Building contractor in call to invest in training
AN affordable housing contactor is calling on the construction industry to boost investment in training.
Bosses of Wates Living Space, which has offices in Manchester and Warrington, have spoken out following an increase in the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) in the North West from 105,000 to 127,000 since March.
In response to the figures, Wates has made a pledge to ramp up its engagement with young unemployed people. This has seen the contractor invest £1.6m in education and training initiatives across Greater Manchester since January 2013.
During the same period Wates Living Space also spent over £20m with local suppliers and subcontractors in a bid to ensure that projects in Greater Manchester create employment opportunities for local people.
Wates regional business director Lee Sale said: “The number of NEETs across the North West has fluctuated over the past few years and although there have been some improvements during this time, the latest figures show that there is still some way to go until we see a meaningful difference at a regional level.
“Wates is wholeheartedly committed to utilising our projects to generate social value for our customers and communities but we can also see that we stand to benefit significantly by investing in training and employment. Our industry is threatened by an urgent skills shortage and investing in the future workforce brings with it the benefit of addressing the shortfall in a skilled labour pool.”
Wates Living Space’s presence in Greater Manchester currently includes its delivery of the Housing Investment Fund (HIF), through which it is building 240 new homes across five sites.
The HIF is being delivered on behalf of Matrix Homes, a joint venture company between Manchester City Council, the Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).
In addition, Wates Living Space is currently developing several sites in South Manchester on behalf of Southway Housing Trust.
