Why did you start an Academy?

Matt: “In 2023, the launch of the Academy was big for me. Bringing apprentices and young blood into the industry was something I have wanted to do for ages.”

Dan: “It was a slight struggle last year to get the right talent in wasn’t it?”

Matt: “We did struggle slightly. There’s just a skill shortage at the moment. So for us, we thought, look, let’s try and think outside the box, start up our own Academy. We’ve got the facilities that we need at our depot in Thurrock, so to be able to roll out an Academy and try and bring people in from the start, benefit the community, benefit us and the industry, it was great.”

What were the key considerations?

Matt: “You can’t just rush in to say, we want to start an Academy. You’ve gotta think about how you’re gonna approach it, how you are going to get new people interested and how you will advertise across your marketing channels.”

Matt: “We’ve worked closely with our marketing team to see how we can bring new blood into the industry. It does take preplanning. You’ve gotta make sure we’ve got the right facilities and that you’ve got someone who’s able to deliver the training required.”

Dan: “When you are starting an academy or in-house training you have to get accredited by the CITB in order to deliver training. Something which we were able to obtain towards the end of last year. Now we’re in a position where we can roll out courses to our staff and continue to get young people into the industry, which is vitally important at the moment.”

How have clients responded to the Academy?

Dan: “What I have noticed when we are speaking and tendering to our clients is that when they are working with big housing associations and councils they have a provision for local labour and apprenticeships, so for us now to have that and be able to offer that to our clients, it’s a game changer!”

What have the retention levels looked like so far?

Matt: “It’s a difficult one you might go and take on 10 new starters and probably only get 4 that follow it through. It is a little bit frustrating, but at the end of the day, scaffolding isn’t for everyone and it is our job to educate the younger generation on just how much hard work it is.” 

Dan: “We’ve done podcasts and other videos with our scaffolders to try and manage expectations of younger people that it’s not an easy job, but it is also very rewarding.”

Matt: “There is no better feeling for us than seeing someone who has come in as a labourer and apprentice, and working their way up through the qualifications and completing the journey. For me, it’s the best.

How important is it to promote the career path to apprentices?

Dan: “It’s very important. We don’t want people just to come in and be labourers. That’s not good for anyone, they get bored and think they can earn the same money in a supermarket. We are constantly trying to educate our guys into thinking about the long term.”

Matt: “The proof is in the pudding, we can demonstrate 5-10 guys that have been with us for 7 or 8 years and have progressed so much in their careers. It means that they have people to look up to.”

Matt: “Also, they are the next generation of managers. It doesn’t just stop with becoming a black hat or a scaffolder. There does come a time when you physically cannot work on the tools anymore. So we need to promote the options and next steps. Whether that is scaffolding inspectors, health and safety, design, contracts managers, surveying and estimating. There are so many different options.”

What’s next for the Academy?

Matt: “In 2024, we are really focusing on growing our Academy offering as well as focusing on internal training. We can’t wait to see what’s in store!”

Dan: “Exactly! We want to continue to ensure we train our staff with the correct health and safety and work-at-height qualifications. I can’t wait to see how much we can grow the Academy!”

Interested in a Scaffolding career? 

Please get in touch with our team at: info@embassysiteservices.co.uk and find out more about our academy here.