West Kent Works, our team that helps residents into a new or better paid job, have really pulled out all the stops recently to get people the training they need to land one.

SIA, COSHH, CSCS, and PUBS – these may not mean anything to many, but they are essential for some occupations. These acronyms are four of the free training courses, leading to a recognised qualification, we’ve offered to West Kent tenants since August 2020.

The employment and training team work in partnership with housing providers across the county to deliver accessible training courses to give our residents better employment and income prospects. And the best bit? They’re completely free!

Our residents can gain a qualification, without having to worry about being out of pocket, and these qualifications mean they’re in a better position to get a job.

For most of the courses no prior experience or qualifications are needed, and the team can help those that complete them to find the right job.

To find out more or to contact the team, visit the West Kent Works webpage.

 Glossary

SIA (or Security Industry Authority) is a qualification that you need before you can apply for a job as a security guard or door supervision.

COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) accredited course teaches the appropriate, and safe way to work with dangerous substances.

CSCS (Construction Skills Certification Scheme) you need this card to work in construction and on building sites.

PUBS (Pop Up Business School) PUBS is an organisation that runs week long training programmes to help attendees start up their own business or capitalise on their current business.

Staff training - Tuesday 1 April

Our customer services team will not be available from 8am to 1pm tomorrow, 1 April 2025, due to staff training. Our out of hours provider will take any emergency calls during this time. If you have an emergency, please call 0800 169 1122 as usual.

 

West Kent progresses the development of the new Woodland Place community, set to provide 106 new homes

Woodland Place is the newly branded scheme in Allington, Maidstone, and sits on the land known as Castor Park. The new development is currently in construction and is set to provide over 100 new homes for with a mix of social rent, affordable rent and shared ownership tenures.