Oatridge to “deal” the ROLO Card
08 August 2011
Oatridge has been placed at the heart of a drive to reduce injuries and deaths amongst the workers who help shape Scotland's landscape, including those involved road and construction projects.
The College is to be the only Health and Safety training provider north of the Border for the new ROLO (Registration of Landbased Operatives) Card, which is being rolled out by the British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI).
BALI has introduced the ROLO Card after the Department of Trade and Industry told all trade bodies in the UK that they have a "duty of care" to ensure that their members and employees of their members were adequately trained in Health and Safety.
Oatridge will have a vital role to play by providing intensive one-day H&E courses, beginning in September. Successful completion of the training is required if workers want to go on to apply for the Landbased Industries Skills Scheme/Construction Skills Certification Scheme (LISS/CSCS) Card, which is vital for access to most construction sites.
The College will run the first three courses on September 13, 14 and 30, with more dates available. The training will be taken by four of Scotland's leading health and safety experts: Martin Neal, an agricultural engineering lecturer at Oatridge and a multi-award winning H&S Advisor to the College: John Eccles, a farmer and consultant; Douglas Shearer, a former horticulture and greenkeeping lecturer and consultant; and Willie Johnson, who has been a health and safety trainer for 25 years.
Sandra Loton-Jones, the Chief Executive of BALI, says: "The ROLO Card looks like a credit card, but it shows that the holder has undertaken and passed a stringent health and safety course, designed specifically for the landscaping industry and covering the essential elements of the CSCS Card's health and safety requirements.
"The ROLO card also records all industry-specific qualifications such as the National Proficiency Training Council's certificates in pesticide application, chainsaw operation or forklift operation.
"Vocational qualifications in amenity horticulture and qualifications in first aid are also recorded on the card, making it a comprehensive and immediate way of verifying the operative's level of appropriate training".
BALI believes that the card and its "smart" chip will be a major boon to employers by giving them a record of employees' skills, competence and qualifications, flagging up training needs, raising health and safety awareness and increasing the quality of workmanship.
The Association also claims that the possession of the ROLO Card will also improve workers' employment prospects, by giving potential employers an instant and comprehensive record of achievements. For the self-employed the ROLO Card could also reduce insurance premiums.
Adrian Kitchen, the Director of Business and Curriculum Development at Oatridge, says: "We constantly seek opportunities to advance the skills and knowledge of employers and employees in the land based and allied sectors. We have expert staff available at Oatridge College to deliver this specialist, tailored Health and Safety course, and we see this as a key development for our landscaping audience, as well as those allied sectors of construction and civil engineering."
To book ROLO Card training at Oatridge College, contact Moira Montgomery on 01506 864807 nor email mmontgomery@oatridge.ac.uk
