A project that ensures Staveley residents can develop the skills they need to have great careers and bright futures has been given the green light.
The Construction Skills Hub will provide a practical platform for construction training, careers activity and work experience on a live construction site in Mastin Moor. Over ten years, it aims to provide training, careers insights, and work experience for over 5,000 learners.
The Skills Hub is one of the eleven projects that will be funded by the £25.2m Staveley Town Deal. Following formal Government sign-off, work to secure a training provider and develop the site can begin.
Councillor Tricia Gilby, leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “This is a fantastic project for Staveley as it will help residents to access the training they need to secure good quality jobs.
“It serves as a great example of what we hope to achieve through the Staveley Town Deal – the creation of new opportunities, open to all. We can now start to work towards delivering this project and encouraging people to register their interest.”
Initially the Skills Hub will provide training in site and bench joinery, brickwork, ground works and electrical installation but in time the offer will expand to include training in retrofit and green technologies. It will be open to school leavers and other residents seeking to train or retrain.
There will also be a careers insight programme, which will be developed in collaboration with local schools, and opportunities for work experience to help young people make informed decisions about their futures.
The project has received support from local construction companies.
Ivan Fomin, chair of the Staveley Town Deal Board, said: “Establishing the right connections between construction companies, training providers and local people from the outset will be key to the success of this project. It is critical that the training provided meets the needs of the sector. We want Staveley to be a place where everyone has the opportunity to succeed – to start, to stay and to grow.”
A site has already been identified for the Construction Skills Hub in collaboration with the Devonshire Group who will be bringing forward a new housing development in Mastin Moor from the Autumn. This will allow trainees to develop their skills on a live housing site whilst in time there will also be opportunities to gain experience on other Staveley Town Deal construction projects.
A training provider will shortly be appointed to deliver the skills packages and operate the Hub. The provider will help influence how the Hub is developed to ensure that the space and facilities are optimised to meet the needs of learners and the sector.
The first cohort of learners will be engaged from September 2022 with the training compound expected to be fully operational from September 2023.
Staveley is set to benefit from £25.2 million of investment through the Town Deal. This investment will support eleven different projects across the town and provide a once in a lifetime opportunity to help shape the future by improving transport links, creating new housing, providing skills for local people, enhancing community facilities, and regenerating the town centre.
