Government pilot gives employers more control over skills training

Steve Bratt, CEO of the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA), has welcomed today’s announcement from the prime minister that a £250m fund will be made available to employers over the next two years. The fund will enable employers to design, develop and purchase vocational training programmes which they actually need.

Bratt said: “Skills are integral to the growth of our economy, so this new pilot should offer the government a strong return on investment. By making training options employer-led, firms can ensure that their workers have the skills required. Currently, businesses are shouldering the cost of training but this is a huge strain, especially for SMEs, given the current economic climate and particularly in sectors such as electrical, where an apprenticeship takes three years to complete.

“However, the government must ensure that approved applications represent a real benefit to businesses by providing meaningful, hands-on work experience, and industry-recognised qualifications.”

Bratt added: “The ECA recently launched a campaign called ‘Wired for Success’ which aims to make the electrical industry more accessible to women – who currently constitute less than one per cent of our industry. Traditional training routes can act as a barrier to entry, but Wired for Success has created a flexible training model. We believe this programme is a blueprint for success which can be applied across other sectors and hope that money can be drawn down to fund innovative initiatives such as this.”
For more information on Wired for Success, please visit the website or follow the campaign on Twitter: @wiredforsuccess, or watch the video on YouTube: