Future looks bright at Scottish Apprenticeship Week
Once again, SECTT played a vital role in this year’s Scottish Apprenticeship Week, as MSPs met the electricians of tomorrow and learned how our industry is in safe hands
Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2019 was a huge success, giving the Scottish Electrical Charitable Training Trust (SECTT) the chance to showcase its wide range of work.
The event recognises the high-quality training we manage on behalf of the Scottish Joint Industry Board (SJIB), and I was delighted to organise a number of MSP visits on behalf of the Scottish Government through Skills Development Scotland.
One such visit saw the SNP’s Gil Paterson visit Dieselec Thistle Generators in Glasgow, where Head of Training and Development David McDougall introduced him to the pre-apprentices recruited prior to being placed on the Electrical Installation Modern Apprenticeship.
Mr Paterson said: “I was very impressed with the opportunities presented for the apprentices at Dieselec Thistle. The future for apprentices in the company looks extremely rosy indeed, with very high skilled jobs in a very technical orientated sector.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with my visit and seeing for myself the great work that’s being done by all involved, from the training to the employers to the providers.”
David added: “It’s good to see like-minded people looking to the same goal for our youth and Scottish business. We’re also looking to the future and know we must grow our talent pool.”
Another MSP visit saw the SNP’s John Mason meet youngsters at McArthur Renewables & Marine Technologies Ltd in Glasgow.
CEO Richard Oswell showed him around, revealing that he felt a great sense of accomplishment when apprentices passed their FICA and became graded electricians.
He also said that despite McArthur Renewables’s specialist work, the apprenticeship framework gave a good grounding on which to build.
The third MSP visit of the week saw Conservative politician Adam Tomkins drop in to Kelvin Controls, who are also based in Glasgow.
Managing Director Chris Kelly, who accompanied the MSP during his visit, told him: “Apprenticeships help our business in creating skilled labour for the future.”
The MSP also met trainee Connor Hogg, who said he was really enjoying his apprenticeship as it was a great opportunity to learn a good trade.
Afterwards, Mr Tomkins said: “Apprenticeships make a vital contribution to skills training in Scotland. Skilled labour is essential to drive the economy forward and we certainly could not do that without Modern Apprenticeships.”
On a personal level, I’d like to thank all the employers and apprentices that took part in Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2019. Roll on 2020!
For further information about SECTT and its work, visit www.sectt.org.uk call 0131 445 5659 or email admin@sectt.org.uk
