Metals skills boost from merger

Efforts to recruit capable young people into the metals industry have been boosted by the merger of two key skills organisations. MetSkill, the metals industry skills and performance body, has merged with SEMTA, the Sector Skills Council (SSC) for the engineering and manufacturing technologies sector, to form one of the largest SSCs in the UK.

MetSkill Chairman Stephen Tilsley welcomed the merger. He said: “The merger will enhance both employer influence and the practical benefits for our companies. We will now be able to draw on SEMTA’s wider access to policy makers and funds for employers, as well as extending MetSkill’s business oriented services to a wider range of companies.”

SEMTA Chairman Lord Trefgarne added: “We feel the merger will benefit both organisations but, most importantly, the employers whom we both serve.”

MetSkill aims to achieve and sustain improvements in business performance by giving companies the ability to recruit higher calibre young people. It is currently working alongside the British Constructional Steelwork Association to carry out an audit of the training needs in the steel construction industry.

The merger will also allow MetSkill to continue to expand its development activities such as MICE – the Metals Industry Competitive Enterprise – and the Metals Academy, which is looking to attract 5,000 young people each year into careers in the metals industry. The Academy encourages strategic partnerships between companies and schools in key industry regions and promotes apprenticeship programmes that meet employer needs.

Elizabeth Bonfield joined MetSkill in July as its new Managing Director.