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Quality Mark out, Quality Scheme in
11:59 24 Sep 2004
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The government has finally admitted that its anti-cowboy builder
scheme Quality Mark (QM) has been a failure and needs to be
replaced.
In minutes from a recent meeting of pan-industry groups to discuss the set up of the replacement scheme, seen by CJ, construction minister Nigel Griffiths said that although QM "was a good idea", the scheme had only attracted 600 members over the last two years and was "unlikely to grow".
QM's failure to reach a critical mass to survive has forced the government's hand to replace the initiative with a Quality Scheme (QS), which will provide what Griffiths described as a "more practical solution".
Plans are already in place to wind-up QM's call centres and certification bodies when the greenlight is given to QS.
A draft proposal of the QS scheme has already received strong support from industry.
QS will allow trade associations to become "QS approved scheme operators". QS operators will then vet their members to become QS contractors.
In minutes from a recent meeting of pan-industry groups to discuss the set up of the replacement scheme, seen by CJ, construction minister Nigel Griffiths said that although QM "was a good idea", the scheme had only attracted 600 members over the last two years and was "unlikely to grow".
QM's failure to reach a critical mass to survive has forced the government's hand to replace the initiative with a Quality Scheme (QS), which will provide what Griffiths described as a "more practical solution".
Plans are already in place to wind-up QM's call centres and certification bodies when the greenlight is given to QS.
A draft proposal of the QS scheme has already received strong support from industry.
QS will allow trade associations to become "QS approved scheme operators". QS operators will then vet their members to become QS contractors.
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