Design, engineer and construct (DEC) GCSEs and A-levels are part of Laing O’Rourke’s 10-point plan to fill the sector’s skills gap.
The engineering contractor is urging the Department of Education to add these qualifications to the school curriculum, highlighting that a unified approach can help to deliver the skilled workforce that our infrastructure and economy needs.
John O’Connor, Laing O’Rourke’s group human capital director, said: “Our plan highlights that there is a worrying skills shortage in the UK construction and engineering sectors and presents a clear series of practical recommendations to help close the skills gap in the design, manufacturing, engineering and construction spaces.”
Schoolchildren can currently learn DEC as part of the curriculum, yet this is only current in 42 state-funded secondary schools out of a possible 3,401, and the existing qualifications are not recognised by many universities.
Mark Farmer, author of the Farmer Review, said: “Laing O’Rourke has taken bold and visionary steps in their business to embrace this agenda ahead of many of their competitors and I believe this 10 point plan is an important addition to the debate on how we appropriately modernise and safeguard our industries future.”
Posted on Thursday, December 15, 2016
