Free upskilling courses for Cumbria businesses

Businesses in Cumbria can benefit from a range of free training sessions aimed at upskilling their staff.

PHX Training, which has centres in Barrow and Carlisle, is running a range of fully funded courses designed to help businesses improve the skills of their local workers, plug skills gaps and improve staff retention.

The Skills Support for the Workforce contract is aiming to upskill 115 employees in the county before March, at a value to the region of £167,000.

All small and medium sized businesses with fewer than 250 staff can benefit from the training courses, while companies undergoing industrial restructure can also benefit to help staff at risk of redundancy.

Specific support is available for companies in the construction, tourism, nuclear, advanced manufacturing, rural economy, health and social care, professional services, cultural or logistics industries.

The project is being delivered alongside Carlisle College through the EDGE partnership, which is funded by the European Social Fund, co-financed by the Education and Skills Funding Agency and supported by Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership.

Briony Fawcett, Managing Director at PHX Training, said:

“Recruiting a member of staff is estimated to cost small businesses thousands of pounds in time advertising, interviewing and training new roles.

“As a result of the difficulty to hire new staff, offering incentives to retain and upskill employees is vital and can save employers time and money.

“These fully funded courses are free for SMEs and can work around an employee’s daily job, either being delivered as classroom or online courses. But the result is an employee who can then take on more responsibility and can grow with the company as the result of the investment in them as a person.”

Becci Williams, Assistant Director, at Carlisle College, said:

“we are delighted to work with PHX Training who actively work alongside local employers, helping to improve the skills and talent of local workers to facilitate business growth. PHX Training add to our training offer and enable us to reach more employers and individuals throughout Cumbria.”

PHX Training has centres in Blackpool, Barrow, Carlisle, Morecambe and Preston to help people complete training courses to help them back into work and progress in work.

To find out about the full range of support PHX Training offers, contact 01772 440 969 or visit www.phxtraining.co.uk