Property Awards win for South West sustainable engineering consultants

MEMBER NEWS Exeter Airport looks to 2023 with confidence

Exeter Airport is looking to 2023 with confidence after a strong performance over the summer which saw the airport handle 50,000 passengers in August for the first time in three years.

Overall the airport expects to have seen 400,000 passengers through the terminal this year as it continues to bounce back from the impacts of the pandemic and the loss of Flybe in 2020 which used to account for 80% of the airport’s business.

It has now secured new airline partners for all but three of the airport’s prepandemic routes with 28 destinations in nine countries and continues to focus on securing new operators for the remaining destinations of Manchester, Paris and Amsterdam as the domestic and international air travel markets recover.

A highlight of this year’s recovery has been the introduction of new transatlantic services from Exeter to New York, Boston, Chicago, Washington and Toronto, via Dublin with Emerald Airlines and Aer Lingus.

Passengers flying to the US can buy a single ticket which includes baggage transfer and pre-clearance for US immigration at Dublin Airport before they fly. Dublin is one of only a few airports outside North America with a US pre-clearance facility. Inbound passengers are treated as domestic arrivals in the US, and so avoid any lengthy immigration queues when they land stateside.

Exeter Airport managing director Stephen Wiltshire said: “We are proud of the considerable strides made at Exeter Airport following the twin challenges of the pandemic and FlyBe, with steadily increasing passenger numbers this year. We’re working hard to fill any gaps in our pre--covid schedule and attract new routes like North America to give passengers even more choice.

“Regional airports continue to offer a compelling alternative to the larger hubs with a combination of shorter airport journey times, reduced security and passport control congestion and great customer service providing passengers with a more convenient, speedier and less stressful travel experience.”

For 2023 the airport is expecting to see numbers continue to rise. Loganair has already confirmed that it is doubling its Edinburgh route to twice daily from next June, for example, as operators respond to increasing demand. Exeter offers a range of UK and international destinations including Aberdeen, Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Guernsey, Isles of Scilly, Jersey and Newcastle, with holiday flights to Greece, Spain, Turkey, Cyprus, France and Lapland. www.exeter-airport.co.uk

Property Awards win for leading South West sustainable engineering consultants

South-West engineering consultants, Services Design Solution Ltd (SDS) has achieved further recognition as a leader in sustainable business, winning the Sustainability Award at the Exeter Property Awards.

Following a year of award-winning success, including the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development, the SDS team is celebrating this latest achievement and recognition of the company’s commitment to the community and environment.

The Sustainability award recognises a company that has delivered multiple ecofriendly projects, pushing the boundaries of design and ethics with consideration to environmental impact, lifecycle, sustainability, and the Exeter community.

The judging panel said that SDS showed “strong expertise in sustainability in many forms of property. Its stand out achievements include zero-carbon design on the Passivhaus multi-faith centre and consulting work on the Exeter Deaf Academy.”

James Laughlin, Regional Director for Exeter at Services Design Solution Ltd said: “We’re delighted to have won the Sustainability Award. Not only does this award recognise the eco-conscious projects that we have delivered, but it also supports us in continuing to celebrate our commitment to being a sustainable engineering consultancy, reflecting our commitment to the environment and our community.

As advocates of the government’s ambition to achieve the UK’s 2050 Net Zero commitment to deliver greener facilities for the future, SDS has presented to local and central government bodies on Net Zero Carbon strategies and advised on carbon reduction initiatives for numerous local authorities.

SDS were also delighted to be able to celebrate partner success, with award wins for Building Greater Exeter and the Nightingale Exeter Project, which SDS have been involved in supporting.

Removing the barriers to education to benefit

your business

Over the past few years there has been a renewed focus by the government on adult learning and how this reflects the needs of employers.

The fallout of the pandemic presented an opportunity to address both existing and emerging skills shortages and the government made a new commitment to remove the barriers to education and to promote lifelong learning.

Here, City College Plymouth’s Paul Fanshawe and Tanya Head explain how this could benefit you and your business.

Paul is the College’s Executive for Business Intelligence Growth and Skills and the lead on the College’s strategic actions for opportunities and digital. Tanya was recently appointed Head of Adult Skills and Business Growth.

WHAT CAN THE COLLEGE OFFER ADULTS?

Tanya: City College has always supported adults wishing to return to education but it seems that message has become a bit lost. Plymouth is really well-served for adult education: to think we now have three universities and that is amazing, but I think that might be why our messages about our adult education offer are sometimes missed.

Paul: As Tanya said, we’ve welcomed adults to the College for many years and whilst I’m confident that people know we offer English and maths, they might not realise just how much we can offer adults, or that our provision is constantly changing.

WE HAVE SEEN MORE ADULTS TAKING UP APPRENTICESHIPS IN THE PAST FEW YEARS WHICH IS FANTASTIC, BUT WE AT THE COLLEGE REALISE THAT APPRENTICESHIPS DON’T SUIT ALL BUSINESSES AND WE HAVE SPENT A LOT OF TIME LOOKING AT OUR OFFER AND REALLY ASKING OURSELVES “IS THIS WHAT BUSINESSES WANT?”.

business will need in a year, five years or ten years’ time. And with this in mind, the onus is on us, the training provider, to adapt to better meet your needs.

WHY HAS THERE BEEN SUCH A FOCUS ON ADULT SKILLS?

Paul: Our industries are facing huge challenges as work habits change. Many employers are struggling to attract the right people with the right skills. At the same time, the current cost of living crisis is showing how quickly things can change and how vulnerable some people might be. These industries pay well and can offer a reasonable amount of security for those prepared to retrain and learn new skills. Tanya: There are a lot of vacancies out there that simply aren’t being filled and that could be harmful to businesses. I think most people are aware of skills shortages in engineering, construction and health, but the research shows there are more areas than you realise. We’re seeing a huge need for skilled accountants, marketing professionals and administrators.

HOW CAN THE COLLEGE SUPPORT BUSINESSES?

Tanya: Businesses that are struggling to fill particular vacancies might want to consider training current staff. What many people won’t know is employers could potentially access funds from the government’s Adult Education Budget to help cover the cost of training for staff who earn less than £18,525. What better way to fill a vacancy than by upskilling a loyal member of staff who already understands your business. And for employees earning more than that, there is funding available, with the government contributing up to half of the cost of training.

Paul: We know a lot of people are struggling to see beyond their next heating bill, but taking up free course entitlement could lead to long-term job security. Tanya’s role has been created having taken into consideration all of these different factors and her experience means she is really knowledgeable in some of the challenges facing adults. And we are also aware of the challenges facing businesses, where we can support with reducing overheads and training costs, retaining staff though upskilling and CPD or with specific skills shortages Tanya: Paul is correct. We have had to reflect on our provision. Whilst we recognise how important GCSE English and maths are, we also know it’s not the go-to answer. We know there are employers who would benefit from improving their employees’ maths skills, but this needs to be a more bespoke offer. We also realise our provision needs to be more flexible. We have largely been a 9-to-5 operator with some evening provision, but we need to expand this to weekends and holidays if we are to meet employers’ needs. Increasingly we deliver at employers premises as well to reduce barriers to accessing training.

WHAT CAN EMPLOYERS DO?

Paul: There is a lot of free training available at the moment - the pandemic has seen the world shift more online than ever before and with that comes the need to grow and develop your business to fit this. SMART Skills is a free programme that can help boost a business’s digital literacy skills. But if you are in need of something more particular, we are aiming to make it happen.

Tanya: There are now loads of people you can get in contact with to discuss adult skills for business; but skills don’t always fit into neat little areas, and that is why I’m coordinating a huge cross-college approach to adult learning so we can build our reputation as the learning destination of choice for not just school-leavers, but adults and employers, too. I would encourage anyone who has a query about skills for adults - whether you are an individual or a business - to get in touch. You can e-mail me at thead@cityplym.ac.uk

Did you know you can get free training for employees who earn less than £18,525?

Funding is also available for employees who earn more than this.

HOW CITY COLLEGE IS WORKING WITH ADULTS AND EMPLOYERS TO IMPROVE SKILLS IN PLYMOUTH

Recognising the differing needs throughout the region, the College is promising a more flexible approach than ever to delivering the skills you need. The College offers a full range of courses, from entry-level language courses to degrees, and is working with employers across the city to build lasting partnerships.

Seetec Pluss

One company the College has recently entered into a new partnership with is Seetec Pluss, an employee-owned company that seeks to empower people through access to skills, training and employment - a vision very much aligned to the College’s.

Tanya said: “In the past, we might have approached similar partnerships by looking at our curriculum and supporting someone to complete an application to study a course at the College. But we knew we wanted to be more flexible than this going forward.”

Whilst still in its infancy, the partnership has seen City College staff attending drop-in sessions with Seetec staff and their customers, looking to see what the two organisations can do for them in the short and long-term.

Tanya added: “Our staff are working closely with the Seetec Pluss team and customers to establish their needs: we start with their overall aims and see how we can accommodate them. If we don’t run a particular course currently, we will look into whether it is something we can offer in the near future. Where we can help immediately with established courses for example, we are looking at more flexible delivery. For example, after meeting a group of Ukrainian refugees, we realised the need for an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) provision that can be delivered at Seetec’s premises. We are looking to establish this after half-term.”

Seetec’s Gemma Fox said: “It’s been great having them in, the staff have been really receptive to the whole concept, so we are really looking forward to moving it on.”

From supporting those looking to get into work or maybe reenter the workplace following redundancy or raising a family, the College is also looking to support adults who are hoping to progress their careers through higher-level qualifications.

NHS

Having worked as a bed manager for six years, it was quite the change in direction for NHS worker Kelly West when she joined the Estates department as a planning support worker. Whilst both roles require problemsolving and organisational skills, Kelly had to swap her clinical knowledge for an understanding of construction materials and environmental building regulations. as her responsibilities changed to developing and managing capital projects.

To support her career development Kelly started an HNC in Construction and has already gained a promotion.

Kelly said: “I felt this course would provide a good baseline knowledge to develop an understanding of real-world industry standard practices, which I could apply to my projects within my job and the projects I was working on.

“The lecturers are really knowledgeable about the industry and they understand how fast this industry can change due to a variety of socioeconomic factors, and they factor this into what we learn about and we’re given plenty of opportunity to investigate other things that could have an impact on the industry. When working on long-term projects such as some of mine, it is essential to fully understand what it means to be sustainable and how this could rapidly change in the future.”

Kelly, who also has two young children, said she is fortunate that the course is being funded by her employer having recognised the benefits of supporting her to develop these skills.

Kelly’s manager, Carlo Cinque, Estate Development Team Leader, said: “The growth in Kelly’s confidence over the past year has been fantastic to watch. Whilst she had all the necessary skills for her role, she didn’t have that wider industry knowledge that is useful to have, particularly when speaking with various official bodies.

“For both Kelly and the wider department, the delivery of the HNC worked well. Kelly attends lectures one day a week whereas other providers often require block release, which isn’t practical for the team or for Kelly with two young children.”

From entry level to degrees, City College can arrange training of all levels for staff either as an individual or an employee.

Get in touch with the College to discuss your company’s skills needs by contacting thead@cityplym.ac.uk

CHAMBERS LAUNCH MISSION

to put employers at the heart of planning for a workforce skilled for the future

Employers across Devon and Somerset are being invited to take part in the largest ever project of its kind aimed at making sure the skills system produces a workforce that matches their needs.

Businesses and organisations across the two counties are going to be asked what they need from the workforce of the future for the Devon and Somerset Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP).

The aim is to put the views of employers at the heart of skills planning - so education institutions can be confident they are training people with skills that match what employers in the region need.

The Devon and Somerset LSIP is being led by Devon & Plymouth and Somerset Chambers of Commerce, who are working in partnership on the project.

They will work with universities, colleges and training providers to ensure the voice of employers is at the forefront of a skills agenda that meets the needs of the economies of Devon and Somerset.

A series of events and engagement opportunities for early 2023 are being organised by the two Chambers across both counties, with dates and locations being announced in the coming weeks.

Details will be advertised at the dedicated website www.devonandsomersetlsip. co.uk where employers can also get in touch to find out more information about being involved and sign up for more information.

Helen Hart, project lead for Devon and Somerset LSIP, said: “This is a huge undertaking - both Chambers have been hearing from businesses for many years about how there are not enough of the right sort of skills in the local workforce.

“This is about working with employers and skills providers to readdress that balance. Filling skills gaps is vital for our future prosperity and for giving young people the best chance possible of a successful career in our region.”

The Devon and Somerset LSIP hopes to reach thousands of businesses in the coming months in an unprecedented engagement drive.

Emma Rawlings, Chief Executive of Somerset Chamber of Commerce, said: “This is one of the most important skills projects our two Chambers - working in partnership for the benefit of employers across the two counties - have ever undertaken.

“We have the opportunity to set a new skills agenda with employers’ voices central to its success and I’d urge all employers to take part.”

Together, the two Chambers are the designated Employer Representative Body tasked with developing and delivering the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) for Devon and Somerset. Funded by the Department for Education, one of the first steps is understanding why businesses struggle to recruit and which skills are in short supply.

Stuart Elford, Chief Executive of Devon & Plymouth Chamber of Commerce, said: “This is not just simply a survey to produce another report about skills. This is about addressing the skills gaps that hold our region back - particularly at a time when businesses are struggling with rising costs and cannot afford to invest in skills themselves.

“They need access to a market ready to work - we need to plan for the future so that when businesses are ready to grow again there’s a workforce ready to meet the demand.”

Employers can visit devonandsomersetlsip.co.uk for more information about the Local Skills Improvement Plan.