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Vince Cable announces multi-million National College for Wind Energy for Humber area

Business Secretary Vince Cable has announced that a new National College for Wind Energy will be established in the Humber region.

The Humber Local Enterprise Partnership and RenewableUK have welcomed the announcement of the first National College dedicated to renewable energy in the UK.

The college will provide a ‘hub’ for skills, training and education initiatives. In addition, there will be a network of partners providing education and training across the UK.

The primary focus of the Humber ‘hub’ will be offshore wind, where a large growth in skills is needed.

The college is set to open its doors in late 2016, and will award new and mature students with professional qualifications and short courses (post A-level equivalent) in addition to programmes directed and sponsored by employers.

Recent research provides evidence that employers in the renewables sector are already experiencing skills gaps across wind and marine energy technologies, with 37% experiencing hard-to-fill vacancies.

Skills Minister Nick Boles said: “Helping young people acquire advanced technical skills for the industries of the future is vitally important. National Colleges are an essential part of our long term economic plan.

“The Humber is the natural choice for the HQ of the new National College for Wind Energy. Through the College, Government and industry are investing in the people who will create local jobs and prosperity for the region.

“By arming people with the skills they need to be energy specialists we can provide career opportunities for thousands of young Britons, boost the competitiveness of British firms and help the UK economy remain strong for the future.”

Lord Haskins, chair of the Humber LEP said: “This is a major step forward in achieving the ambition we set out in March for the Humber to be the national centre of excellence for energy skills, and builds on the other investments we are making training facilities.

“We worked closely with Government, industry and education to develop the National College proposal which will focus on delivering excellence in teaching, learning and assessment, underpinned by quality standards set by employers to reflect the sector’s skills needs.”

RenewableUK’s chief executive, Maria McCaffrey, said: “This is an exciting day for wind energy in this country and a cause for celebration.

“We need to ensure we maximise the extraordinary rise of green jobs in the UK; the growth in much-needed wind projects onshore and offshore has created a real demand for new skills and training as the sector goes from strength to strength.

“The college’s launch means we are one step closer to ensuring our global lead in offshore wind is reflected in home-grown skills as well”.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .