West of England skills bootcamps backed by £12.8m investment

The West of England Mayoral Combined Authority has secured £12.8 million in funding for skills bootcamps in the region, opening them up to an additional 2,600 people.

Funded by the Department for Education’s National Skills Fund, skills bootcamps offer learners free courses of up to 16 weeks and a fast-track to an interview with an employer.

This latest investment in the West of England – almost double that of the previous year – will allow the expansion of existing training programmes and the introduction of new focus areas including education, professional services, AI and manufacturing.

3,500 people in the region have already benefitted from the programme, including 1,300 currently enrolled.

Mayor Dan Norris said: “This massive investment is fantastic news for workers and businesses across the West of England.

“Skills bootcamps have proven a real success, helping workers upskill, take on new responsibilities and get better-paid jobs in key industries while boosting growth in our local economy.

“We’ve already seen great results, with 82 per cent of recent learners supported by their employers to attend a skills bootcamp going on to secure new responsibilities or be promoted into more senior positions.

“Now, we’re literally doubling our efforts to make sure even more people can benefit in our region as we work together to create jobs and growth.”

The first funding call for new skills bootcamps categories opens on 10 March, with a further call covering all other sectors launching at the end of March.