Marine sector backs Semta’s Skills Agreement launch
A skills blueprint for the UK’s marine
sector, drawn up by Sector Skills Council, Semta, will be launched
by Skills Minister, Phil Hope, this evening at a special event in
Westminster.
Organised by the Skills for Business network, the reception will
highlight the progress made by Semta and fellow SSCs in developing
Sector Skills Agreements for their sectors. Stakeholders in the
marine sector will be among those invited to the event which will
be addressed by Mr Hope and Lord Sandy Leitch, Chair of the Leitch
Review of Skills.
Semta’s Marine Sector Skills Agreement (SSA) is the culmination
of an in-depth analysis of the sector and detailed consultation
with a broad range of marine representatives over the last three
years. It sets out the skills the marine sector needs to sustain
growth and competitiveness in the years ahead and identifies how
those skills will be supplied. The agreement has the backing of the
24-strong Marine Sector Strategy Group (SSG), whose membership of
employers, professional and trade associations and trade unions led
its development.
Marine SSG member, Rachel Tonucci, Head of Organisation &
Capability Development at BAE Systems Submarines, said: "The
Marine Sector Skills Agreement is most certainly demand-led. To
achieve this Semta has avoided taking a lead role for employers to
follow, but instead done a first-class job in facilitating the
industry to be the drivers of their own policy. The SSA will
continue to develop best practice for the sector’s training and
developmental requirements, allowing companies to share and benefit
from each others’ experiences and apply best practice in their own
organisations. Alongside this, we should also start to see
economies of scale, with high levels of provision reflecting best
practice amongst training providers."
Semta’s Marine Sector Skills Agreement envisages a decade of
growth in the sector with the Government’s £9.5 billion spend on
new warships and export-led expansion in the leisure boat building
and boat repair yards. It forecasts an extra 4,000 jobs will be
needed in the naval yards in the next five years as the warships
work approaches its peak while an extra 1,000 craft workers will be
needed in boat building as the UK improves its share of the growing
worldwide yacht building market. The sector directly employs 57,000
people in ship building, boat building and marine equipment supply
and is worth £1.9 billion to GDP.
Lynn Tomkins, Semta’s Director of Operations, said: “This
agreement comes at a time when there are unique and growing
opportunities for the marine sector, not only for our naval yards
undertaking the biggest ever order placed by the Government, but
also for our boat builders, boat repair yards and equipment
manufacturers. We hope it will be a skills map which allows
employers to take advantage of an expanding market by accessing
high-quality training and education to deliver the skills that will
keep Britain at the cutting edge of technology.”
Ends
Media contact: Elaine Essery, tel: 01229 716129, email:
Elaine Essery
Notes to editors:
1. As a Sector Skills Council licensed by government, Semta is
the employer-led organisation at the heart of the skills agenda for
Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies in the UK. The
sectors we represent are: Aerospace, Automotive, Bioscience,
Electrical, Electronics, Maintenance, Marine, Mathematics,
Mechanical, Metals and Science. Our role is to the raise skills
levels and competitiveness in the 100,000 companies and
2million-strong workforce that make up these sectors.
2. Employers represented on the Marine Sector Strategy Group and
backing the Sector Skills Agreement include: BAE Systems Marine
Ltd, BAE Systems Submarines, Babcock Engineering Services, DML,
Fleet Support Ltd, Sealine International Ltd, Swan Hunter Ltd, VT
Shipbuilding.
3. The Marine SSA follows similar agreements Semta has
facilitated for the aerospace and electronics sectors.