The Automotive Industrial Partnership, which consists of many of the UK's leading automotive manufacturers, aims to drive growth, investment and revenues by securing skills for the future. Business Secretary Vince Cable announced the £30m initiative in January this year.
Jo Lopes, chair of the Automotive Industrial Partnership and head of technical excellence at Jaguar Land Rover hailed the launch as an important moment in the history of the sector. "This is an exceptional moment for our sector. The Automotive Industrial Partnership brings together the sector's employers to work collaboratively on an unprecedented scale.
"The unified effort – from all sides of the industry and government – will ensure that the automotive sector will thrive for generations to come," he added. "The UK's automotive industry is one of the most successful in the world. We are achieving record growth, creating thousands of jobs and attracting major inward investment. Ensuring we have a pipeline of skills talent now and for the future is critically important to our continued success.
"The partnership will see large manufacturers working alongside SME supply chain employers to develop good practice that the entire industry will benefit from. We are aiming to inspire the next generation of vehicle makers and create new routes into automotive careers, as well as upskilling those that already work in the industry," claimed Lopes.
Business Secretary Vince Cable commented: "This investment puts our automotive sector in the driving seat to design the skills our manufacturing companies need. There is a risk that without adequate investment in skills, the industry will run into serious skills bottlenecks.
"Through our industrial strategy we are working in partnership with the automotive sector as it goes from strength to strength. We are providing businesses with the confidence to invest, and to create high skilled jobs," Cable added.
Among the household names driving the partnership are Bentley, BMW, Ford, GKN, Honda, Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan, Toyota and Vauxhall.
Not for profit employer led skills organisation Semta, industry trade association the SMMT working through the Automotive Council also support the Automotive Industrial Partnership in conjunction with the Industry Forum, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES).
