Build Magazine August 2015

Build Magazine 7 Building Apprenticeships in Transport Sector at Heart of Government Infrastructure Investment Plans Government to work with industry to create more than 30,000 apprenticeships in the road and rail sector this Parliament. More than 30,000 apprenticeship places will be created across the road and rail industry during the lifetime of this Parliament the government pledged on21st August. Speaking on a visit to the National Training Acade- my for Rail in Northampton the Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin, announced the ambition in a vital boost to the transport industry. Government has committed more than £70bn to improving transport infrastructure, including the most ambitious investment in rail since the Victorian era, and the most extensive improvements to roads since the 1970s. This investment will make journeys better. It will also deliver a sustained and lasting legacy of skills and opportunity for people across the UK. To help deliver this ambition Patrick McLoughlin announced the appointment of Terry Morgan CBE to develop a transport and infrastructure skills strategy, to help the transport industry ensure a continuous pipeline of skilled workers. Patrick McLoughlin said: “Training our rail and road workforce is essential if we want to build a transport network fit for the future. That is why I have invited Terry Morgan to join us in this vital work. “As the chairman of Crossrail, and the forthcoming National College for High Speed Rail, Terry has a track record of building skills in the transport sector. He is ideally positioned to work with industry to deliver a transport and infrastructure skills strategy. “I want to see every part of Britain benefiting from a growing economy and that is why our investment in transport won’t just help people get around, it will help them get on.” The skills strategy will set out how government and industry will: • deliver on its ambition for 30,000 appren- ticeships in roads and rail over the 5 years to 2020, working together with supply chain partners • ensure the right mix of apprenticeships are on offer, including many at higher levels with training in new technologies • explore upskilling the existing workforce to meet new challenges • encourage greater diversity in the workforce, in- cluding attracting more women into engineering • develop a co-ordinated national network of transport infrastructure skills colleges to train the transport workers of the future This work will sit alongside the government’s National Infrastructure Plan for Skills due to be published soon. Commenting on this announcement Terry Morgan said: “I’m really pleased to be leading this work. It’s vital that we develop the workforce of the future, ensuring the transport industry has the right people in the right place at the right time, and crucially with the right skills, to deliver this unprecedented programme of infrastructure work. I’m very much looking forward to working with colleagues across the road and rail in- dustry, and to leaving a legacy of skills for the future.” Across the country government and industry are investing to deliver the skills the industry needs. This includes: • the opening this autumn of the National Train- ing Academy for Rail (NTAR) in Northampton — a joint venture between Siemens and the National Skills Academy for Railway Engineer- ing (NSARE), co funded by government • the Crossrail tunnelling academy, which will now be the beacon academy for tunnelling across industry • Network Rail’s 7 national training centres, Larbert in Scotland, Walsall in the Midlands, Bristol in the west and Paddock Wood in the south, alongside Basingstoke, York and Swin- don, which will be completed in 2016 • the opening of the new National College for High Speed Rail in 2017 which will deliver high level technical qualifications • the Roads Academy programme to train the leaders of the future • Transport for London’s work with the London Transport Museum supporting schools initiatives, including Inspire Engineering Days and ongoing support for the Royal Greenwich University Technical College equipping the students with engineering skills and expertise — TfL has also invested £1 million in training facilities at its Acton Skills and Training Centre In support of today’s announcement Transport Sec- retary Patrick McLoughlin and Terry Morgan visited the newly constructed NTAR site in Northampton, which will open its doors to students this autumn. The academy will boost expertise and skills levels in rail engineering. Thousands of young people will gain vital training in specialist traction and rolling stock and many others will learn the skills they need to respond to new technology in the UK rail industry. Neil Robertson CEO of NSARE said: “Over 200,000 experienced staff currently run Britain’s railways. However, an ageing workforce together with a leap in the application of digital and modern technologies means there are now significant demands on the number and type of skills we need for the future. “The curriculum at the National Training Academy for Rail (NTAR), developed jointly by NSARE with Siemens, has been developed to provide advanced technical knowledge in traction and rolling stock as well as broader leadership, digital, and commercial skills to meet these changing demands. We welcome the government’s commitment to creating a workforce with the advanced skills now required in this industry.” Mark Carne, Network Rail Chief Executive said: “We need a highly skilled workforce to enable us to deliver our multi-billion pound railway upgrade plan and a network fit for the 21st century. That’s why we have a steadfast commitment to training and devel- oping everyone from apprentices and graduates to up-skilling our 35,000-strong workforce and others across the industry with the latest digital, technical and engineering skills. We know this investment pays off with 83% of the 2,000 apprentices trained since 2005 still working for us and contributing to a safer and better railway every day. “We’re also building for the future with a programme worth £37 million adding 3 new training centres across Britain, making a total of 7 which will be ca- pable of delivering 270,000 training days a year for Network Rail and 250 different railway companies.” Welcoming the announcement, Highways England Chief Executive Jim O’Sullivan said: “In order to triple the amount of investment going into England’s motorways and major A roads on an annual basis, from some £1.5 to over £4 billion, we’re going to need more industry specific skills available to us and within our business. “The certainty of capital funding over 5 years that comes with becoming a government-owned com- pany gives us and our supply chain the confidence to invest in people — attracting, retaining and developing capable people to deliver our expanding programme of work. An important part of this is the creation of apprenticeship opportunities across all disciplines so that we are building and maintaining a pipeline of talent into the sector.” News Lenscap Photography / Shutterstock.com