WEC Group earns apprenticeship provider status

WEC Group, the winner of the 2023 Red Rose Awards Commitment to Skills Award and the employer of many recent World Skills UK competitors, has earned the right to deliver its own apprenticeships.

The Darwen-based company has successfully joined the Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP) as an Employer Provider. 

RoATP is a government record of organisations eligible to receive funding to train apprentices. A place on the register enables WEC to deliver the Level 3 Plate Welder Standard internally without the need for third-party training providers.

The successful application marks the culmination of three years of hard work from WEC’s engineering teachers and apprentices to build a 25,000 sq ft training academy in Blackburn.

As part of this process, the WEC leadership team improved internal policies, procedures and learning materials to meet the high standards of the Register.

Meanwhile, WEC has also invested heavily to acquire a VR welding simulator from Lincoln Electric, which has enabled the company to provide an enhanced classroom learning experience for the benefit of their apprentices.

In 2006, WEC managing director Steve Hartley recognised a skills shortage within the high-end fabrication industry which was affecting the growth of the organisation, and led the way in establishing WEC's in-house training academy designed specifically to offer apprenticeships in welding and fabrication in order to future proof the business.

More than 200 apprentices have now come through the doors of the WEC Academy and in 2019 WEC unveiled plans to start the build of new premises in a move aimed at doubling their annual intake.

This new facility, funded by £3m of private investment, opened its doors in September 2022 and praise earned from across the industry encouraged WEC Group to start their journey to join RoATP as an Employer Provider.

Steve Hartley said: "We are really thrilled to be joining RoATP as an Employer Provider. This is a testament to our commitment to providing individuals across the country with the skills and training they need to carve out successful careers in engineering.

"We are also proud to be playing a key role in the ongoing battle to tackle the skills gap which plagues our industry.”