New OEA Academy opens to provide regional training across Cambridgeshire and the East of England

  Posted by: electime      20th May 2024

Charlie Mullins OBE, Founder of £multi-million plumbing empire, Pimlico Plumbers, opened the East Anglia Energy Academy yesterday alongside leading figures from the trade, businesses, and the public sector including Huntingdonshire District Council and the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.

Last year, The Trade Skills Index warned of a “catastrophic” and increasing skills shortage impacting the UK’s trades and construction sector.

According to the report, an estimated 937,000 qualified new tradespeople need to be introduced into the sector by 2033 to plug the void already exacerbated by dwindling apprenticeship interest, an ageing workforce, and a recent exodus of EU workers.

With trade vacancies now at a record high, the need for a new, dedicated trade skills training academy has never been more important.

The East Anglia Energy Academy is the latest offering from OEA, a leading provider of energy training courses. It aims to attract more young people onto the trades skills career path and encourage established tradespeople to upskill with a focus on renewable energy.

Located in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, the new skills centre is offering a wide range of training courses, assessments, and qualifications across gas, electrical, plumbing, oil, and renewable energy skills.

At the official ribbon-cutting event, Charlie Mullins said: “I was inspired by a plumber at a really young age which led me to an apprenticeship. I then went on to build and run Pimlico Plumbers – a company that supported 1,500 apprenticeships, until I sold it for £145 million.

“This is the first facility of its kind in the East of England region, and I am absolutely over the moon to be here today at the opening. To say I’m impressed is an understatement. So many tradespeople will benefit from this academy whether for plumbing, gas, electric or renewable skills , and we hope to encourage many young people to follow this much-needed career path. The support here today from across the region has been amazing, and I hope this will be the start of something big.”

The state-of-the-art, fully equipped academy is in partnership with Reed Environment, which was launched by Reed in Partnership last July [2023] to create an essential, specifically trained green workforce to help the UK meet its Net Zero targets.

Tom Hoines, Energy Services Director for Reed Environment, said: “OEA’s reputation, experience and expertise makes them the perfect partner to be working with. We are delighted to be helping them scale while addressing the escalating skills shortage to create the next generation of talented and environmentally aware electricians and plumbers.”

OEA is already recognised for providing accreditation to existing trade workers, from the original academy in Oxford. Dave Bendell, Founder of OEA, added: “The industry urgently needs a pipeline of new and accredited talent if it is to keep up with demand. OEA is working to address this and promote the need for green skills, and to be supporting businesses locally.

“Our Energy Academies are accredited end-point assessment centres which means that learning and assessment can be completed in the same place. To date, we have obtained a 100% success rate regarding end-point assessments and are thrilled to now be bringing Electrical Apprenticeships to the East of England. We are taking bookings for the first apprentices in September 2024, and upskilling for existing trades is available immediately.”

Cllr Sam Wakeford, Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy, and Housing at Huntingdonshire District Council said: “We have worked very closely with Reed Environment, and this initiative demonstrates our commitment to fostering forward-thinking economic development. We are delighted to welcome OEA to Huntingdonshire – St Ives is the perfect location for this new training academy – a highly accessible location, situated central to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough region, with easy access to the M11 corridor, and out to Suffolk and Norwich.”