Waltham Forest College has been announced as a partner as part of the Mayor of London’s new £44m Academies Programme. The partnership will further enhance the College’s delivery of the Mayor’s priorities for Londoners.

The overarching programme is aimed at supporting Londoners to access a range of new jobs and opportunities across the region, focusing on priority sectors including creative, digital, green, health and hospitality.

The College is collaborating with partners in PAN London area and aiding the economic recovery through the following hubs:

Local London Green and Digital Mayoral Academy (LLGDMA)

The LLGDMA will focus specifically on digital and green skills, which are vital for London to reach its net-zero targets. Waltham Forest College will collaborate with 11 other FE providers and 9 London Boroughs – helping to develop a responsive skills plan, create events and further build strategic networks. 

This new academy will expand on the Mayor’s Construction Academy model.  The LLGDMA will complement the existing MCA hubs, ensuring skills needs are met as the need for green and digital technologies continue to grow. 

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

The objectives of the Academy include: 

  • Reduce barriers to learning and employment unlocking work experience, traineeships, apprenticeships and jobs 
  • Retrain and upskill current industry experts for transition into new jobs as the Green and Digital sector develops 
  • Ensure that London’s industries access the skilled workforce needed to decarbonise and innovate through digital technology 
  • Improve recruitment and engagement across our local communities especially among the under-represented groups 
  • Upskill college staff 

Covering an area of over 2.6 million residents, the programme aims to support the creation of over 60,000 new jobs in London by 2030. 

Creative Academy Hub

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

The Creative Academy Hub is led by the London borough of Waltham Forest. The College is a key partner in delivering the objectives of the creative hub. The initiative includes £250k for the establishment of the Creative Industries Hub over 2 years to support Waltham Forest creative sector jobs and skills training.

First announced in March 2021, the programme provides funding for leading training providers to establish hubs allowing jobseekers to reskill and support disadvantaged Londoners into free adult learning.

It forms part of GLA’s drive to help Londoners access jobs and skills opportunities, also including a Skills Roadmap and a new marketing campaign to raise awareness of London’s skills offer.

Hospitality Academy Hub

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Waltham Forest College is also a partner in the Hospitality Academy Hub led by Capital City College Group (CCCG). Hospitality is one of London’s most important industries employing 568,000 people and contributing £17 billion to the capital’s economy a year. The Hospitality Academy Hub will support those looking for careers as chefs or in front of house, housekeeping and security roles.

Janet Gardner, Principal and CEO of Waltham Forest College, said:

“We are delighted to be part of three Mayoral academies. This opens yet another opportunity for Waltham Forest College to work in partnership with stakeholders, maximising impact, to help drive London’s economic recovery and support businesses to thrive. The Mayor’s Academies Programme will support Londoners hardest hit by the pandemic into good work in sectors key to London’s recovery and long-term economic growth, including hospitality, creative, digital, green, health and social care, and we are excited to be part of the academies programme.

Director of the Local London sub-regional partnership, Sarah Murray, says:

“The Green and Digital Sector Skills Academy is great news for our sub-region. It will be a key component in preparing our future workforce – both young people coming into the workforce for the first time, and existing employees that need to up-skill.  We applaud the partnership of FE colleges which is a testament to the collaborative way in which our colleges work together.

“The development of the digital sector and emergence of the green sector and green economy provide a unique opportunity for our economy to grow and prosper.  Partnership working between employers, the sub-regional partnership of local authorities and education and training providers is key to leading that growth for our residents and businesses, and we look forward to working with the sector academy to make that happen”.