-contract works (such as demolition or site clearance), prefabricated elements, works outside of main contract (such as work by statutory undertakers), relationships with other projects, phasing and section completion, decision points
• typical problems and approaches to managing them
• lessons (that can be) learnt.

Occupational relevance

Training delivered against this standard would be relevant to the following occupational group(s):

• supervision
• management and leadership.

Candidate pre-requisites

There are no candidate pre-requisites as part of this standard.

Instruction/supervision

As a minimum, course instructors must be able to demonstrate that, in relation to this standard, they have:

• a train the trainer or instructional techniques course certificate
• successfully completed training to this standard 
• at least 2 years relevant industrial experience
• a verifiable CV.

Delivery

Delivery may be in an on or off the job environment.

All materials and equipment must be of a suitable quality and quantity for candidates to achieve learning outcomes, and must comply with relevant legislation.

The class size and candidate/instructor ratio must allow training to be delivered in a safe manner and enable candidates to achieve the learning outcomes.

The following delivery methods may be used in the delivery of this standard:

• classroom

This standard is considered to contain 51 per cent or more theoretical training.

Assessment

For the successful completion of training, the trainer will be required to make a declaration of the learner’s contribution during the course and that they are confident the learner has understood the content of the course.

Quality assurance

Quality assurance against this standard will require initial approval of the training organisation and their content mapped to the standard. 

CITB will also conduct an approval intervention, either desk-based or centre visit, to ensure the training organisation can meet the requirements of the training standard. 

Approved training organisations (ATOs) will be required to present information on records of training and assessment upon request to CITB for desk based analysis. They will also be visited annually by the CITB quality assurance team.

Renewal/refresher

No renewal/refreshment requirements: there are no mandatory renewal or recommended refreshment requirements for this standard.

Approval date

November 2018

Review cycle

Either on request or in 3 years from approval date.

Learning outcomes

The candidate will be able to:

• Describe the CDM Regulations and their relevance
• Define key concepts in managing projects
• Describe how the design programme can influence information release schedules
• Describe how the contractor’s master programme operates
• Explain some of the key considerations that apply to specific projects, with some examples
• Describe common issues that can be anticipated and illustrate how they could be managed
• List options for reviewing projects

Additional guidance to support learning outcome:

Health & Safety Executive (HSE):

• How to notify a project (F10 form)
• Need building work done? A short guide for clients on the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015