London South East Colleges leading the way to construction excellence

High quality construction training at London South East Colleges has been recognised by the Mayor of London and awarded ‘hub status’ as part of the Mayor’s new Construction Academy.

As one of just seven providers in London to have been selected for the programme, the college has been awarded £166,000 to further develop its construction training and ensure that the provision being delivered is wholly responsive to employers’ needs.

The Mayor has launched his Construction Academy scheme as part of the Skills for Londoners initiative last year. Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration and Skills, Jules Pipe, announced the seven selected hubs at the MCA Hubs’ Stakeholder Networking Event, which took place at City Hall.

The initiative will support the delivery of high-quality construction training in the Capital, to address the huge skills gap the industry is facing.

The main aims of the hubs are to:

• Improve the supply of in-demand construction skills
• Scale up and extend what is already working well across the capital
• Intensify local collaboration, particularly between SMEs and skills training providers

The ‘hub status’ accolade comes after the College was awarded a Quality Mark by the Mayor for its construction provision, earlier this year as part of the MCA programme.

Today’s MCA networking event featured a number of stakeholders who are working with the London South East Colleges Hub, including: Berkeley Homes, Build London and Lewisham Southwark College.

Sam Parrett OBE, Principal and CEO of London South East Colleges, says:

“We are leading the way in construction skills development across the region and are delighted to have this recognised by the Mayor of London.

“Being awarded ‘hub status’ and becoming part of the Mayor’s Construction Academy will ensure that we can continue to innovate, invest in and further develop our construction skills provision, supporting young people and employers. This includes the work we are doing in Bexley to help create the pioneering Place and Making Institute.

“Collaboration and partnership is a key theme for us in all the work we do, across all sectors. We look forward to working with the Mayor and the other hubs to help address the skills shortage being faced by the construction industry –while many new and exciting career opportunities will be created. 

London South East Colleges offers a wide range of construction courses across Bromley, Bexley and Greenwich. Click here for more information about courses available. 

For more information about the Mayor’s Construction Academy, click here.