PRIME Minister Boris Johnson officially opened Severn Trent’s brand new training academy on the outskirts of Coventry yesterday.
The academy is part of ST’s £10million investment in skills and training and will offer opportunities to young people, giving them the chance to gain valuable employability skills and training.
Mr Johnson, who was joined by Secretary of State for the Department of Work and Pensions, Thérèse Coffey MP, spoke about helping communities ‘bounce back stronger’ from the pandemic and met with the water provider’s ‘Kickstarters’ and apprentices.
The ‘Kickstarters’ are the first of 500 young people, aged between 16 and 24 who Severn Trent will employ over the next 12 months.
The PM said: “I was delighted to visit Severn Trent today, who are leading the way in building back better from the pandemic by delivering world-class training via our Kickstart scheme.
“Their brilliant Academy will support thousands of people in the West Midlands to gain the skills they need to secure, long-term jobs and to take a step towards brighter futures.”
Ms Coffey added: “Severn Trent are investing £10million in this country’s future through this new state of the art training academy for young people and it’s fantastic news for Coventry as we build back better.
“Young people have been particularly hard hit by the pandemic but have done their bit by putting their lives on hold to protect their loved ones and friends.
“Now they need a helping hand getting that first job – which is where our Kickstart Scheme comes in.”
She added Kickstart had created almost 200,000 vacancies exclusively for young people and 16,500 placements had already started.
Liv Garfield, Chief Executive at Severn Trent said: “It’s absolutely fantastic to officially open our academy, and be able to share it with our people and our wonderful customers and our communities.
“We know coronavirus has massively affected people in a number of ways, and unemployment is unfortunately one of them.
“We absolutely want to help change that, so by sharing our brand new academy, we’re going to be able to provide valuable skills and training for those who need it most, helping more people get back into work across our region.
“By opening our doors to our communities and allowing them to take advantage of our wonderful new facility, we’re hopeful we can play a key role in creating more opportunities and do our bit to help the region bounce back.”
As well as supporting communities, the brand new academy will also be used by Severn Trent’s own people, providing a variety of training, using traditional and experimental learning, to cater for the needs of its 7,000 work force.
Virtual reality, technical training, operational rigs and traditional classroom based learning are just some of the ways Severn Trent has invested in its Academy, to make sure its people are deliver the best service for its 8million customers.
