Expanding Industry Placements to give young people a head start from a technical pathway into skilled employment

Skills, Insight and Social Value | Industry Placements with Oldham College

Oldham College is working with partners to expand Industry Placements which are giving young people a head start from a technical pathway into skilled employment.

As part of this work we’ve teamed up with Gatsby Foundation who – through their Local Area Programme – are working hard to break down misconceptions about purely academic routes to career success.

A new case study video released today showcases several local employers who are working with Oldham College and taking on local learners.

All recognise and explain the significant benefits to both learners and companies of Industry Placements, which include developing a skills pipeline, help in managing workloads, bringing a new perspective to your workplace, developing your staff and putting something back into the community.  

Employers featured in the new video  include:

• Ultimate Products, a global firm bringing consumer goods to the mass market across two continents;
• Willmott Dixon Construction, the UK’s leading independent construction and property services company; 
• dsgnuk, a specialist local graphic design and web development firm; 
• The Eric Wright Learning Foundation, which sponsors a ‘real work environment’ approach to vocational education; 
• Centaur Training, a leading training provider; and 
• Co-op News, a locally based online and print resource.

Jayne Greaves, Head of Social Value at Willmottt Dixon Construction, said:

“As a business our commitment is to offer young people these types of placements because we need to be looking at the next generation of workers coming into our industry.”

Ansar Ali, Managing Director at DSGN UK, added:

“The advice I would give to any other company is to take advantage of this opportunity. It will benefit you in the long term and the short term.”

Industry Placements will be integral to the new T-Level qualifications which are set to launch at Oldham College in 2021/22.

These will offer students a mixture of classroom learning and ‘on the job’ experience.

Local employers are at the heart of designing new technical qualifications and pathways to employment – including T-Levels and our apprenticeship programmes which will provide the skilled workers that local employers need.