New training centres are opening across Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and Herefordshire over the coming weeks as part of a £2.5 million package to boost skills in the manufacturing, engineering and construction sectors.

The Government’s Net Zero Growth Plan predicts hundreds of thousands of new job opportunities in the coming years in areas such as heat pump installation and solar panel maintenance, as well as electric vehicle manufacturing and environmental consultancy.

To address staff and skills shortages in these areas, funding from the Government’s Local Skills Improvement Fund (LSIF) has been supplied to the Marches Education Partnership, with a particular focus on ‘green’ technologies.

The partnership consists of Herefordshire, Ludlow and North Shropshire College, Shrewsbury College and Telford College, working with local training providers Herefordshire and Worcestershire Group Training Association, In-Comm Training and SBC Training Services, and supported by Telford & Wrekin Council.

The money has been spent on new equipment and technology and the creation of 14 new training centres.

The centres are delivering new courses and teaching facilities, including workshops and refurbished classrooms fitted out with industry-standard equipment, working closely with local employers.

The courses address specific skills needs identified as priority sectors for the Marches in the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP), produced for the region by Shropshire Chamber of Commerce.

The LSIP highlighted significant shortages of manufacturing, engineering and maintenance staff in our region, and a need to upskill existing workers.

Projects coming on stream from the partners over the coming weeks include:

• Herefordshire Ludlow and North Shropshire College has made significant progress in the Engineering and Construction sectors, highlighted by the advancement of its automation facilities, with PLCs CNC lathes and mills, and extensive cyber-physical systems, which will provide development opportunities for new and existing students and apprentices. An upcoming launch of its innovative green technology solutions facilities will also be published soon.
• Shrewsbury College will be opening its new advanced fabrication and welding facility in October, complete with the very latest in robotic welding, laser cutters, and CNC press brakes. This expansion to their existing fabrication and welding facility means an even broader training offer for students and apprentices along with a wide range of bespoke upskilling courses to meet both individual and employer need.
• Telford College is launching 16 short courses, and engineers from local employers Muller and Denso engineers have begun sampling modules which focus on printed circuit board design and repair and micro soldering techniques. Robert Lees, director of construction and engineering, said: “They completed a six-hour short course involving foundation soldering and PCB design with a mix of theory and practical elements. The later courses will expand on this subject with more advanced knowledge and skills.”
• Herefordshire and Worcestershire Group Training Association has already opened a new Automation Workshop to host new training programmes, beginning this autumn with Introduction to Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC), Advanced PLC and Introduction to Robotics courses. Engineering apprentices will also use the new workshop.
• In-Comm Training is officially launching a state-of-the-art automation cell on at its technical academy in Telford. The £200,000 investment will feature a 6-axis ABB Industrial robot and bespoke conveyor system, recreating a real-world manufacturing line that will give learners access to component nesting and sensing, robotic operation, PLC programming and interfacing systems. The Level 3 and Level 4 modular courses introduce staff to new technologies and help them gain technical skills to boost productivity.

The aim of the Marches Education Partnership is to ensure that people seeking careers or looking to upskill for career development can access improved skills training, helping them secure good jobs closer to home.

The Partnership says: “We want to prepare the future workforce by developing a skills training response to include appropriate digital, electronics, electrical, mechanical, and technical skills to expand and maintain automated production facilities.”