NFB - Cymru 

In late 2011 the NFB was central to the formation of an alliance (the Wales Construction Federation Alliance) with the other major construction federations in Wales namely the Civil Engineering Contractors Association, (CECA), The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) and the Home Builders Federation (HBF).  The aim was to share knowledge, to use the combined credibility to be a loud voice for the SME sector in Wales and to engage with and inform the Welsh Government in regard to the difficult issues facing the sector.

In September 2011 the Welsh Business Minister Edwina Hart - after lobbying from the NFB itself, the Alliance and others - announced the positive news that henceforth construction would be regarded as a priority sector for support within the Wales Economic Renewal Programme (ERP)

The Minister has also appointed a small and highly influential Sector Panel to work with the government and to inform its decision-making with a view to promoting growth in Welsh construction.  NFB is delighted that its efforts over the last year have been rewarded in as much as the Alliance, in which NFB is a central player, has become one of only 6 members appointed to the Sector Panel.The NFB involvement through the Alliance clearly represents an outstanding opportunity to ensure that NFB members views are represented.

It will help to ensure that the Welsh Government gets the right information on the problems and issues facing Welsh SMEs - including procurement amongst a range of others - so as to enable it to make the best decisions possible going forward both for  the sector itself and for the Welsh economy.

Further information on the NFB's involvement in the Welsh Construction Federation Alliance can be downloaded below.