Hydrogen Safe, the specialist training provider working with colleges and industry to equip people with the skills they need to work safely with hydrogen, has announced it has secured a five-figure match-funded commitment from the Swansea Bay City Deal Skills and Talent Programme.
Securing £90,462, which will be match-funded by industry and public sector, Hydrogen Safe will produce exclusive digital assets to be used in learning environments, enhance its Level 1 Award in Introduction to Hydrogen Safety Practices course and work with industry experts to develop the Level 2 course.
Furthermore, it will deliver training to 100 people to provide the skills and knowledge that they need to work safely with hydrogen and access the opportunities that are becoming increasingly evident from the green energy sector.
Founding Director and CEO of Hydrogen Safe, Andy Lord, comments: “Securing this funding means that we can provide more people in Wales with access to the skills that they need to work safely with hydrogen.
“It also supports us as a conduit between education and industry, working with experts to ensure that we deliver the specialist training provision needed to access jobs in the green energy sector, while also opening up the green economy.
“With progressive funds like this in place, we can meet with the skills gap that we have and put the talent in place that we will need as we transition to more sustainable ways of working in Wales.”
Jane Lewis, Regional Partnership Manager for Swansea Bay City Deal Skills and Talent Programme, comments: “The City Deal Skills and Talent Programme has been designed to stimulate and sustain investment and economic activity in the region. With support from specialist training providers, such as Hydrogen Safe, we can create a legacy of new skills provision.
“Through these pilot projects, we are supporting and facilitating the developments of skills, training and career pathways that do not currently exist.”
The City Deal Skills and Talent Programme is led by four regional local authorities; Carmarthenshire Council; Swansea Council; Neath Port Talbot Council; and Pembrokeshire Council – together with the Swansea Bay and Hywel Dda University Health Boards; Swansea University; the University of Wales Trinity Saint David; and private sector partners.
With nine key programmes of work, each based around a core development theme, the Skills and Talent programme has been designed to service and support the other eight. Operating across five key sectors of the Region’s economy, it will target construction, digital skills, energy, health and wellbeing and smart manufacturing.
Members of Hydrogen UK; the Hydrogen Energy Association; the Hydrogen Skills Alliance; and NPTC Group of Colleges, Net Zero Skills Advisory Board, Hydrogen Safe works with businesses, education providers and individuals to deliver courses that meet with their specific objectives and sustainability goals.
