The National Infrastructure Commission paid a visit to CATCH this week to discuss levelling up the industries around the Humber Estuary.
They were particularly interested in the opportunities for a bright future which are offered by our technical training facility, the National Centre for Process and Manufacturing (NCPM), a joint venture between Reynolds Training Services Ltd and CATCH.
Here at Reynolds Training, we have always maintained the value of skills and education in levelling up both our area and our industry. For twelve years, we have been actively involved in promoting the importance of developing skills and knowledge for future generations. This is the philosophy behind everything we do, including our ongoing support and investment in the NCPM.
John Reynolds, Managing Director of Reynolds Training, said:
“The NCPM offers a wide range of opportunities particularly within the knowledge and skills development for the energy sector. It was great to be invited by David Talbot (CEO of CATCH) to outline the core attributes of the system and key partnership that we are developing between CATCH/Reynolds Training to the National Infrastructure Commission”
This is all part of a nationwide campaign dedicated to levelling up key industrial areas outside of London. The attention and investment this region has already received demonstrates the key role we continue to play in the nation’s infrastructure.
On July 15th, this year, the Prime Minister gave his ‘levelling up’ speech. In it, he detailed the government’s commitment to offering growth opportunities to people all across Britain.
As he said:
“Everyone knows that talent and energy and enthusiasm and flair are evenly spread across the UK … and it is the mission of this government to unite and level up across the whole UK not just because that is morally right but because if we fail then we are simply squandering vast reserves of human capital. We are failing to allow people to fulfil their potential and we are holding our country back.
There’s no denying that the entire nation is full of people who could build fine careers and fantastic futures for themselves, if they did but get the opportunities.
The Humber Estuary has been spotlighted in this because it plays – and will continue to play – a hugely significant role in the nation’s infrastructure. This means that the industries around the Humber will offer fantastic opportunities to people with the right knowledge and skills.
Back in 2018, Grimsby signed the first ‘Town Deal’, which promised a staggering £60m of investment.
Sir John Armitt, chair of the National Infrastructure Commission, said: “That Town Deal was founded on four very clear and still very relevant areas of focus: providing economic growth; accelerating housing delivery; town centre and port regeneration and education and skills.”
Commissioner Neale Coleman – of the National Infrastructure Commission – further highlighted the national importance of the entire Humber Estuary region – the so-called ‘Energy Estuary’:
“Across the Humber at the moment we have potential for huge and exciting economic growth, with agendas around wind energy, industrial decarbonisation, hydrogen…” and he went on to detail how the companies involved in delivering this exciting future need to be committed to communicating with the local region: “…they need to be in dialogue locally because we want to make sure as they expand, as new jobs are created, local communities really do feel the benefit of that.”
To play an important and long-term role in the evolution of the energy sector, we need to ensure that people entering the job market have the necessary skills and competencies to thrive in this industry – and in this region – for decades to come. Similarly, those already in the industry deserve to receive the leadership and training they need to adapt and thrive as the industry evolves.
That is why we, at Reynolds Training, are committed to helping our learners build a worklife-long career for themselves, rather than just training them to get a job for now.
Here at Reynolds Training, we feel that everyone involved in education and training has always been engaged in levelling up – in giving people the tools they need to find and make the most of great career opportunities. It’s great to see a national commitment to this – and even better that this rhetoric is backed-up by significant financial investment.
Read more about the visit from the National Infrastructure Commission and the opportunities it affords to the region, here.
To learn more about the range of courses we offer, check out our full list, here.
