Member Article

Cash boost to retrain former SSI workers

More than 450 former SSI workers have completed retraining programmes at a Teesside college in a bid to find employment.

The Thai-owned company put its loss-making UK subsidiary into liquidation last month, triggering around 2,200 redundancies and hundreds of additional job losses in the local supply chain.

The SSI workers have successfully completed courses at Redcar & Cleveland College, gaining new skills in a variety of disciplines including health and safety, leadership and management.

A total of 241 workers came through the nationally accredited Client Contractor National Safety Group (CCNSG) Site Safety Passport course, which has given them a good grounding in health and safety for work in the petrochemical, engineering and installation and maintenance sectors.

Meanwhile, 30 workers gained their Institution of Occupational Safety and Health Working Safely certificate, which demonstrates their competence in preventing and dealing with workplace hazards.

Ninety three people completed the CCNSG Leading a Team Safely course, which is ideal for supervisory staff and lone workers with responsibility for teams, while 92 people successfully came through the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), which has given them a nationally recognised qualification that demonstrates their competency to work in the industry.

The college will receive Government funding to put former SSI staff and those from the supply chain through courses that will help them get a job. An open evening will take place at the college on Wednesday, December 9 (5-7pm); this will include re-training and upskilling for those affected by the SSI closure.

John Chance, acting principal of Redcar & Cleveland College, said: “We are hoping to retrain hundreds of former SSI workers left without a job following the closure of the Redcar steelworks. We are delighted to secure this funding package; it will help workers gain valuable new skills that will be useful to prospective employers.”

The college is tapping into its vast network of partnerships with local employers to discover which skills they require. The training packages are then being tailored to match the needs of industry with the skills and aptitudes of the students – a move that will give them a better chance of finding work.

Mr Chance said: “The closure of the steelworks has had a huge impact on Redcar and the wider North East region. As a vocational training provider our job is to offer a varied range of courses that equip former SSI staff with the skills that employers in the area want. To give us the best chance of achieving this we are working with the local task force and other key partners, including TTE who will help us deliver these training programmes.”

For further information, please contact please call 01642 473 132 or visit http://www.cleveland.ac.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Redcar & Cleveland College .