With the increased unemployment created by the COVID19 pandemic, this investment is much needed to improve job prospects and boost economic recovery.

NOCN Group are pleased to offer a wide range of the skills training courses now supported by the National Skills fund. Adults aged 24 and over will be able to achieve their first full NOCN Level 3 qualifications through one of our network of training providers and further education colleges. The £95 million in funding from the Government for these technical qualifications will be a good start in helping adults to retrain for changing job roles.

The £43 million funding of the Skills bootcamps is also welcomed by NOCN Group. These bootcamps offer flexible 12 – 16 week courses with the aim of building sector-specific skills to facilitate transition into work, which is funded by the Government. Construction and digital skills are at the fore of this skills development programme, and NOCN Group are pleased to be supporting this. We offer one of the widest range of construction courses in the industry through our CSkills Awards, SiteRight courses and CPCS cards, and we have been at the forefront of developing the construction bootcamps and traineeships through our work with BACH and CITB.

Graham Hasting-Evans, Managing Director of NOCN Group and Chair of BACH said: “The COVID19 pandemic has exacerbated the skills gap in the UK, fast-tracking change and severely impacting many sectors, causing widespread redundancies. The new National Skills Fund is a good start in supporting the redeployment of people into alternative opportunities, through retraining and upskilling. We look forward to supporting these learners on their lifelong learning journey.”

As a not-for-profit leading Awarding and End Point Assessment Organisation, providing high quality vocational and technical qualifications and apprenticeships across the UK and internationally, NOCN Group’s priority is to provide skills for work and life, improving social mobility and productivity. In partnership with Further Education Colleges and Training Providers, NOCN Group offer ‘lifetime skills’ solutions for work, arming learners with not just job-specific competences but also the ability to adapt to a working environment that is changing at pace, throughout their lives.

About NOCN Group

As a progressive educational and skills charity with a social rather than commercial focus, NOCN Group is at the forefront of vocational skills development and apprenticeships, in the UK and internationally.
NOCN Group offers a wide range of education and skills services, including regulated qualifications, EPA for apprenticeships, Traineeships, Job Cards in construction, Access to HE Diplomas, bespoke accreditation and educational and skills support training.

For more information please visit https://www.nocn.org.uk/