News in Full

Scotland’s future builders and decorators receive state-of-the-art training centre

29 October 2008

Edinburgh’s Telford College officially opened its ‘Construction Centre of Excellence’ at the Forthside Building on West Shore Road on Wednesday 29 October 2008.  Maureen Watt, Minister for Schools and Skills carried out the official opening with Telford College’s principal, Dr Ray Harris, to over 100 invited guests.

With over £7 billion in the construction pipeline in Edinburgh alone, Scotland’s construction industry will be given a much needed training boost.

The new state-of-the-art training centre has been developed by the College in partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council and the capital’s Construction Academy in reaction to a growing industry need for more construction training in Scotland, especially within traditional skills courses.

Telford College’s Construction Centre of Excellence will be the leading provider of specialist construction training in the country as the new centre houses world-class training facilities for up to 700 apprentices and 200 adult learners each year who will be able to learn a wider than ever range of modern and traditional construction courses, with support from Historic Scotland.

Dr Ray Harris, principal at Edinburgh’s Telford College, explained:  “With numerous large construction projects either in the pipeline or already being built, there is a real need for more highly qualified professionals within the construction industry.  In recent years we have witnessed a substantial increase in the number of applications to attend Telford College so this new facility is a much needed addition to our offering.

“The new working arrangements with the Construction Academy allows us to work closer with contractors and employees and with the improved facilities we now have, we are able to respond quickly to their needs and provide relevant training for future needs.  In addition, by the end of the year the College-Council partnership will have in operation the only plant training site in Scotland which will be able to provide students within the utilities, general building, highways / road building industries with site supervisory and site management experience and use plant machinery such as JCBs, road rollers and dumper trucks.”

As part of the opening event, developers, Waterfront Edinburgh Ltd, National Grid Property and Forth Ports will join City of Edinburgh Council, Skills Development Scotland, Forth Neighbourhood Partnership and the Construction Academy to formally sign the Edinburgh Waterfront Partnership Accord.  The Accord aims to ensure that developments within the Edinburgh Waterfront benefit local communities by providing skills, training, employment and business opportunities.  Since 2005, over 700 people have been placed into work both at the waterfront and across the city, and skills training has been provided for more that 200 people from the disadvantaged areas of the city including Pilton and Muirhouse.

The new partnership arrangement between Edinburgh’s Telford College and the City of Edinburgh Council’s City Development Department will see even more training places available in the north of the city.  By working together and pooling the resources of the School of Building and Engineering with Capital Skills and the Construction Academy the partnership will increase training capacity by 20% and will be able to offer a more comprehensive service to employers and developers.

Maureen Watt MSP stated:  “The new training facility has been developed in reaction to a growing industry need for more construction training in Scotland.  This is the best training facility in Scotland and I am delighted that Edinburgh’s Telford College along with its partners have made this level of investment and demonstrated such a clear commitment towards improving skills in our construction industry.”

Maureen Watt continued:  “Likewise, this Government is working hard to deliver higher levels of sustainable economic growth for the benefit of all and having a willing, able and adaptable workforce is central to those efforts, as is a buoyant construction industry.”

Cllr Jenny Dawe, Leader of the City of Edinburgh Council said:  “In these challenging times, it is vital that the Council works hard with partners and business leaders to ensure that our economy is robust and capable of riding the storm.  This world-class centre is a clear sign of our continuing investment in skills and our infrastructure, which will help put Edinburgh in the very best position possible.  Our workforce is already one of the most highly qualified in the country, and this centre will make sure we are one of the best skilled in construction.

“Edinburgh has been very successful over the years, and we are committed to doing our utmost to ensure that businesses, students and residents all have a bright future.  There is still cause for optimism.  There are billions of pounds of investment planned or already ongoing in Edinburgh, and the Council has recently announced innovative plans to possibly acquire land or housing units from private developers for affordable housing.”