EMPLOYER FORUM SHOWCASES T LEVELS TO HELP BUILD FUTURE WORKFORCE

Captions: Dawn Helsby sitting in front of a T Levels sign

Businesses across the region are being invited to join a forum due to address the skills training agenda and learn how to strengthen their future workforce against a backdrop of increasing pressure within the labour market.

North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College (NWSLC) is set to showcase the introduction of the new T Level qualifications and will also call on employers for their support in offering industry placements for students across multiple industry sectors.

The forum, due to be held online on Thursday 5 May 2022, will enable employers to discover how the college can help to deliver the skills that specific sectors require, from logistics and supply chain to automotive and the digital and creative industries.

As well as highlighting the new T Levels, the employer forum will showcase the college’s range of apprenticeships, online and distance learning, professional and short courses and CPD across a range of sectors and subjects.

T Levels are two-year courses that have been developed in collaboration with 250 employers and businesses so that the content meets the needs of industry and prepares students for work.

They are high quality technical alternatives to A Levels that combine classroom theory and practical learning with a work placement to make sure that students have the skills they need to progress and help to rebuild the economy. NWSLC offers T Levels in various subject areas including business, digital and manufacturing.

Marion Plant, OBE FCGI, Principal and Chief Executive of NWSLC said, “The introduction of T Levels represents the biggest shake up of technical education in a generation. Individuals who are qualified with a T Level will be equipped with the inside knowledge and practical skills that employers need, providing them with a great start to their careers.

“At NWSLC, we are getting ready to offer these new qualifications for the first time in September 2022 and urge employers to make a commitment to offering the vital industry placements that will make help to them a success.”

The labour market in the UK is buoyant with a 76 per cent employment rate and businesses are finding recruitment of skilled individuals challenging. Employers are increasingly reviewing remuneration packages, offering flexible hours, and opportunities to work partially or fully from home, as well as providing access to additional benefits such as private healthcare and wellbeing services.

Marion Plant added, “One of the most attractive benefits that employers can offer is training; ensuring that their staff gain the proper skills alongside accreditation that will boost their future careers and enable them to progress.”

North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College supports around 8,000 students in full and part time study, apprenticeships, higher education, professional courses, and distance learning from seven campuses that serve the urban centres of Nuneaton, Hinckley and Wigston. The college works with more than 500 national, regional, and local businesses across a wide range of sectors including more than 350 organisations operating apprenticeship programmes.

NWSLC has developed sector-specific partnerships between industry and education including the MIRA Technology Institute, a specialist automotive training facility that is helping to create specialist skills in some of the new emerging technology areas within the automotive sector, including electrification and driverless cars. The college operates its Digital Skills Academy based in Coventry which is designed to deliver specialist digital skills training in areas such as cyber security and software development. The logistics and supply chain sector is set to benefit from a dedicated new Centre for Logistics Education and Research based at Magna Park in Lutterworth.

Employers can register here to join the forum.