The Black Country is cementing its status as the beating heart of British industry after a £1.1m cash injection to create more than 400 railways jobs.
A new Black Country rail training has opened to support hundreds of new training and employment opportunities in one of the most economically deprived areas of the UK.
The Transport, Rail and Infrastructure Academy, developed by the City of Wolverhampton College and National Infrastructure Solutions, will provide the advanced skills required for jobs in the construction and maintenance of train lines and tram routes.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and Chair of West Midlands Combined Authority, said: “Hundreds of millions of pounds are being invested right now into the region’s train and tram network, with new rail lines and stations being built and new Metro routes under construction. That’s great news for the travelling public.”
The newly-opened academy in Dudley boasts more than 2,000 metres of conventional rail track, including two split-level platforms, an 870m tunnel and signalling components to give students hands-on training in multiple disciplines across the industry and enhance their learning experience by working with the same equipment as used on rail construction sites.
Fittingly, it is a stone’s throw from the birthplace of the industrial revolution, the Ironbridge Gorge, where iron was smelted for the first time using coke, rather than charcoal, and the mass production of cast iron began. The gorge became the Silicon Valley of its day and set in chain mass industrialisation across the world.
It is hoped the new training centre will help breathe fresh life into Britain’s beleaguered transport network, with a new generation of highly-skilled workers taking on the job of keeping it running.
The partnership between National Infrastructure Solutions, City of Wolverhampton College and the combined authority, now in its fifth year, has created 2,000 jobs.
In just six months the Dudley rail academy has seen 500 students trained.
Malcolm Cowgill, principal of City of Wolverhampton College, said: “The economic climate at the moment means we need to support local people into jobs.
“The academy will offer employer-led training to address skills gaps in specific areas, focussing on getting entry-level candidates into work, upskilling existing operatives and ensuring the workforce is equipped with the latest industry-recognised qualifications and accreditations to ensure sustainable skilled employment now and in the future.”
