A new generation of students will be skilled up for careers in advanced manufacturing and clean energy through an investment of more than £2m by East Midlands Freeport.
The Freeport is set to deliver tens of thousands of jobs and add billions to the regional economy by attracting inward investment at its three tax sites – the East Midlands Intermodal Park near Derby, the Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station site in south Nottinghamshire and the East Midlands Airport Gateway Industrial Cluster.
With investment announcements likely in the coming months, the Freeport has now decided to put some of the cash from its £25m Seed Capital investment fund into a major training programme aimed at developing future talent firms need to grasp opportunities opened up by clean energy and the decarbonisation of industry.
The Freeport is investing more than £2m in the Future Energy Skills Hub (FESH), a project led by the East Midlands Institute of Technology (East Midlands IoT), which promotes high quality technical training and qualifications through a partnership involving Derby College Group, Loughborough College, the University of Derby, Loughborough University, and its business partners.
From September 2025, East Midlands IoT it will run FESH courses which provide higher technical skills tailored to the needs of businesses operating directly in advanced manufacturing and clean energy, but also for the increasing numbers of firms seeking to make a clean energy transition in their day-to-day work.
The Freeport’s Seed Capital Fund invests in skills, technology and infrastructure projects which will support growth at three sites that will add £9bn to the value of the regional economy and support 28,000 new jobs.
Tom Newman-Taylor, CEO of East Midlands Freeport, said: “We’re fully committed to delivering on the Government’s mission of increasing growth and creating new opportunities for people, communities and businesses in the process.
“So alongside our three sites, we are investing directly in technology projects which will help industry decarbonise and skills programmes which will ensure local people can access these new opportunities.”
He added: “The Freeport is the biggest growth initiative in the East Midlands and we are delighted to be supporting a project which means the benefits of that growth will be felt by people and communities.”
Technical courses currently offered by East Midlands IoT which will help FESH achieve its aims of developing a pipeline of future talent include a degree in sustainable engineering at Loughborough College, a master’s degree in renewable energy systems technology at Loughborough University, a degree in manufacturing engineering at Derby College, and a degree in artificial intelligence and data science at the University of Derby.
As the FESH project evolves, East Midlands Freeport’s partners and East Midlands IoT will work to develop additional short courses for rapid upskilling and embed sustainable and green energy skills in all existing technical qualifications to provide the skills needed by businesses.
Rachel Quinn, Executive Director of the East Midlands Institute of Technology, said: “East Midlands Freeport has made a significant and welcome investment to develop the technical skills needed by the region’s clean energy businesses.
“With the expertise of the East Midlands IoT’s academic partners and the business know-how of its corporate partners, we will help a new generation of highly-skilled students into rewarding careers, which will boost the local economy and drive decarbonisation in our region.”
Alongside the skills hub, East Midlands Freeport’s £25m Seed Capital Investment Fund will also be supporting the development of a Zero Carbon Innovation Centre that is being set up next year by the universities of Nottingham and Loughborough.
