The Department for Education is preparing to launch a procurement exercise later today that aims to remedy the HGV Driver shortage in England.
This will take the form of a ‘Skills Bootcamp’, which will be fully operational by the end of November 2021.
The bootcamp will provide fully funded HGV driver training, to create ‘road-ready’ individuals who will fill employer vacancies in the road haulage industry. Individuals eligible to receive this funding include jobseekers, the self-employed, existing employees changing roles, and those at risk of redundancy.
Hertfordshire LEP’s partner, Qube Learning, is planning to bid for this contract, and is seeking Expressions of Interest from interested employers who have live vacancies and can provide a guaranteed interview to participants of the bootcamp. All size organisations are eligible, but they are particularly interested in hearing from SMEs.
What is funded?
The HGV Bootcamp will provide the funding for eligible individuals to undertake all aspects of HGV training, including:
- The medical assessment.
- Cat C practice and test and full licence acquisition.
- Cat C and E practice and test, and full licence acquisition.
- Theory test, including hazard perception and case studies, practice and tests.
- Any additional Employer specific training requirements e.g., unique vehicle training requirements, tachograph training.
For jobseekers, anybody changing industry, and the self-employed, there is no cost to the employer or participant whatsoever. For employers who are obtaining licences for existing members of staff who are moving into new job roles, there will be a 30% contribution charge against the overall agreed costs.
What do Employers need to do to participate?
Simply commit to provide bootcamp participants with a guaranteed interview for a genuine, ring-fenced job vacancy. The employer can then sit back and relax while Qube facilitates the training, and they will benefit from a steady pipeline of trained HGV drivers.
If you would like to partner with Qube and benefit from this project, please complete this short Expression of Interestby no later than Friday 15 October to be included in the bid.
For more information, contact Daniel Kemp Bid and Tender Manager, Qube Learning, on daniel.kemp@qube-learning.co.uk.