National Skills Academy for Construction launched at Exeter

It aims to give opportunities and experience of the construction industry to apprentices, students, school children and local businesses. 

One in six construction workers have no formal qualifications and three quarters of the industry does not do any training. Training which does occur is not evenly spread across the supply chain.

By the end of 2010, more than 55 National Skills Academy for Construction Projects will have been established on-site at major construction projects throughout the UK, including the 2012 Olympic sites in London.

A government initiative, the Academy is developed with support from ConstructionSkills, the Sector Skills Council for the construction industry, together with leading industry employers and education and training providers.

The National Skills Academy for Construction project supports the £270m development at the Streatham Campus with Cowlin Construction Ltd, a Balfour Beatty Company, as lead Academy project contractor.

David Allen, Registrar and Deputy Chief Executive of the University of Exeter said: “The £270 million investment which is currently being undertaken by the University and its partners will create world-class facilities for our students, staff and visitors.
 
“We're delighted that our construction projects will also lead directly to opportunities for apprentices, students, schools and businesses in Exeter and the wider region.
 
“The University has a growing reputation around the world but with 2,800 staff we are also very much a Westcountry business providing valuable jobs and opportunities for people in this region. Our total contribution to the economy is worth more than £340 million a year.”
 
With support from ConstructionSkills, as many as 242 new recruits will gain experience of working in the industry, in addition to upskilling the project supply chain, as a result of this project over the next three years. Nationwide, the National Skills Academy for Construction aims to create at least 10,000 local jobs via apprenticeships and to help 100,000 experienced workers gain NVQ Levels II or III.

The National Skills Academy for Construction plays a key role in putting employers in the driving seat when it comes to deciding where the skills gaps are in their sector as well as in the Exeter area.

Gary Hewison, National Skills Academy for Construction Performance Coordinator for the South said: “The National Skills Academy for Construction Project at Streatham Campus will provide much-needed on-site training and help to ensure that building projects leave a legacy of skills for the future. With business and government in partnership we can raise skills levels across the economy, sector by sector, ensuring we can compete effectively in a rapidly changing global economy.”

Roger Stone, Regional Strategic Advisor for ConstructionSkills South West commented: “The National Skills Academy for Construction is providing industry with the training and support that it needs, where it needs it. The new mobile network will enable training on-site to cover the entire supply chain for each project. Not only is it an opportunity to enhance the skills base of the construction industry, it is also a way of developing sustainable communities by engaging local people in training.”

Neil Sherreard from Cowlin Construction, added: “The major construction works being undertaken at the University provide an excellent opportunity to supply much needed training in a live environment. Utilising our highly skilled management and workforce together with our supply chain partners, we are able to deliver a focussed, hands-on, learning experience for local people, to the ultimate benefit of the region and our industry.

“As an employer dedicated to the development of people in the industry we are delighted and proud to be involved in this academy.”