Partnership between construction training experts The Skills Centre and major contractor O’Halloran & O’Brien creates 1,000 jobs in London

Leading construction training specialist The Skills Centre, has partnered with major building contractor O’Halloran & O’Brien to attract 1,000 people to new jobs on various construction projects around the Greater London area.

A free, three-week, industry-led construction training programme will be offered when lockdown ends to all that apply, together with a guaranteed job interview for work on a number of major London building projects. All the project sites are still open and have strict Covid-safe protocols in place to ensure working on site is not just productive but also protects all workers.

Jon Howlin, Chief Executive of The Skills Centre, said that in a year that has rocked the construction industry, as well as the economy as a whole, it is great to launch this scheme to help those who may have been made redundant or who are looking for work in construction: “It has been great to partner with the O’Halloran & O’Brien on this project, and we encourage those who have been dealt a bad hand in the past few months to consider this chance for a new career.

“The pandemic has decimated many industries such as hospitality, aerospace and manufacturing, to name but a few. What we are offering here is an amazing chance for people of all ages and from all walks of life to get free, top-notch training with our experienced construction experts though our site-ready programme. Not only that, but candidates are also guaranteed a job interview at the end of it. Some of the jobs may even turn into full apprenticeships.”

All those who complete and pass the three-week course will get a Green Labourers CSCS card, Level 1 Award in Health & Safety in a Construction Environment, and Construction health and safety certificates (including manual handling). Following the training, they will be guaranteed a job interview for one of the thousand jobs on offer – including shuttering-carpenters, steel-fixers, pipe-layers, ground-workers and strikers throughout the Greater London area.

Martyn Price MBE, Workforce Development Director from O’Halloran & O’Brien Ltd and Chairman of the Cross-Industry Construction Apprenticeship Task Force, said: “The industry really needs investment in new people joining the sector and so we are incredibly excited to see this programme begin. Our commitment to training is the bedrock of our business and builds on our strong foundations to deliver a safe, competent and qualified workforce for the future, and we look forward to strengthening the construction workplace with well-trained new recruits through this fantastic joint initiative with The Skills Centre.”

The initiative is supported by the Construction Skills Fund, which was established in October 2018 to train a site-ready workforce to meet the needs of the construction industry.

The £20 million Construction Skills Fund (CSF) comprises £17 million from the Department for Education (DfE) and £3 million from Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). In its first year of operation the CSF helped create 26 new on-site training hubs across England, of which 14 of the hubs have been approved to continue operating to June 2021.

CITB’s Strategy and Policy Director Steve Radley said: “The creation of 1,000 new construction jobs in London would be a fantastic achievement as the country continues to deal with the pandemic, and every one of those 1,000 jobs will mark a turning point in that new recruit’s life. Construction urgently needs skilled new workers to build the houses, hospitals and infrastructure Britain needs to rebuild its economy, so congratulations to The Skills Centre and O’Halloran & O’Brien in providing this brilliant initiative.”

The training take place in six different centres across London and the South east, in Brixton, Barnet, Bermondsey, Earls Court, Elephant and Castle and Gravesend.

Anyone interested in applying should go to https://theskillscentre.co.uk/welcome-to-a-new-start-in-construction