National Skills Academy for Construction launches in the North West

13 March 2007: The National Skills Academy network is expanding with the opening of a new National Skills Academy for Construction site at Newall Green High School in Wythenshawe, Manchester. This new Skills Academy site is the first in a fleet of mobile training centres to be established on-site at major construction projects throughout the UK and its launch expands the network in the North West, which already has skills academies in the food and drink manufacturing, manufacturing and financial services sectors.

It has been selected as one of the first accredited Academy Training Centres within the new National Skills Academy for Food and Drink Manufacturing. The government’s skills minister Phil Hope announced yesterday (Wednesday 31 January 2007) the go-ahead for the £4.4 million academy, which is set to open in April, and is forecast to deliver new skills to at least 28,000 people during its first four years.

The National Skills Academy for Construction aims to create at least 10,000 jobs in the North West through apprenticeships, and to help 100,000 experienced workers gain NVQ Levels 2 or 3. It has launched in response to the high demand for skills in the UK construction industry and a predicted construction output growth of 11 percent by 2011.

David Way, National Director of Skills for the Learning and Skills Council, said:

“National Skills Academies are a direct response to employers and their needs. They have put employers in the driving seat in developing high-quality and relevant training programmes for their own sector and the commitment of so many top employers has been impressive. The network will help transform the further education sector so that it meets the needs of business more effectively.”

Commenting on the creation of a Skills Academy for the construction sector, Val Lowman, UK Community Development Manager of Bovis Lend Lease, said:

“By its very nature construction tends to be a hugely fragmented industry. The only place that everyone comes together is on a live construction site, so the fact that training will be focused on-site is very significant. Employer-led training is the only way to get it right and I believe that the National Skills Academy network truly recognises this.”