A new strategy to bring 221,000 new recruits into the utilities sector by 2027 to help ensure that customers will continue to get the essential services they require in the future has received the backing of UK water companies.
The new Energy & Utilities Skills Partnership, consisting of utilities industry leaders, has been formed to build and launch the first ever joint Workforce Renewal and Skills Strategy for the sector. This has been done in an effort to ensure that the UK’s vital utilities sector retains a safe, skilled, resilient and sustainable workforce.
The Strategy sets out everything in one place, and includes immediate initiatives that are currently underway, the reality of the challenges faced, and the ambitions the Skills Partnership shares in moving towards achieving a more sustainable future.
The immediate focus is on 2020, and is set to evolve as the Skills Partnership and the industry works together with interest groups, key stakeholders and other sectors to deliver an all-encompassing programme of change and cooperation.
Michael Roberts, Chief Executive of Water UK, said: “The water sector, like others, needs continuously to improve to meet our customers’ expectations for providing water services safely, affordably and responsibly.
“It is therefore essential that we upskill our current people and attract the very best young talent for the future, and the Workforce Renewal and Skills Strategy is a powerful initiative to help us do that.”
The Energy & Utilities Skills Partnership has already begun taking action and has already obtained a commitment from 20 utility-based businesses to a new 1-year pilot programme that aims to encourage individuals to take up a career in the industry in order to develop a substantial future talent pool for the sector.
The object of the Talent Source Network is to professionals who are looking for new opportunities or to retrain as well as to aid employers to access hard-to-reach and diverse individuals.
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