Spring '21

GREEN ROOFS TRAINING
‘ALL YOU NEED IS A LAPTOP,
WI-FI & THE DESIRE TO LEARN’
GRO, Lantra and Natural Resources Wales have combined to
produce a new online course for new entrants to the green roof
sector. Chris Bridgman, Vice Chair at GRO, explains more...
I
am pleased to announce a new
online short course for newcomers
to the industry has been launched.
Funded by GRO and Lantra, with
support from Natural Resources Wales,
the course, which starts in June 2021,
covers the history of green roofs,
the types and benefits, planning and
structural considerations, design,
safe access and maintenance for
installations. It also looks at the future
of green roofing and how the sector
may develop.
It has been adapted from the
existing Introduction to Installing and
Maintaining Green Roofs course and is
aimed at people who want to develop
their understanding of the concept,
design, installation, and maintenance of
green roofs.
The pandemic’s impact on training
A year ago, who would have predicted
the impact that COVID would have
on education delivery, not just in
schools and colleges, but also in the
broader landscaping sector. We all, as
members of the GRO Forum, know
how vital education and training
is, but throughout 2020 it looked
like all training bets were
off. However, the
adversities faced
due to coronavirus
restrictions have
sparked creative
thinking and
collaborative
work amongst
educational
establishments,
training providers
and employers, pushing
land-based training
further than any
of us would ever
have imagined.
Lantra is
one such
education
establishment
that has
pioneered
new online,
eLearning
training courses
and initiatives,
working in conjunction
with Trade Associations
such as GRO. These
new courses enable
individuals and
businesses to access
essential introductory
training remotely from
their office or own homes.
The world of training continues to
undergo big changes at all levels.
Lockdown has also meant that training
providers have needed to re-assess how
they can safely support demands for
the more practical hands-on courses.
Once progressing through the
training suite, the ‘Installer’
assessment still needs
to be carried out one
on one, but can be
arranged with the
training provider or by
the learner to ensure
the site location is
suitable for themselves.
Already the levels of
For the full
green roof training
suite visit:
https://greenrooforganisation.
org/green-roof-training/
Tweet: @RoofGro
interest for ‘online’ delivery
to get started in this
area shows the brave
new world we live
in – all you need
is a laptop, Wi-Fi
and the desire
to learn.
As David
Fisher, Head
of Industry
Partnerships at
Lantra, explains:
“Every day we are
seeing the demands
for training and CPD
changing, and it is
great to see this being
embraced through the
co- funded development
of eLearning between
Lantra, Natural Resource
Wales and GRO, to provide
the perfect introduction to
the Green Roofs Installation training
suite. It highlights how closely GRO and
its members are working to provide
access to knowledge and training to
ensure we meet the need in these
challenging times.”
Moving forward, training continues
to change and there has never been
a better time to take the advice of Dr
John G Hibben: “Education is the ability
to meet life’s situations” – and boy,
have the educational activities of our
industry had to meet those situations in
the last couple of years!
Images courtesy of Bridgman & Bridgman;
Left: Biosolar support; Above: Green roof
substrates; Top: Green roofs in 21st Century.
10 GREENSCAPE SPRING 2021 • www.greenscapemag.co.uk